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Before the comments fill up with “Why didn’t you include this” and various slights against our personal and professional integrity, this is just a list of ten great science fiction novels, not in order, and by no means the top ten ever produced. ‘Ten of the best’, not ‘the ten best’. That being said, please post up your own favourites, as we’re always looking for new things to read.
10. The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress
Published: 1966
Author: Robert Heinlein
Awards: Hugo (1967), Nebula (1966), Prometheus, (1983)
Heinlein’s elegantly constructed novel evokes some of the finest traditions in science fiction, with a near-future setting on the mongrel colony of Luna, which is preparing its revolution against the tyrannical rule of Earth. Although much of the novel doesn’t make the strictest sense in a sociological, political and creative way, it’s still one of the greatest works of SF.
9. Ender’s Game
Published: 1985
Author: Orson Scott Card
Awards: Hugo (1986), Nebula (1985)
Card’s seminal novel has been in and out of the news since its release, whether it’s for the long-mooted (and finally killed) idea of a film adaptation, through to the graphic novel version, through to it being a set text at US military academies. It’s worth reading, and relatively short, for those of us who are slightly word shy.
8. A Canticle For Leibowitz
Published: 1960
Author: Walter M Miller Jr
Awards: Hugo (1961)
It’s nigh-on impossible to talk seriously about the post-apocalyptic subgenre of science fiction without mentioning Walter M Miller Jr’s A Canticle For Leibowitz. Almost universally regarded as a bona fide classic, the novel spans many years in its fictional universe, and has done so as well in the real world through the raw power of Miller’s storytelling ability.
7. Flowers For Algernon
Published: 1966
Author: Daniel Keyes
Awards: Nebula (1966-tie with Babel-17 by Samuel R Delany)
Flowers For Algernon is one of those odd books that you often hear referenced in popular culture, and one that everyone seems to be familiar with the story of, but doesn’t seem to have been read by anyone. Those who haven’t are really missing out. Keyes’s searing, poignant and eloquent tale of a man thrust into situations he has no control over is still resonant, and ultimately, timeless.
6. We
Published: 1924
Author: Yevgeny Zamyatin
Awards: N/A
Widely credited with inspiring George Orwell’s 1984, Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, and Kurt Vonnegut’s Player Piano, Yevgeny Zamyatin’s We also has the dubious distinction of being one of the first novels banned by the Soviet Union’s literary censorship bureau, finally seeing a Russian language version in the late Eighties. Do your brain a favour, and read it.
5. The Forever War
Published: 1974
Author: Joe Haldeman
Awards: Nebula (1975)
Joe Haldeman’s hypnotic account of an interstellar war, and returning home to find yourself unable to integrate into a changed culture is highly allegoric, and particularly sad when taken in the context that it serves as a loose metaphor for the author’s experiences in Vietnam. Ridley Scott seems to like it as well, due to the fact that he’s currently got an adaptation on his production slate.
4. Childhood’s End
Published: 1953
Author: Arthur C Clarke
Awards: N/A
Weaving macrocosmic concepts with a deft hand and a number of human characters to ground the story in a relative sense, Childhood’s End is often cited as one of Clarke’s best novels. It may not have the same level of fame as Rendezvous With Rama, or 2001: A Space Odyssey, but our copies are falling apart from all of the times we’ve read them.
3. A Fire Upon The Deep
Published: 1992
Author: Vernor Vinge
Awards: Hugo (1993), Nebula (1992)
Written in Vinge’s usual complex style, this novel covers an equally large array of subjects. Genocide, love, betrayal and more technological areas are touched on, contributing to the whole of this excellent novel. If some of you doubt the author’s pedigree in science fiction, he recently won another Hugo for his novel Rainbows End. Give it a whirl, it’s not for everyone, but we loved it.
2. The Foundation Trilogy
Published:1951-1953
Author: Isaac Asimov
Awards: Hugo (1965)
There simply isn’t a more recognisable name in science fiction than Isaac Asimov, and Foundation is arguably his most popular series (if not itself the most recognisable). Indeed, Emmerich is doing a film version, and The Guardian even postulated a while back that Osama Bin Laden was influenced by Foundation. Perhaps not the best epitaph for SF’s most beloved author.
1. The Stars My Destination
Published: 1956
Author: Alfred Bester
Awards: N/A
I kill you filthy, Vorga! Bester’s best-known novel has had an indelible impact on the genre from the moment it was published, and still remains one of those hidden gems for the new generation that you only really find once you’ve become inextricably involved with SF. Joe Haldeman calls it a work of genius, and we’d be hard-pressed to disagree.
More Top 10s:
The Top 10 Star Wars: The Clone Wars Episodes
The Top 10 SciFi Movie Posters
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Starship Troopers is another essential, especially if you count The Forever War in the list.
I’d tend to disagree. While I like Starship Troopers and do count it as a classic of SF lit, I don’t think that it has the same level of complexity and emotional resonance as The Forever War. The novel is, after all, mostly set in a training camp.
I’m aware of the extraneous political arguments that accompany it, and I did debate including it, but in the end I decided The Forever War was the superior text.
Great list of books here. I’ve read many, and I’ll be checking out the ones I haven’t. As far as what’s missing, I was a little surprised not to find Dune here! Also, though it’s fantasy and not strictly sci/fi, I’d have liked seeing Roger Zelazney’s Chronicles of Amber as well.
While I agree with most all of your choices, my list would replace Heinlein’s “Moon Is A Harsh Mistress” with his epic “Time Enough For Love”. And, simply because I haven’t yet read “We”. I would replace it with Pat Frank’s amazing “Alas Babylon”.
Missed a couple:
Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy
Dune
Stranger in a Strange Land
@Pat Owens: Ah, Alas Babylon is fantastic! Good shout. However, We is far better.
@zaphod121: I seem to be alone in not rating Dune as highly as most people. Nevertheless, I imagine I’ll have to do a second list tomorrow. I probably wouldn’t include DA on it though, in all honesty.
@Harrison: I did debate Zelazny as well, but in as far as these things go, you can only put what you know thoroughly on them. I think I read Chronicles Of Amber about five years ago, and it didn’t make as much of an impression on me as these did. Maybe it’s time for a revisit?
James,
Definitely return to Zelazny’s Chronicles first chance you get. It is quality fantasy. Highly entertaining with some deeper subjects threaded throughout.
Oh, and as far as Heinlein goes… I’d probably have gone with Stranger also :).
Hey, James, I’ll take some of the heat off you so people can flame me instead. “Dune” is probably the most over-rated science fiction novel of all time…I’ve read it 3 times thinking I missed something. But I just get more disappointed each time.
Pat Owens, I flame thee.
@Harrison – There’s my weekend’s reading sorted then!
@Pat Owens – Well yeah, it just didn’t grab me the same way that it did others I suppose. Thanks for the assist!
Ähm – no Stanilaw Lem? No Solaris? No Tichy?
Also: No Douglas Adams and no Phillip K. Dick (at least Bladerunner?)
You’re freakin me out…
“Before the comments fill up with “Why didn’t you include this” and various slights against our personal and professional integrity, this is just a list of ten great science fiction novels, not in order, and by no means the top ten ever produced. ‘Ten of the best’, not ‘the ten best’. That being said, please post up your own favourites, as we’re always looking for new things to read.”
Good list! The only one I disagree with is ENDER’S GAME. I feel that it is as overrated as DUNE.
Others I would include:
DYING INSIDE by Robert Silverberg
LEFT HAND OF DARKNESS by Ursula K. LeGuin
LORD OF LIGHT by Roger Zelazny
NOVA by Samuel R. Delany
THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE by Philip K. Dick
HYPERION CANTOS (HYPERION and THE FALL OF HYPERION) by Dan Simmons
DOOMSDAY BOOK by Connie Willis
THE BOOK OF THE NEW SUN by Gene Wolfe
NATURAL HISTORY by Justina Robson
STAND ON ZANZIBAR by John Brunner
PARABLE OF THE SOWER by Octavia Butler
THE MARTIAN CHRONICLES by Ray Bradbury
THE CHILD GARDEN by Geoff Ryman
RIVER OF GODS by Ian McDonald
FAIRYLAND by Paul J. McAuley
THE SUMMER ISLES by Ian MacLeod
CHASM CITY by Alastair Reynolds
There’s lots more but that’s probably too many already.
I have read six of the ten. I recently read ‘City’ by Clifford D. Simak, and rate it as my new all time favorite. I love these kind of posts. They are how I choose what classics I want to read. Thanks.
Versions of a few from your list are online too:
Yevgeny Zamyatin’s “We”: MP3.
“Childhood’s End”: audio (probably radio adaptation).
“Ender’s Game”: Text of original short story.
Shakespeare’s Planet by Simak.
Some Will Not Die by Algis Budrys.
War Of Two Worlds by Poul Anderson.
And my introduction to science fiction, This Perfect Day by Ira Levin
I could possibly make one or two changes but they are definitely all right up there.
1953 for Childhoods End? – I had forgotten it was that long ago.
If you get a chance maybe check out my own modest contribution at:
http://www.StrategicBookPublishing.com/ScienceFictionandAlternateHistory.html
Cheers
DUNE was a very overrated book in my opinion as well , not bad , but not as epic as everyone else makes out.
Why not read something from Peter.F Hamilton, England’s best selling sci fi author , i suggest reading
“Pandora’s Star then Judas Unchained” (its other half of the series of 2)
great books , and any of his other series are fascinating
These sort of lists will always disappoint more people than they satisfy as everyone will have their own list which they think is definitive – me inlcuded. Here’s a few that I was surpirsed to see missed.
Thomas M Disch – The Seedling Stars
Robert Silverberg – Tower of Glass
Michael Moorcock – Behold The Man
Clifford D Simak – Ring around the Sun
Phillip K Dick – Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep
Ray Bradbury – Damnation Alley
J G Ballard – High Rise
I agree with most of the greats but having been an avid sf reader for more than 50 years I must add the following:
John Wyndham – The Chrysalids. Read more more often than I can remember and so real it’s fresh every time.
Linda Nagata – Vast. The best hard sf ever written by a woman – or anyone. Stunning vision.
Dean R. Koontz – Lightning. His best. Not just neat time travel but his best characters ever. Shades of Terminator but much more substance.
Robert Silverberg – Thorns. Once read never forgotten and can be addictive.
Theodore Sturgeon – The Dreaming Jewels. An old classic full of charm and wonderful surprises. Even knowing the plot it is still readable time and again.
A lot depends on your definition of SF, but for hard SF I cannot imagine anything better than Dan Simmons’s Hyperion Cantos. (Hyperion is so good it is in my all-time list for serious fiction.) I also loved reading Benford’s Great Sky River and Tides of Light.
For me it will always be Frank Herberts Dune series. x
Good list, but, with the exception of A Fire Upon the Deep and Ender’s Game (which was really published in 1985? Sheesh!)it seems to stop circa ’75. Not much representing Cyberpunk here – I think that Neuromancer would get onto most people’s lists (I think that the Sprawl trilogy has had a massive influence on the genre).
Well there are a lot of great titles that have already been mentioned and i now have a very large list of new authors to investigate. However i am a little shocked that WILLIAM GIBSON has not been mentioned “Neuromancer” is a stunning book. My other fav by him is “pattern Recognition” Definately worth a look.
John Varley ‘The Ophiuchi Hotline’- superbly clever and engaging science fiction!
Greg Bear ‘Eon’- wow- worlds within worlds, memories, intersections…
George R R Martin ‘Dying of the Light’.
Christopher priest ‘A Dream of Wessex’.
I won’t go on- I’m getting all nostalgic!
Asimov is always no.1 for me.
Then:
Heinlein,
Poul,
Vance,
Van Vogt.
I have to agree with pretty much everything on your list. And for everyone who wants to say “hey wait you missed X,” of course there are other works which people should read; but there wasn’t enough room to list them all. I personally think the most complete (if a little long) list is at
http://www2.ku.edu/~sfcenter/sflib.htm
But the ten you cited are all absolute MUST READS of SF. It was interesting that you talked about the whole BS with The Guardian. I’m pretty sure ol’ Osama wouldn’t want to be caught dead with inspiration from anyone other than his twisted interpretation of Allah, much less the Russian-American Atheist, Humanist Jew that was Asimov.
I agree with most of the people on the comments that Dune was the most overrated book in SF history. The characters are worse than cardboard and I hated the unnecessary appeal to mysticism. I know a lot of people really like it, and I have no issue with them liking it as long as they’ve actually read other SF. But I’ve known some people who’ve read either nothing or little else in SF (or any other genre for that matter) but who are convinced Dune’s “The BEST book of science fiction if not of ALL TIME.” These are the people who annoy me; please don’t be one of them.
How about The Giver? I like most of the books on this list and the ones in the comments (the ones that I’ve read at least.)
DUNE… should be all ten
and i have read my fair share… if you don’t think DUNE is worthy, its because you didn’t read the original six. read those and you will know why DUNE is like nothing you have ever experienced
oh, and its not there is no true mysticism in DUNE, only political minipulation of peoples religious beliefs.
and what was cardboard about Muad ‘Dib? or Leto II, or DUNCAN IDAHO?
I did not enjoy The Stars My Destination that much
No Ursula K LeGuin .. how disappointing.
Excellent list — I have to side with the folks that don’t care for Dune, I don’t like Herbert’s writing style, and the religio-political underpinning just bored me to tears. I am very sorry Hitchhiker’s Guide didn’t make the list, or Neuromancer, but as has been said, there is only so much room. And may I also suggest Robert J. Sawyer’s book Flash Forward (don’t judge it by the TV series, please).
Maybe with all these suggestions you might try another list, or several, with subgenres (military sci-fi, space travel, robots/AI, etc) or whatever. Sci fi is so varied, you could easily cull a separate top 10 out of any of them.
@Bob Blough. Enders Game is a great book, and I enjoyed it immensely. The problem with it, in my opinion, is it hasn’t aged well. The finale is much too easy to predict, and seems gimmicky in today’s world.
Interesting list. I’ve only relatively recently decided to dwelve deeper into classic Science Fiction novels, and since your review of The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress so perfectly mirrored my feelings while reading it (highly entertaining, makes not a lick of sense), I’ll be checking out the other rccomendations on the list. Thanks!
Great list of books here. I’ve read many, and I’ll be checking out the ones I haven’t. As far as what’s missing, I was a little surprised not to find Dune here! Also, though it’s fantasy and not strictly sci/fi, I’d have liked seeing Roger Zelazney’s Chronicles of Amber as well.
.
Ah the natural order of the Universe. A list of top# is posted, and several people disagree, and say their ideas are better. It is beneath me to do that, and I applaud James Rundle for compiling that list. Besides, he’s wrong for not putting Heinlein’s Stranger in a Strange land in!!
Neuromancer, The Diamond Age, Anathem, Dune, Tides of Light, Anvil of Stars, Hyperion Cantos; the list is long of course. The Uplift books, Alastair Reynolds, Vernor Vinge! let me stop here.
This sucks because The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy isn’t on it. Incorrect
I was always partial to Larry Niven’s Ringworld and Lucifer’s Hammer.
Ian M. Banks Culture series.
Lists like these are more for those new to the genre as suggestions for the newbie to ground themselves in the subject. Those steeped in sf will find this type of thing subjective, and, of course, have their own cherished favorites. There are lotsa ways to slice and dice sf into subgenre, and frequently the aficionado of “I, Robot” or “The Humanoids” will find fault with “Dune” or “Titan”(as we see above, especially in the case of “Dune”). So Thanx! JR for the starter sample. Any of your choices is an excellent example of top shelf sf.
Pierce Anthony’s Bio of a Space Tryant series
How about Harry Harrison’s ‘Make Room, Make Room’ (1966)? People may know it better by the movie adaptation name ‘Soylent Green’. I agree the movie was probably in the ‘B’ category, but the book is much better.
I can really understand why people may not get as much into Dune as others, it can get kinda “dry” at times (sorry, had to do it), but I think you can get more from it if you read not just Dune, but the original trilogy, plus maybe God Emperor. It does take some serious reading time to get through all of those, but I think it makes for a far better total read. In the end though, everyone has their own likes and dislikes.
Here are a few other SF books I’d recommend beyond the great original list (of which I’ve read 7 and can agree to them being very good), and the good adds by those in the comments. Not all of these may be considered the “best” out there, but still worth a read if you are so inclined;
Ringworld, Rendezvous with Rama, The Mote in God’s Eye, Blood Music, The Cat Who Walks Through Walls, Old Man’s War, World War Z (stretching the term sci-fi a little, but whatever).
I also want to second, third, or whatever we are on now, reading through the Hyperion Cantos, since I just recently started re-reading it…
Woman on the Edge of Time by Marge Piercy
I am surprised nothing modern made the list. No cyberpuink whatsoever?
Some personal recommendations for those who have not read it yet would be;
Brasyl by Ian McDonald. A truly fantastic work with such ambition and scope.
Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell. 5 interweaving stories from the past present and future written in 5 different styles of writing. MESMERIC.
Altered Carbon by Richard Morgan. Excellent Cyberpunk.
The City and The City by China Mieville. Interesting sci-fi crime novel about overlapping cities occupying the same space and time.
Absolutely anything by Neal Stephenson. My personal favorite is probably Cryptonomicon. An amazing book. Would also recommend The Baroque cycle which is not strictly sci fi or fantasy but does have a feel and an aftertaste to it of the genre.
Great list, thanks!!!
I liked these too:
Stanislav Lem Futurelogical Congress
Stanislav Lem One human minute
Stanislav Lem Solaris
Stanislav Lem The Washing Machine Tragedy (short story found in Memoirs of a space traveler – further reminiscences of Ijon Tichy)
Greg Bear Blood Music
John sladek The Muller Fokker Effect
Olaf Stapleton Odd John
Rudy Rucker ‘Wetware’
Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood
Harlan Ellison’s ‘Paingod’, ‘I have no mouth, and I must scream’
Jack Vance’s ‘Demon Prince’ Novels
Neal Asher The Skinner
Theodore Sturgeon The Cosmic Rape
Robert Sheckly Can you Feel anything when I do this?
Alfred Bester the Demolished Man
First off, I love the time gap between comments. Thanks Stumble, for your magical power to show us long lost (almost a whole two years) websites.
I must be a novice Sci-fi reader because the only one from the list I’ve read is Ender’s Game and the only ones from the comments I’ve read are Hitchhiker’s Guide and Hyperion. I will say though, Ender’s Game had an immense impact on me when I first read it and I enjoyed just as much when I read it last week; I changed how I approached my own writing and relationships with close friends. Plus, anything that’s become required reading for military personnel belongs on a classics list. I certainly understand how Bob could not like Ender’s Game if he’s a fan of Hyperion, they’re sort of opposites in my eyes; the former is concise and personal while the latter is sort of sprawling and detached.
No love for Lord Foul’s Bane by Stephen R. Donaldson??????
My favorite series….
I have seen several lists of “the best” SciFi, but never before have I seen one I so thoroughly agree with. And yes, I know it ends in a preposition, but I live in Texas.
What about Ursula Le Guin? Maybe not the most traditional scifi writer, but the Dispossessed is Quintessential.
martian chronicles. cant be missed
Where is The Stainless Steel Rat?
What the heck happened to Dune?!
I’m a little surprised to not see any Philip K. Dick on here. “The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch” would top my list.
I will admit I’m not an avid reader of SF or Hard SF (I walk the line between fantasy and Scifi most of the time), but I was ravenous for the Tad Williams “Otherland” books as they came out. I was always a fan of Ender’s Game and marveled at it again when Ender’s Shadow came out. I will be jotting down the titles and authors listed above for future reading.
I would have ranked the Moon Is a Harsh Mistress and A Canticle for Leibowitz higher. I would also have IncludedStranger in a Strange Land, but can’t think what to bump/
How could this list not include Dune?
Memnon’s comment “I can really understand why people may not get as much into Dune as others, it can get kinda “dry” at times (sorry, had to do it)” is possibly the best comment I’ve ever read about a book.
I do understand why some people don’t like Dune, but the combination of ecological and political themes have always struck a spark in me. I need to read everything everyone’s suggested in the past 2 years on this article!
I agree that much of Dune is overrated. I would include “The Man in the High Castle” and/or “Flow My Tears said the Policeman” by Phillip K. Dick. I think “The Scar” by China Mieville would be an excellent choice. How about “The Pastel City” by M. John Harrison? Another all-time fav’ for me would be “The Word for World is Forest” by Ursula K. LeGuin. I would also insist on “Slaughterhouse Five” by Kurt Vonnegut. I regard “Ender’s Game” as overrated too. I’ve never read Vinge but I will. I’ve always planned to read Bester’s classic but still have not. With regard to Zelazny…..I would lean towards “This Immortal” or “Doorways in the Sand”. Wolfe has written many great novels, perhaps I would vote for “The Fifth Head of Cerebus”. As for Niven…..I would offer his collaboration with Pournelle: “Inferno” though dated in some respects the novel has a heart that still touches me. What can be said about Heinlein…..he looms above everything in an iconic manner like Stephan King in the modern horror genre…..my favorite would be “Time Enough For Love”. I don’t believe that the Foundation novels have aged well and I would prefer to see “The Caves of Steel” or “The Gods Themselves” as Asimov’s contribution to the list. What is one to say about Delaney……I am not even sure if “Dhalgren” is science fiction…..someone suggested “Nova” and I would be fine with that thought “Triton” could be argued for as well. I am reading “City” by Simak right now and will keep you posted; “Destiny’s Doll” is an enigmatic classic from his late period.
I agree with many that Dune should have been mentioned, but that is not the most gaping hole. The list had not a single mention of Jules Verne, and although Foundation was Asimov’s piece de resistance, I Robot is absolutely essential in any discussion of top-shelf SciFi.
Cyberpunk?
Ahahahahah!
Cyberpunk is for posers. True aficionados read Asimov, Adams, Wells, Verne. The greats my friends.
Learn it, Live it, Love it.
Not that there’s anything wrong with this list, but I would suggest someone just getting into the genre start there. I’ve read nine of these books, and they were all great. I would actually narrow it down to Wells and Verne for a true beginner. Nothing like the spirit of adventure of those two.
I like the list, although I never read We. I won’t get into what I think should be on the list–instead, I’d like to make a different point. Well, I would like to put in a plug for A.E. van Vogt’s book, Slan.
I enjoy seeing other people’s top ten lists because it helps me to find good books. My main complaint is that it is so difficult to find good sci-fi these days because some idiot decided that fantasy and science fiction were one genre and should all get stuffed together at the bookstore. No offense to fantasy readers, but I am interested in sci fi (especially hard science sci fi) and I find it difficult to know which is which without reading through a lot of what I am not looking for.
How do we get book publishers, libraries and book stores to separate sci fi from fantasy? It seems worthwhile to me.
Excellent list ! I love top tens if only because they are a good pointer for new books to read. I’ll definitely try the Vinge !
Dune is the first scifi book I’ve read in English, so it did leave an impression; funnily enough Ender’s game is the only one I’ve read (and re-read) in French only
@Donroy
If you’re into hard sci-fi the one you _have_ to try is any of Hamilton’s; they’re the ones I keep re-reading each time I get the chance.
In between I’ve also grown very fond of all of Neal’s Asher ‘Polity Novel’, they do have Banks sprawling and immersive quality, but none of its slightly elusive / cyphered / “I’m so clever you won’t understand a word beofer the 40th page” touch
Great choices but I think Clifford D.Simak’s Way station should also be on the list.. If your introducing your young children to this genre E.E. Doc Smith’s Lensmen series is a good start.
This is one of best and most comprehensive list of fiction books, I have most of them but I am going to buy that I dont already have. Thanks for posting.
The Stars My Destination by Alfred Bester, that name just blows my mind as Babylon 5′s creator had a Psy-cop Alfred Bester played by Walter Keoning. Mind blowing, did JMS plan it that way?
Personally I preferred the sci-fi novels Starship Troopers and the Lensman series. I find myself unable to finish Dune. It just bores me.
What about the “Rendezvous with Rama” series?
I would add “the zero stone” by Andre Norton for the concept of an ancient ruined spaceport.
also a “wrinkle in time” by Madeline D’engle
Stanislaw Lem – The Futurological Congress
Stanislaw Lem – The Invincible
Stanislaw Lem – Peace on Earth
Stanislaw Lem – Tales of Pirx the Pilot and of course Solaris
Arkady and Boris Strugatsky – Hard to Be a God
Arkady and Boris Strugatsky – Snail on the Slope
Arkady and Boris Strugatsky – Roadside Picnic
generally, works of Lem and Strugatsky brothers are my favourite of all times
The list was arguably too good. I came looking for something new; instead I was reminded of all my old favourites. Perhaps the only great series’ not mentioned anywhere would be the Grey Lensman series (very old) and Julian May’s Many Coloured Land (a very good read).
In contemporary authors, I would strongly second Peter F Hamilton’s Night’s Dawn.
Where is Iain M. Banks!?
Surprised and disappointed Kim Stanley Robinson’s Mars Trilogy didn’t get a mention… surely the pinnacle of future history, no?
Accelerando.
My all time favorites are Aldous Huxley’s “Brave New World” published circa 1932!! and Neal Stephenson’s “Snow Crash” circa 1992 for all the Cyberpunk’s out there ;-) …..
I’ve read 5 of the top 10 and still find DUNE to be the most vivid, well-imagined story I’ve ever read, in any genre. It takes a little work to get into the terminology (that’s why there’s a glossary at the end), but once you get past that, you can see the genius of Herbert’s complex world. You’ll never find a better blend of science, drama, and politics. I’ve probably read this novel 10 times, and every time, I’m able to find something new and amazing.
wtf? what about Dune?
Foundation and Robot Trilogies, along with the trilogy that brings them together are, by far, my favorite. Childhood’s End really is really close behind. For light reading Niven, Laumer and Bear were my favorites.
The Starmen of Llyrdis was my first SF novel. Bertram Chandler’s John Grimes series were particularly fun when I was in my twenties.
I checked and if I read this correctly Hitchhiker’s Guide to the galaxy has been mentioned 18 times in the comments. Yes I know Dune has been cited a few times but I agree with the majority that Dune while a good read would not be in my top ten like HHG and Enders Game.
what, no dispossessed or dune?
Hey everyone, i’m completely ignorant in what concerns Sci-Fi literature, but i’d like to change that, mainly from the impact of Kubrick’s Version of 2001 and Tarkovsky’s Solaris. Could you recommend me something of the sort, preferently related to the latter? Thanks
Thanks for the list! I would add Stranger in a Strange Land also, which was my intro to science fiction about 35 years ago. I don’t even know how many times I’ve reread it through the years, but love Heinlein so much. His Time Enough for Love is great, as well as The Number of the Beast. I agree with the Foundation series, and I am a Dune person as well. I think I had the book several years before I actually got going on it, but have reread the entire series many times. Childhood’s End, such a great book. Also would add Philip K. Dick’s Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep. Douglas Adams, well I certainly love the Hitchhiker series, but his The Long Dark Tea-time of the Soul is just incredible, and goes along with Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency. Yeah, and Brave New World. And The Illustrated Man. Old friend, all of them.
Problem with these lists is they are all in the eye of the beholder. For instance, I’ve seen several of you dissing Ender’s Game…while it is my favorite sci-fi novel ever written, and I’ve read all of the books on this list with the exception of ‘We’. That said, I read Ender’s Game when I was a child so it became ingrained in my mind and heart…thus I’m bias. But I still think the ending was one of the most satisfying even if you did figure it out before it happened (I didn’t but I was only 11). The tactics Ender employs during his battles are so original. Especially all the games at the battle school…goofy as it sounds Ender’s Shadow might possibly be even better. But that’s like talking godfather vs. godfather 2 IMO.
I can’t wait to see what Scott does with the forever war as a motion picture. Also…I to was not a huge fan of dune…kinda long winded with the political jibber jabber. But again just my opinion.
NO WOMEN authors, eh? Typical…not even one Ursula K LeGuin novel? “Dispossessed” or “Left Hand of Darkness’?
Ummm, what about the Hunger Games!!!
How did Hitchikers’ Guide get to be considered sci/fi? As much as I love the series, it is definitely fantasy.
I also understand how Dune got left off the list. When trying to limit yourself to only 10 of the best in the genre, it would be easy to fill the list with titles all published before 1970.
I was a bit dissapponted not to see Stephenson and Dick on the list. Snow Crash is almost a hand book for internet startups and Diamond Age is just amazing. Dick deserves credit for his visionary acumen. I can use ‘jacking in’ conversationally and everyone knows what it means.
This is a great list and I have read all but a couple of your picks. We is going on my wishlist.
here is a list of every book mentioned so far in the Comments (I may have missed a few)
BOOKS
DYING INSIDE by Robert Silverberg
LEFT HAND OF DARKNESS by Ursula K. LeGuin
LORD OF LIGHT by Roger Zelazny
NOVA by Samuel R. Delany
THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE by Philip K. Dick
HYPERION CANTOS (HYPERION and THE FALL OF HYPERION) by Dan Simmons
DOOMSDAY BOOK by Connie Willis
THE BOOK OF THE NEW SUN by Gene Wolfe
NATURAL HISTORY by Justina Robson
STAND ON ZANZIBAR by John Brunner
PARABLE OF THE SOWER by Octavia Butler
THE MARTIAN CHRONICLES by Ray Bradbury
THE CHILD GARDEN by Geoff Ryman
RIVER OF GODS by Ian McDonald
FAIRYLAND by Paul J. McAuley
THE SUMMER ISLES by Ian MacLeod
CHASM CITY by Alastair Reynolds
Shakespeare’s Planet by Simak.
Some Will Not Die by Algis Budrys.
War Of Two Worlds by Poul Anderson.
This Perfect Day by Ira Levin
Thomas M Disch – The Seedling Stars
Robert Silverberg – Tower of Glass
Michael Moorcock – Behold The Man
Clifford D Simak – Ring around the Sun
Phillip K Dick – Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep
Ray Bradbury – Damnation Alley
J G Ballard – High Rise
John Wyndham – The Chrysalids
Linda Nagata – Vast
Dean R. Koontz – Lightning
Robert Silverberg – Thorns
Theodore Sturgeon – The Dreaming Jewels
Dan Simmons – Hyperion Cantos
Benford – Great Sky River, Tides of Light.
Neuromancer by William Gibson
John Varley ‘The Ophiuchi Hotline’
Greg Bear ‘Eon’
George R R Martin ‘Dying of the Light’.
Christopher priest ‘A Dream of Wessex’.
Robert J sawyer – Flash Forward
Larry Niven — Ringworld, Lucifer’s Hammer.
Ian M. Banks Culture
Woman on the Edge of Time by Marge Piercy
Brasyl by Ian McDonald
Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell
Altered Carbon by Richard Morgan
The City and The City by China Mieville
“Neal Stephenson” (anything)
Stanislav Lem – Futurelogical Congress
Stanislav Lem – One human minute
Stanislav Lem – Solaris
Stanislav Lem – The Washing Machine Tragedy
Greg Bear – Blood Music
John sladek – The Muller Fokker Effect
Olaf Stapleton — Odd John
Rudy Rucker ‘Wetware’
Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood
Harlan Ellison’s ‘Paingod’, ‘I have no mouth, and I must scream’
Jack Vance’s ‘Demon Prince’ Novels
Neal Asher – The Skinner
Theodore Sturgeon The Cosmic Rape
Robert Sheckly Can you Feel anything when I do this?
Alfred Bester the Demolished Man
Tad Williams “Otherland”
I, Robot Asimov
“The Man in the High Castle” “Flow My Tears said the Policeman” by Phillip K. Dick
“The Scar” by China Mieville
“The Pastel City” by M. John Harrison
“The Word for World is Forest” by Ursula K. LeGuin
“Slaughterhouse Five” by Kurt Vonnegut
E.E. Doc Smith – Lensmen series
The Stars My Destination by Alfred Bester,
“the zero stone” by Andre Norton
Stanislaw Lem – The Futurological Congress
Stanislaw Lem – The Invincible
Stanislaw Lem – Peace on Earth
Stanislaw Lem – Tales of Pirx the Pilot and of course Solaris
Arkady and Boris Strugatsky – Hard to Be a God
Arkady and Boris Strugatsky – Snail on the Slope
Arkady and Boris Strugatsky – Roadside Picnic
Julian May’s Many Coloured Land
Peter F Hamilton’s Night’s Dawn
Iain M. Banks
Kim Stanley Robinson’s Mars Trilogy
Aldous Huxley’s “Brave New World”
Neal Stephenson’s “Snow Crash”
Bertram Chandler — John Grimes series
Tarkovsky – Solaris
Books/no author
The Diamond Age
Anathem
Anvil of Stars
Hyperion Cantos
Rendezvous with Rama
The Mote in God’s Eye
Blood Music
The Cat Who Walks Through Walls
Old Man’s War
World War Z
martian chronicles
Accelerando
The Starmen of Llyrdis
Hunger Games
The Stainless Steel Rat
Starship Troopers
Bladerunner
Authors
Asimov, Adams, Wells, Verne, Zelazny, Niven, Heinlein, Niven, Laumer and Bear, Stephenson, Dick
Website to more books
http://www2.ku.edu/~sfcenter/sflib.htm
I just don’t get it, I read Dune, Enders Game, and a goodly amount of the books listed here. They were fine. No one, in almost any list I have seen for this genre even mentions Stephen R Donaldson’s 5 book “Gap Series”. I won’t defend the author, his fantasy series “Thomas Covenant” was great too, until 3 books became 9 and wrecked the whole thing.
“Gap” is the most “realistic” tale of the unreal space I have read.
Great list. But I think Neuromancer and Dune are both obvious omissions. I also happen to be very fond of the work of Neal Stephenson and Philip K. Dick.
Lots of good books here, some I agree with and some not. But very glad to see that someone beside me rates Connie Willis’ The Doomsday Book ‘ so highly. It’s a book I reread every year.
i used to think that DUNE is overrated. i liked the first few books of the series and then as i read i was getting bored, maybe because i was reading it at the wrong age, i really don’t know. a friend of mine insisted that i should continue reading the series. it was the best piece of advice i have ever received. not only that it changed the way i viewed the world, the civilization, the destiny of the human species, but it also slightly changed me as a person. GOD EMPEROR OF DUNE was a revelation for me. NOTHING COMPARE TO FRANK HERBERT”S VISION. just read the damn thing, if you don’t love it, you are definitely missing something. peace.
@Guillame above (24 Feb) I was introduced to Peter F Hamilton’s Night’s Dawn only recently and it turned into a couldn’t put down set for me.
Reluctant to weigh into the Dune debate which is always unwinnable by either persuasion, except to say I have enjoyed reading some of elder son Bryan’s collaborations with Kevin Anderson to write the back story in the multiple prequels and companion stories. I cannot rate them as highly as James’ list or other titles mentioned above, but if the reason we read is to enjoy the experience as the story unfolds in the turning of the pages, then they were worthwhile reading for me.
Having Stumbled across this page, what I will do is to revisit some much loved titles that have been listed above with which I have refused to part for many long years despite the ever growing need for for more bookshelf space. Maybe I should bend to technology and buy an eReader to get to the rest. Demonoid! Find me some books!
My list would include
2001 A space odyssey
Foundation series 1-3
Planet of the Apes – I didn’t like the book that much but the idea is brilliant
Rendezvous with Rama
The Hunger Games
I am an avid reader and I started the Dune series when I was 12. I loved sci-fi before but this changed everything, it literally covers over 20000 years in the story line and I could not get enough of it. I have read all the books in the series but one of the in-between-quels.(Written by his sons later to cover the larger gaps in the original series.) Honestly you should start at the chronological beginning not the first published book because they can be a little slow where the first three are a war. Also they set the stage for a massive revelation later that you can guess at and hope is true while hoping for the characters sake that it isn’t.
Deep thought is all well and good but sometimes you just want some good ol’ fashioned space opera, and the best one ever written was Jack Vance’s “Planet of Adventure” series. The man thought up the best, most alien aliens bar none, and even his humans could be pretty sppoky and “alien” when he wanted them to be. Vance also wrote one of th best fantasy novels “Tales of the Dying Earth,” again, four novels in one (like “Planet of Adventure”) and any number of brilliant, beguiling and well-written short stories.
So awesome to see someone mention a canticle for leibowitz, probably one of the best books i’ve ever read. I was wondering why you only mentioned the foundation trilogy? There’s like 7 books in the foundation series, all of which are definitely worth reading.
No women in the top ten, despite the fact that a couple Le Guin’s novels are better than Ender’s Game, just for example.
I’m tired of all-male “best of” lists.
“Dhalgren” by Samuel R. Delaney
“The Algebraist” by Iain M. Banks
“Ringworld” by Larry Niven
“Baroque Cycle” by Neal Stephenson (yes, it’s science fiction, by any good definition)
“The Gap Cycle” by Stephen R. Donaldson
“Dune” by Frank Herbert
“Foundation” by Isaac Asimov
“Bigend Trilogy” by William Gibson
“Mars Trilogy” by Kim Stanley Robinson
…and anything by Philip K. Dick
Spook country by William Gibson
Going postal by Terry Pratchett (not strictly SF)
It’s tough to come up with only ten, but if i had to, I would pick the following (similar to @Bob Blough and @Noah M above):
–There’s no way you can have a top ten list without Delaney, Brunner, Gibson & Niven.
1. “Nova” and “Aye, and Gomorrah” by Samuel R Delaney
2. “Dune” and sequels by Frank Herbert
3. “Stand on Zanzibar” by John Brunner
4. “Stranger in a Strange Land” by Robert Heinlein
5. “John Carter of Mars” by Edgar Rice Burroughs
6. “Neuromancer” by WIlliam Gibson
7. “Snowcrash” or “Diamond Age” by Neal Stephenson
8. “Hyperion” series by Dan Simmons
9. “The Gods Themselves” by Asimov
10. “RIngworld” by Larry Niven
If I could add #11, it would be Harlan Ellison’s “Deathbird Stories” esp. “I have no mouth and I must scream”.
How about the foundation trilogy? This work awarded the HUGO for the best all time series.
There are over a thousand books that could make any list. It also has a lot to do with age. Books I loved when I first learned to read have no meaning or can sound pretentious today. Back when I was a pre-teen and reading my older siblings scifi, I was into all the greats, but also Andre Norton. For a little kid just getting into the world of scifi (I know she was a little on the fantasy side too) she could fill your head with fantastic lands and circumstances. Haven’t read her for over 40 years, but she was up there for those young kids just cutting their teeth on scifi. As an adult I probably wouldn’t appreciate her as much, but in the chapter of my life that I read her, she was fantastic. I grok scifi…
No Hitchhiker’s guide makes me cry, I’ll still contend that it’s the best book ever in any genre. Still, as far as a hard Sci-Fi list goes, and any book list goes in general, I’m a fan. I’ve never met someone who has read Childhood before, and I can’t make any argument for any of the rest NOT being on it. That coupled with the fact that the gigantic pieces of junk that are the various dune books were left out, I’m a happy reader.
Honestly though, those books are to Sci-Fi what Wheel of Time is to fantasy. The ONE good (not great, good) doesn’t make up for like 10 others that make me want to kill myself. I read every freakin dune book because my friends kept telling me “Oh you’ll get it soon.” They’re just boring, that’s it, they are boring books. I never was happy or satisfied when a book ended, it was just a “That’s it?” feeling every time. Awful.
So many more books to read now! Thanks to everyone (how much will this cost me) I wonder if those of us used to a hot dry environment cope with Dune better than those of us who live in more humid greener areas. I never got on with it myself.
Not enough Clifford D Simak mentioned. My favorite author though closely followed by most of the classic authors. No mention of Anne McCaffrey which is not fantasy just because it has dragons in it. Can’t say I noticed Alan Dean Foster or Ben Bova either, but then there are so many many authors.
I liked the list but it would of course be impossible to keep everyone happy with ten books. Or a hundred.
Oh and if we are going to mention Terry Pratchett, at least talk about his two scifi books.
I believe Dan Simmons Hyperion series should be included in this list.
I can understand that Dune may have detractors couse is too intense in the matters of politics and religion. But if you are a social and political person, and love Sci-fi, of course, then you can`t miss it.
Other than that, Gregory Benford and his Galactic Center Saga are something special to me, it was a saga full of nostalgic.
Thx to all that posted before couse now I fell a lot more wiser in matter of titles of Sci-fi that I should be reading.
Where is Dune and Starship Troopers? Bahh, Crom laughs at your list.
I have to say Dan Simmons Hyperion Omnibus or his Illium and Olympus are must reads.
I believe that Herbert’s best book might be The Dosadi Experiment – I love every word he ever wrote, but that’s the best in my book.
Zelazney was a master craftsman who could cram an entire novel into a short story, but Creatures of Light & Darkness deserves a mention as one of his best, along with Today We Choose Faces.
An author that I’d recommend for folks on this list is Steven Barnes – all of the Aubrey Knight novels are awesome, and Blood Brothers is powerful, but my favorite is the Kundalini Equation.
I must be getting old as no one seems to mention Clifford Simak’s Destiny Doll or pohl and Kornbluth’s The Space Merchant, or James Blish Clash Of Cymbals or A E VanVogt Weapon Shops of Isher or Larry Niven’s Ringworld. Aah those were the days :-))
Gotta add my support for Dune. Also, Simmons’ Hyperion Cantos. I would argue against the Foundation trilogy. Asimov’s writing is workmanlike at best.
I would be inclined to include Roger Zelazny’s Lord of Light, and Hal Duncan’s two-book series Vellum and Ink. Hal Duncan in particular is a new author and his story is one of the most imaginative, thought-provoking, memorable speculative fiction novels I’ve read.
What about 1984?!
1984? It’s not science fiction. It’s the Republican Party’s planning manual.
Stranger in a Strange Land.
your list sucks!! where is PKD?!!?
I must say that I got quite a kick out of reading all the snobbery about Dune.
“Most overrated SF book, EVER!” *sniff sniff*
Give me a break. If you didn’t personally enjoy Dune, no biggie. People are entitled to their opinions. It’s very slow and dry at times, and if you don’t read past the self-titled work, you can’t possibly have an appreciation for the depths and complexity of the Dune universe. A couple other Dune comments and then I’m done:
I agree with one person above who said that Dune Emperor was revelatory–it might be my favorite book of the original six.
Calling the characters of Dune “cardboard” is just unsupported nonsense. Again, it’s up to people’s taste whether they ENJOY a book or not, but saying that Herbert’s characters are one-dimensional is about as uninformed as one can be about his writing.
All that being said, I have no issues with Dune being omitted from this list. It’s a great SF work, but I’m sure there are 10 other great SF works.
Lastly–wondering what anyone thinks of the Alistair Reynolds “Revelation Space” trilogy? It’s relatively new, so probably hard to squeeze it in amongst so many SF classics, but I thought it was a nice read that paid great homage to the more complex aspects of interstellar and theoretical physics. Some of the relativistic space battles demonstrated a mastery of understanding.
Spider Robertson mind killer.
I can see why Dune is disliked by so many. But actually they are good books. The problem is that they are 3-4 times longer than they should have been. I’m not sure if F.Herbert flooded the story just for money or to prolong the story and make it more epic, but the whole thing should have been in two instead of six books (in my opinion). There were great parts of the story and I read them in one breath and there were the political/sexual intrigues that almost put me off from the book and I struggled with them for months.
Nevertheless there were great ideas inside and the world itself was quite interesting.
How could you miss “I, robot”? It is fundamental for modern science fiction. Azimov’s three laws of Robotics are used in almost all modern day fiction as they were. And there are lots of philosophical topics that just can’t be ignored.
PS. Please, excuse me for my English, it is not very good.
HG Wells ‘War Of The Worlds’, nuff said.
Martian Chronicles , Fahrenheit 451. Bradbury is the shit!!!
Sorry, I just skipped to the bottom after the first 30 or so posts.
Larry Niven, Larry Niven and oh, BTW Larry Niven! ” Tales of Known Space”,” Ringworld” and “Ringworld Engineers”. And R.A. Lafferty’s early work “Space Chantey.” Short (novella?) but highly entertaining.
Ursula K. wrote more in the fantasy genre, not SF so much. Hitchhiker’s Guide is Humor/Satire, also not SF so much.
Hebert’s “Dune” is almost Russian in its density. As such, one will either love it or not. The sequels “Emperor of Dune” and “Dune Messiah” IMHO could have been avoided.
For those wondering about the mystical pieces in Dune, you need to understand that Dune is actually based on the Muslim conquests of the Middle east by Muhammad and his follows and children. What makes Dune great is that while doing that and telling that story it talk about more modern issues of politics and ecology, The power of drugs and the dangers of computers, while being a story about the mysticism.
No Sirens of Titan by Vonnegut, no read.
I’ve read all of the books in the list and a few others that people commented on, for those who commented on Dune, yes can be slow at times, but the only relevant books to read are those written by the Author himself, the first 6; those that come after are from his son trying to profit on his fathers success. Number 6 “Chapterhouse” was written as the last book and realize it was not complete before his death. I was honored to meet Herbert before his death, as same as meeting Heinlein… For those who hate on “Ender’s Game” I am sad for you, but “Ender’s Shadow” will explain more for those who got lost…
By the way, I do not use the kindle or e-readers, I read the book forms; I found many editing issues with electronic media, I do have almost all of my books archived in electronic form, but I have a book copy of every book I have in my archive collection. I have a solid archived collection of around 450 books that are also detailed in a personal list of what I feel are the best written books that I provide to friends and those who ask (Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror)… I just put a few below that I recommend beyond what others have stated.
Baldwin, Bill Helmsman
Bova, Ben Mars
Bova, Ben the Exiles Trilogy
Brin, David – Uplift books
Campbell, Jack – the Lost Fleet
Cherryh, C J – Cyteen
Cooper, Edmund – Transit
Drake, David – Redliners
Farmer, Philip Jose – Dayworld
Gerrold, David – A Matter for Men, A Day for Damnation, etc
Heinlein, Robert A – (so many good books, choose a few) and he did add “Moon” as # 10
Hogan, James P – the Giants Novels
Pohl, Frederik – Gateway
Schmitz, James H – the Witches of Karres (not edited by Eric Flint) Flint is a butcher, sad person
Shaw, Bob – Orbitsville
Stableford, Brian – Journey to the Center
Van Vogt, AE – the War against the Rull
Frost, Gregory – Tain (If you can find it) “ancient Celtic theology/history/mythology” dark read
Don’t laugh, but also read Miguel de Cervantes’ s Don Quixote, not science fiction, but a fiction that stands the age of time, yes, a classic and many will dread trying it out, but just a thought. Only real classic I will most-likely ever recommend.
Schmitz, James H – the Witches of Karres (not edited by Eric Flint) I was able to find another copy and I tore it apart in order to scan the book into an electronic form.
Great list
My personal favourite is David Zindell’s Requiem for a Homo Sapien series. If you haven’t you must read.
I hope someone gets the ‘Pherl’.
Great list – 4 I haven’t yet read.
I so agree with Bester besting. Wonderful book
Dune changed the way I viewed the world. Politically, sociologically and opened up my views on religion…Still an atheist tho…and less tolerant of organised religions.
H.G.Wells
Iain Banks Culture Novels.
Asimov may not have been the best writer, but great hard SF – The Gods Themselves. The Caves of Steel.
Alastair Reynolds – Revelation space series (although Chasm City was pretty awful).
Farenheight 451
I can’t stand Gibson or Zelazny or Donaldson (the Pretender).
JG Ballard
P.K. Dick
What about Brian Aldis – Heliconia and Non-Stop
Definitely more Heinlien. I used to be an addict of his stuff.
Huxley – Brave New World
Anthony Burgess
Jules Verne
C.S.Lewis
Joe Haldeman – loved it.
Thanks X
Great list and so many more good reads in the comments.
I’m surprised Edgar Rice Burroughs was not mentioned more.
HG Wells – War of the Worlds
Ignore the films, the book is truly awesome SF. written at a time before computers, mobiles it still makes perfect sense.
I used to read a lot of SF as a teen and twenty-something, but the only stuff I’ve read recently has been Bradbury (“The Tattooed Man” – amazing). Having read a lot of the “classics”, I rather lost faith with it all. I sometimes wonder what the current state of the genre is and, having just perused a fair few “Top” listson the internt that rarely seem to cite post-1980 works, it would seem pretty moribund.
srsly nobody mentioned Perry Rhodan?
Frederick Pohls, Gateway is one of my favourites
Did not think much of Stranger in a strange Land, did not like religious themes and found it plain boring
Snow Crash, Neal stephenson – very unique and interesting
Eon, Greg Bear- cool concept.
Arthur C Clarke, Rendezvous with rama – awesome
Dune, Frank Herbert – totally original and epic with plenty of political intrigue and action.
Im guilty of liking a little action and excitement in my science fiction. I absolutely hated Star Maker by Olaf Stapledon. Yes it is poetically written and gives a profound view to our place in the universe, but it is just unbelievably dull and waffles on and on.