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/lit/ - Literature

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3872402 No.3872402 [Reply] [Original]

Sup, /lit/erati?

Anybody read any good science fiction lately?

>> No.3872437

>good
>science fiction
DOES NOT COMPUTE

>> No.3872463

>>3872437
fuck you.

hitchhikers guide to the galaxy

>> No.3872476

>>3872402
The Foundation series

>> No.3872606

>>3872437
NEWFAG DOESNT KNOW THAT LIT LIKES SCI FI
LOOK AT HIM TRYING SO HARD TO FIT IN
>>>/mu/

>> No.3872608

Evolution by Stephen Baxter

>> No.3872644

>>3872606
The plebs on lit like sci fi.

Lurk more newfag, I've been here since the beginning of summer

>> No.3872673

Recently read J.G. Ballard's "low flying aircraft" short story collection. This nigger is crazy yo

He's probably the only surrealist writer who I really enjoy. (that said it's not like I've read much surrealist writing)

>> No.3872812
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3872812

>>3872644
>I've been here since the beginning of summer
>June 21st

>> No.3872965
File: 263 KB, 1203x1600, ender'sgame.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
3872965

>>3872402
fucking brilliant

>> No.3873267

>>3872606
>ITT
>newfag that likes sci-fi calls newfag a summerfag that doesn't like sci-fi

i guess i'm going to read my DFW somewhere else

>> No.3873278

>>3872965
good bate m8
How about soemthing that isnt a children book ?
>>3872402
Good s-f books i read recently
Jurassic park - i was shocked since i thought it will be horrible
The mote in gods eye
Hyperion - decent, read only first 2 books, 2 next ones are pretty bad
1984 by orwell - yeah a classic, but i didnt read it before
Spin by wilson
Altered carbon

Read maybe 20 more, all were shit.
Its really hard to find at least decent s-f book.

>> No.3873281

>>3873278
oh and Sphere by Crichton was ok, only ending was weak

>> No.3873490

Finished The Man in the High Castle today, while I was basking in the sun.

>> No.3873492

>>3873267
Didn't we use to argue whether DFW was sci-fi, or was that only those Rand novels?

>> No.3873500

Reading Ender's Game.

Enjoying it a lot.

>The Forever War
>Starship Troopers

Loved these as well.

>VALIS

>> No.3873504

Fahrenheit 451

Seriously good. Impressive in its foretelling skills.

>> No.3873509

>>3873504
>Impressive in its foretelling skills.
In what way, exactly?

>> No.3873512

What's that scifi book by that eastern european guy? It's supposed to be good. Think he did something called solaris or something?

>> No.3873517

>>3873512
Stanislaw Lem. And yes, Polaris.

>> No.3873519

>>3873509

It was published in the early 50's, you may not notice these things if you forget that.

Things Bradbury made up which eventually existed:

>earphones
>bigger and bigger tv screens
>reality TV

To mention just a few off the top of my head.You can read it today and think he wrote the book some months ago.

And it's excellently written.

>> No.3873520

>>3873512

Solaris by Stanislav Lem. He's Polish.

The only translation in English sucks because it's translated from the French translation.

>> No.3873524

>>3873278
What's wrong with children's books?

>> No.3873528

>>3873524

>implying Ender's Game is a children's book

This is why /lit/ is 80% shit.

>> No.3873535

>>3873528
Go to reddit, they'll think you're mad patrician and mature reading Ender's Game

>> No.3873538

>>3873535
The PrintSF subreddit is much better at discussion SF that /lit/ ever was.

>> No.3873541
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3873541

Let's just get this one out of the way

>> No.3873544

>>3873541
Never read one Gene Wolfe book. The synopsis generally make them sound silly.

>> No.3873546

>>3873544
Have you "never read" a Gene Wolfe book, or are you saying to "never read" one?

>> No.3873549

>>3873546
Former. Not too big a fan of fantasy I must admit.

>> No.3873557

Some sci-fi recommendations you may not usually hear but are extremely good:

The Quantum Thief/The Fractal Prince by Hannu Rajajijaijemeimeij
The Story of Your Life and Other Stories by Ted Chiang
Silently and Very Fast by Catherynne M. Valente
Mockingbird by Walter Tevis
Stand on Zanzibar by John Brunner (pretty good, but a bit dated)
The Futurological Congress by Stanislaw Lem

these are very good, and you will be very happy if you read any of them

>> No.3873558

>>3873549
Ah ok, well if there are any Fantasy/Scifi authors worth reading, Gene Wolfe is among them.

>> No.3874146
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3874146

Stanislav Lem's Solaris

>> No.3874711
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3874711

I read "Ringworld" years ago. Loved it. and there's more.

>> No.3874726

>>3874711
For me it was a frustrating read. The sole point of interest was the world itself, which might have been fine if there was something interesting about it. Not sure how it was 40 years ago but in the present it feel painfully dated.

>> No.3874859

Alastair Reynolds
Chasm City

Also: DUNEDUNEDUNEDUNEDUNEDUNEDUNEDUNEDUNEDUNE

>> No.3874895

>>3873492
Only Infinite Jest is Sci-fi.

>> No.3874915

I read The Automatic Detective and it was okay. It held my attention from start to finish, but wasn't very thought-provoking or original.

Inspired by the robot detective theme, I read Asimov's The Caves of Steel and enjoyed it a lot more.

>> No.3874945

>>3874859
>DUNE
did you reread it recently ? I did after like 12 years.
I didnt age so well to put it lightly.

>> No.3874981

>>3873492
ij has scifi elements but the emphasis is on social issues

>>3872402
blindsight's ok if you can stand the artemis fowl for adults shit and the realization that watts would have been better off just writing a nonfiction book

>> No.3874982

The End of Eternity by Asimov. An underrated gem.

>> No.3875003

Stranger from a Strange Land by Robert A. Heinlein. I quite liked it.

>> No.3875009

>>3873549
Thing about The Book of the New Sun is that on the surface, it's fantasy, but the more you read the more you realise it's actually straight-up science fiction in disguise. And then you realise that there's a third layer of higher-concept fantasy behind that.

My single favourite book of all time. Wolfe is just a genius. I could read it a hundred times and there would still be brilliant little details I'd never get. If anyone ever disparages the literary credentials of sci-fi and fantasy, Wolfe is my go-to counter-argument.

>> No.3875033

What is the name of that author who is supposedly a smarter more hard science type of philip k dick?

>> No.3875052

>>3875003
I liked some elements of that book, but a lot of it just didn't make sense. That is to say, a lot of it wasn't logically sound. The main character was a human raised on Mars. How the fuck does that give him magical powers and change his physiology? And how in the hell am I supposed to believe that he can teach other Earthling humans how to have those powers and change the nature of their physical bodies in the same way?

>> No.3875058

>>3875052
the answer is group sex

>> No.3875062

>>3875052
>How the fuck does that give him magical powers and change his physiology
Refer to the "Newtype Hypothesis"

In poetic terms, "Their souls are no longer bound by the pull of the Earth's gravity"

>> No.3875068
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3875068

>>3872402
OP I recently stumbled across this book and I think it was fantastic. It reminded me of the Otherland series

He's a relatively new author, he only has this and another book called "Cyberstorm" out. I recommend checking him out

>> No.3875070

>>3875058
and libertarianism

>> No.3875071

>>3875058
>>3875062
Obviously I understood every concept metaphorically, I'm just talking about the logic of the book not even being able to stand under its own weight.

No matter how open-minded you are or what you've learned, no one can survive being shot or being drowned and all the other stuff he could do. I'm willing to accept that a native Martian might be able to do these things because they're not the same as humans physically.

>> No.3875074

>>3872965
I honestly think that "Treason" was a better book than EG. What did you think of it anon?

>> No.3875167

>>3875052

Well of course it didnt make sense according to real world rules, its a science fiction novel. However most of what you're speaking about did make sense according to the internal logic of the book. What didnt make sense to me was how little people actually knew of the martians and how sparsely Michael explained of them. Also the water brother's reactions to the ending were not congruous with their eternal love for mike

>> No.3875220

>>3874859
I read the first 3 books recently for the first time, it felt pretty mediocre. I can't believe I'd ever say it but I felt the movie (Lynch's) was a bit better even though it changed quite a few concepts and added stuff that has never been in the books.

>> No.3875239

/co/mrade here, I recently read the "Electric Ant" comic which is based on a Philip K. Dick short story. Does anyone know the short story? is it the same or are they different?

>> No.3875367
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3875367

>> No.3875507

>>3875367
>Stranger from a Strange Land
this was pretty bad ass, it aged okay but it has issues because of it,
this and dune are required reading for any sci fi fans

>> No.3875514

>>3875507
me again fuck that stranger from a strange land right off i didnt clear the text box before posting so this was in there i meant a road side picnic

>> No.3875516

>>3873278
>1984 by orwell

I liked Brave New World way better

1984 was bitching about external rule

brave new world in my opinion was a much more plausible (some would say it's already hppened) and thought provoking (esp in terms of morality/ethics) because it was self-imposed imprisionment

>> No.3875517

>>3873520

>tfw no qt imaginary gf recreated from memory by a sentient sun

>> No.3875525

>>3874945
>I did after like 12 years.
>I didnt age so well to put it lightly.

You're crazy. I read it about a year ago and it's definitely one of the best books I've read.

Also for hard scifi fans I recommend Rendezvous with Rama by Autist C Clarke. Great attention to detail and realism and there's nothing to unsuspend disbelief.

>> No.3875539

>>3872402
Some of the stuff I read recently:
Altered Carbon
Roadside Picnic
Children of Dune
Count Zero
Angel Exterminatus

>> No.3875543

>>3875539
>Roadside Picnic
>Children of Dune

how were these? was count zero worth reading compared to neuromancer?

>> No.3875565

>>3875516

Ugh. One was written pre World War II and one post. Use your brain to figure out why that matters and why both books are brilliant.

>> No.3875585

>>3875543
Roadside Picnic is pretty cool, a large part of it talks about how much society and life has changed due to the artifacts and Zones. It's no longer the golden age of Stalkers.
Children of Dune is decent. It doesn't have the weird and trippy feel that Messiah did, and it's pretty much the climax of the Dune series as a whole. The prophecy of the Kwisatz Haderach is fulfilled essentially. Paul goes down like a bitch though.
Count Zero is certainly stranger and more esoteric than Neuromancer. It's a lot like the difference between Dune and Dune Messiah.

>> No.3875587

>>3875585
WHY DID I HOVER OVER THAT SPOILER WHY WHY WHY WHY WHY

>> No.3875619

>>3873519
knowledge suppression hasn't been a new thing for centuries

>> No.3875634

>>3873519

I read it ages ago but the imagery that stuck with me were the miles long personalized billboards on the highways. Really interesting how the exaggeration is often right on the money.

That being said if I read it again today I'd probably be rolling my eyes at the book burning stuff. Something about English teachers and the sacredness of books and how kids these days are always on tumblr and uphill both ways and all that yap.

>> No.3875648

"Sole Solution", by Eric Frank Russell is great, its only two pages long.

Probably best sci-fi story written.

>> No.3875657
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3875657

>>3875648

god fucking dammit how can one screw up a simple webpage this badly

>> No.3875683

>>3875648

So its basically a crude ripoff of Asimov's Las t Question?

>> No.3875684

>>3874726
The post-Niven guest authors I don't think really understood the size of the Ringworld. Some of their stories read as claustrophobic, rather than of a world that's millions of times the land area of Earth.

>> No.3875689

The best science fiction story ever is "The Man Who Lost The Sea" by Theodore Sturgeon okay bye

>> No.3875694

>>3872402
The Bible.

>> No.3876111

Re reading Use of Weapons right now. It's even better the second time now that I understand what's going on.

>> No.3876553

>>3875694
fantasy = s-f
get out kiddo

>> No.3876573

>>3872402
Ok OP you know the drill.
Is that pic from a film if yes post.

>> No.3876577

>>3876573
its from some shrot amateur 5 min movie, not worth the time

>> No.3876579

>>3874711
>halo.jpg
IT ALL FITS NOW

>> No.3876583

i cant beleive no one has mentioned PKD yet!
just got done with the three stigmata of palmer eldritch, not his best, but pretty good nonetheless.

oh, and arthur c clarkes rendezvous with rama might well be my favourite "first contact" scifi ever.

some of isaac asimovs short robot stories are pretty awesome too.

>> No.3876587
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3876587

>talks about scifi
>no Robin Cook
Read this book when i was 10 fucking good man.

>> No.3876589

>>3876587
Have you reread is as an adult?

>> No.3876591

>>3876577
But it looks so cool

>> No.3876596

>>3876589
Sadly no the, book is missing some pages and is falling apart.
It was OLD when i first read it... might have to get an ebook or audiobook.

>> No.3876614

>>3872965
this is the inception of literature. utterly shit constantly overrated by 18-24 year old readdit fags. and that's not snobbery, it's just bad like most science fiction

>> No.3876624

A Voyage to Arcturus is excellent

>> No.3876642

Foundation series is genius. Have not read the prequel books though.

The Worthing Saga by OSC was also a really moving collection

>> No.3876659

>>3876596
>>3876587
I downloaded a Robin Cook collection from Demonoid a few years back, I read mutation.... it was horrible, not the story... the fucking audiobook was recorded from a cassette tape.... I cannot say how much that hurt to read that. Story was enjoyable but... jesus the medium in which it was received. Scratchy. jumpy, background static are only a few of the wrongs that that torrent did to me.

>> No.3877416
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3877416

>>3872402
This

>> No.3877433
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3877433

I read some scifi every now and then, mostly light stuff. Here are some I really enjoyed:

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
Dune
Ender's Game
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Starship Troopers
1984
Brave New World

>> No.3877461

>>3872402
I just finished today Hard-Boiled Wonderland and The End of the World by Haruki Murakami. It's fucking awesome.

>> No.3877462

Lately I've read:

Ballard: Crash & High Rise
McDonald: Scissors Cut Paper Wrap Stone
Niven: Ringworld
Reynolds: Chasm City
Stephenson: Snow Crash
Vinge: A Fire Upon the Deep

Right now I'm about halfway through Revelation Space. Out of these I can praise only Ballard's and McDonald's books as solid efforts, everything else feels either dated, drawn-out or outright failed. I guess I'll go to M. John Harrison's Light, McDonald's River of Gods or Dan Simmons' Ilium, probably after reading bunch of something non-sci-fi first.

>> No.3877513

>>3872402
>2k13
>not reading everything by Ray Bradbury
>mfw

>> No.3878047

>>3877433
>that pic
>being this racist
>on /lit/
>>>/pol/

>> No.3878073
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3878073

I just finished I, Robot. I highly recommend it, especially if you haven't read any of Asimov's work.

>> No.3878077

stanislaw lem, olaf stapledon, ray bradbury, david lindsay, asimov, h.g wells

>> No.3878145
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3878145

I'm trying to remember the title of this science fiction book i read in high school. it had a rooster on the cover. it took place during the apocalypse and this guy finds a talking rooster that has god like powers. he tells the guy he is an alien and his people are responsible for most of the life that populates the universe. can someone pls tell me the title of the book, I've been looking for it for years.

>> No.3878317

>>3878145

The Book of the Dun Cow? I haven't read it, but I've seen it at a library I go to. It has a rooster on the cover, too, and is classified as science fiction.

>> No.3878328

>>3878047
>can't enjoy a little fun racial humour
>das raziss

>> No.3878336
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3878336

>>3878047
>implying his pic isn't funny
>having a problem with "racism"
>being this much of a self-righteous Internet humanitarian
Shouldn't you be updating your Tumblr right now? I'm sure your readers are missing your scathing critiques of transablism and profound insights into heterobinary privilege.

>> No.3878489

>>3873557
Best books in the thread.

>> No.3878506

>>3878047
What's fun about that? Where's the humor? It's just mean-spirited and trite.
Why even try to defend something that's not worth defending? Do you actually think that's funny? If so, you have a terrible sense of humor.

>> No.3879064

>>3878506
I think you meant to quote this >>3878328 and this >>3878336

>> No.3879120

>>3874915
The Automatic Detective sounds good.

Read Kiln People.

>> No.3879145

>>3872402
Cool pic, OP. I'd never heard of that whole film thing, with all those films, beforehand, so cool, cool work.

>> No.3879487

>>3878145
OH FUCK. It's called Future Eden!

>> No.3879488

>>3879487
There's also a sequel! It's alright
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/496607.Space

>> No.3879506
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3879506

I'd link it to you, but I only have a hard copy of it.

>> No.3879688

>>3874945
>I didnt age so well to put it lightly.
Dune, not aging well? Uh, that's certainly the first time I heard this criticism.

>> No.3879697

Heinlein, Asimov and Clarke are all so awfully dull. As someone whose walls are lined with stacks of science fiction paperbacks, it seriously bothers me that those are considered to be the "go-to" authors for people interested in science fiction.

>> No.3879702

>>3879697
>As someone whose walls are lined with stacks of science fiction paperbacks
You're not. If you were, you would understand the importance they had in shaping the genre. Even if say, Cordwainer Smith is a much, much better writer, his foray was mostly his, and didn't shape a whole lot of other writers like those three did.

>> No.3879716

>>3879702
Being important in shaping the genre doesn't mean they can't be dull, especially for a contemporary reader. Just saiyan'.

>> No.3879726

Press Enter■ by John Varley is still one of my very favorite SF novella ever. It is funny, endearing, dramatic and lastly, chilling to the bone.

Steel Beach and Golden Globe by the same author are pretty damn good too.

>> No.3879739

>>3879697
>Heinlein
>Dull
Well, you were two for three. Nice try.

>> No.3879751

>>3879702

Of course I understand their importance, but that hardly stops their work from being incredibly dry.

Cordwainer Smith is a damn god, though.

>> No.3879770

>>3879751
"I did not think to find her there,
she was not the girl i came to seek
she did not speak the french of france,
but the surded french of Martinique.."