22 November 2006

science fiction book meme

Thanks to Elizabeth Lane Lawley and Paul Watson....

"Below is a Science Fiction Book Club list most significant SF novels between 1953-2006. The meme part of this works like so: Bold the ones you have read, strike through the ones you read and hated, italicize those you started but never finished and put a star next to the ones you love."

  1. The Lord of the Rings, J.R.R. Tolkien * (yep, it is a classic as is The Hobbit, I enjoyed reading the latter to secondary school children when I was training as an English teacher)
  2. The Foundation Trilogy, Isaac Asimov (I love the broad scope and breadth of this series)
  3. Dune, Frank Herbert ** (The ambiance of the original book in this series is hard to beat, not really captured by any film adaptation I've seen yet)
  4. Stranger in a Strange Land, Robert A. Heinlein * (I did like this as a teenager)
  5. A Wizard of Earthsea, Ursula K. Le Guin ** (although a Children's book, I really like this one still)
  6. Neuromancer, William Gibson (okay in parts)
  7. Childhood's End, Arthur C. Clarke (don't remember this one, though I loved a lot of his stuff)
  8. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Philip K. Dick * (fantastic, though is it this high just because of Blade Runner the film adaptation?)
  9. The Mists of Avalon, Marion Zimmer Bradley (I have this but never got around to reading it)
  10. Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury (a classic, prefer some of his short stories though)
  11. The Book of the New Sun, Gene Wolfe * (was fresh when it came out, I like it less now looking back)
  12. A Canticle for Leibowitz, Walter M. Miller, Jr. *** (a beautiful story)
  13. The Caves of Steel, Isaac Asimov (I do remember this one!)
  14. Children of the Atom, Wilmar Shiras (umm, heard of this but never read it)
  15. Cities in Flight, James Blish ** (an often overlooked classic)
  16. The Colour of Magic, Terry Pratchett (first head this serialised on BBC Radio 4's Women's Hour before it became a cult classic, love the spoof of Fritz Leiber's Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser!)
  17. Dangerous Visions, edited by Harlan Ellison * (a very good anthology of short stories)
  18. Deathbird Stories, Harlan Ellison (must have missed this one)
  19. The Demolished Man, Alfred Bester (not memorable for me)
  20. Dhalgren, Samuel R. Delany (preferred his Neveryon series and Babel 17)
  21. Dragonflight, Anne McCaffrey * (read many in this series as a teenager)
  22. Ender's Game, Orson Scott Card (only one I didn't really like at all)
  23. The First Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever, Stephen R. Donaldson (steered clear of this as it was over hyped, might be worth revisiting now)
  24. The Forever War, Joe Haldeman * (only a Vietnam veteran author could have brought the real pointlessness of war to this story)
  25. Gateway, Frederik Pohl (liked some of his short stories more)
  26. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, J.K. Rowling (yes and I have the kids' cover)
  27. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams * (A true believer I prefer the original BBC radio series, and have it on my iPod)
  28. I Am Legend, Richard Matheson (known as a classic, didn't do much for me)
  29. Interview with the Vampire, Anne Rice (saw the film and enjoyed it)
  30. The Left Hand of Darkness, Ursula K. Le Guin * (Really brilliant)
  31. Little, Big, John Crowley (umm, heard of this too)
  32. Lord of Light, Roger Zelazny (really liked his Amber series)
  33. The Man in the High Castle, Philip K. Dick * (loved the mood of this one, like all of Dick's stuff)
  34. Mission of Gravity, Hal Clement (passed me by)
  35. More Than Human, Theodore Sturgeon (not a big hit with me)
  36. The Rediscovery of Man, Cordwainer Smith (read some other stuff by him)
  37. On the Beach, Nevil Shute (famous, but haven't read it)
  38. Rendezvous with Rama, Arthur C. Clarke (I liked this one)
  39. Ringworld, Larry Niven (loved this in a lightweight sort of way)
  40. Rogue Moon, Algis Budrys (fine)
  41. The Silmarillion, J.R.R. Tolkien (not so hot on this)
  42. Slaughterhouse-5, Kurt Vonnegut * (loved this)
  43. Snow Crash, Neal Stephenson (missed this, though I know the author)
  44. Stand on Zanzibar, John Brunner (took me two goes to read it, but I did like it)
  45. The Stars My Destination, Alfred Bester (quite liked this)
  46. Starship Troopers, Robert A. Heinlein (a good kids' story)
  47. Stormbringer, Michael Moorcock * (I loved this as a teenager, read loads of Moorcock)
  48. The Sword of Shannara, Terry Brooks (nah)
  49. Timescape, Gregory Benford (nah)
  50. To Your Scattered Bodies Go, Philip Jose Farmer *** (A fantastic concept - bring back to life every human being who ever lived and put them in one place, great choice of heros: Sam Clemens, the author known as Mark Twain, and Richard Burton, the English explorer)

Cannot beleive that Edgar Rice Burroughs Martian series isn't listed - but it does say post 1953! See my previous posting on this....

Posted by mofoghlu at November 22, 2006 1:30 PM
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