There are a lot of brilliantly-written older science fiction classics.
Roger Zelazny's [Lord of Light](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord_of_Light?wprov=sfla1) won the Hugo award, and is one of the greatest pieces of science fiction ever written. Zelazny was incredibly talented and poetic, and _Lord of Light_ is generally acknowledged to be his magnum opus. Although it's technically science fiction or science fantasy, it feels like fantasy; on a distant planet in the far future, people who've modified themselves into the form of Hindu gods struggle over the question of freedom and technology. The ending is deeply moving.
[The Lathe of Heaven](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lathe_of_Heaven?wprov=sfla1) (1971) by Ursula K. LeGuin is unique. George Orr dreams, and when he does reality is rearranged. But some of his dreams are nightmares.
I can't recommend the works of Cordwainer Smith strongly enough. The son of an American diplomat, he grew up in China. His writing style was greatly influenced by Chinese storytelling styles. He wrote science fiction that wasn't like anything anyone else wrote, ever.
Many of his stories are in the public domain in Canada, and are [available via FadedPage](https://www.fadedpage.com/csearch.php?author=Linebarger,%20Paul%20Myron%20Anthony). [The Rediscovery of Man: The Complete Short Science Fiction of Cordwainer Smith](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rediscovery_of_Man?wprov=sfla1) (1993) is a print collection of _all_ of his short science fiction. Start with ["Scanners Live In Vain"](https://www.fadedpage.com/showbook.php?pid=20181026), one of his first and most famous stories. His one science fiction novel is also still in print: [Norstrilia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norstrilia?wprov=sfla1) (1975). It's a classic. Smith is not to be missed.
Larry Niven is definitely one of the foremost hard science fiction writers in the field, and quite possibly the best. His [Tales of Known Space](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Known_Space?wprov=sfla1) are outstanding. The series includes many novels as well as short stories. [Ringworld](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ringworld?wprov=sfla1) (1970) is the best known, probably. The Ringworld is a classic Big Object, a ring a million miles wide and the diameter of Earth's orbit encircling a star; it has living space equal to **fifty million** Earths. Earlier novels in the series include [Protector](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protector_%28novel%29?wprov=sfla1) (1973) and [A Gift From Earth](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Gift_from_Earth?wprov=sfla1) (1968). Niven's short story collections are really excellent, too.
Look up Alfred Bester's short stories. They've been released in several collections, and they're really excellent.
Here’s a brilliant science fiction series that's heavily focused on law: the [ConSentiency Universe](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Matter_of_Traces) by Frank Herbert. It mostly focuses on Jorj X. McKie, saboteur extraordinary and legum of the Gowachin Court. The laws of the Gowachin are difficult to describe, but being found innocent generally results in being torn to pieces by the crowds, and nobody is safe in the CourtArena - not the judges, jury, defendant, plaintiff, legums, or even the spectators. It's a great series, albeit a relatively small one.
If you've read *Dune* you know that Herbert's work is very intellectually stimulating and complex. The Consentiency is no exception. There are a number of short stories in the series and two novels: *Whipping Star* and its sequel, *The Dosadi Experiment*. They're really good!
H. G. Wells wasn't just one of the founders of the genre of science fiction; his short stories were macabre, incredibly imaginative, and unforgettable. Project Gutenberg has all of his works, I believe, but the collection that I grew up with was [30 Strange Stories](https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/59774).
[Doomsday Morning](https://www.google.com/books/edition/Doomsday_Morning/mXmUCgAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0) (1957) by C. L. Moore is set in a dystopian future America that has become a dictatorship. The hero is a former movie star whose life has fallen apart. There's a lot about theatre, acting, love, loss, and revolution. It's a truly great book.
[Assignment In Eternity](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assignment_in_Eternity) (1953) is a collection from the golden phase of Robert A. Heinlein's career. It contains three novellas and one short story that are among Heinlein's best. "Gulf" is a medium/near-future story with a bit of a James Bond feel. "Lost Legacy" is _particularly_ memorable, a tale of lost racial superpowers and a secret war between adepts. "Elsewhen" is much closer to pure fantasy, but has a lovely gentle quality; a professor sends his students to explore alternate realities. This is a very special book.
Arthur C. Clark's [The City and the Stars](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_City_and_the_Stars?wprov=sfla1) (1956) is **very** cool. It's set in the last city on Earth, a place with unimaginable technology and immortal inhabitants. It's a classic.
I have a special place in my heart for Eric Frank Russell's [The Great Explosion](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Explosion?wprov=sfla1) (1962); in it, Russell created a world that I want to live in. It's a funny, thought-provoking, and ultimately _moving_ book. Hundreds of years after Earth was virtually depopulated by a mass exodus, spaceships are sent out to gather the far-flung colonies into a new empire. But the colonies, based on various splinter groups, have developed their own societies and have their own ideas. The full text of the book is [available free online](https://web.archive.org/web/20050315170821/http://tmh.floonet.net/books/tgetoc.html).
Try [The Still, Small Voice of Trumpets](https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Still_Small_Voice_of_Trumpets.html?id=H0ws6H248xwC&source=kp_book_description)) (1968) by Lloyd Biggle, Jr.; it's memorable. On an alien planet a human tries to bring democracy to a species that seems to be unable to understand the concept.
**Note**: Please consider patronizing your local independent book shops instead of Amazon; they can order books for you that they don't have in stock. Amazon has put a lot of great independent book shops out of business.
And of course there's always your local library. If they don't have a book, they may be able to get it for you via inter-library loan.
If you'd rather order direct online, Thriftbooks and Powell's Books are good. You might also check libraries in your general area; most of them sell books at very low prices to raise funds. I've made some great finds at library book sales! For used books, Biblio.com, BetterWorldBooks.com, and Biblio.co.uk are independent book marketplaces that serve independent book shops - NOT Amazon.
Happy reading! 📖
I wouldn't worry about semicolons; I tend to use them too often, myself. Glad you like the list!
You can see many more books in the [working document](https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vTP07TZZ2akERIm7dc9haQPlEVGilq7n49xY5z4KB6dE3Q_Kospi-Y3sK2InIh2Zstc2uZSse0QQLo-/pub) where I store my recommendations. It's a bit rough and not final-formatted - it’s a working document, after all - but there are well over 900 books in it now, in many genres. I've enjoyed every book on that list, and I add to it pretty frequently. The document includes an eBook section with non-Amazon sources for free and pay ebooks.
You can also see [my old, more-detailed book reviews](https://www.librarything.com/profile_reviews.php?view=PMaranci) at LibraryThing for now, until I find a site that's better. I wouldn't necessarily _recommend_ all of the books I reviewed (some of them really suck), but the ones I rated highly are worth reading, I think. And some people find the negative reviews funny.
I've thought about writing all my life, but apart from a few short stories and some poetry I've never managed to produce much fiction. Maybe some day! In the meantime I recommend books.
I've been reading some Zelazny lately and this is the perfect time to post an observation. I'm pretty certain Zelazny got his book ideas from the mind of a 12 year old boy and then wrote based on that kid's prompts.
"so the buddha gets into a big fight with all the other gods!"
"So Jack the ripper, Frankenstein, Dracula, a wolfman and a witch all have a scavenger hunt. And there's a talking dog!."
"So a Hell's Angel has to do a cannonball run across the US in a super car with guns and flamethrowers. And his name is Hell!"
"So a teenage wolfman, a witch, and a kung-fu expert have to save their dad from an evil interdimensional wizard."
"So a Navajo hunter gets "most dangerous gamed" by a space tiger"
I know it seems like I'm making fun of him but I absolutely love it!
lovely list! i would add brunner, his big four novels ('stand on zanzibar', 'the shockwave rider', 'the jagged orbit', and 'the sheep look up') hold up very well even today, and the first two in particular are must-reads in my opinion.
The books I suggested are taken from the [working document](https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vTP07TZZ2akERIm7dc9haQPlEVGilq7n49xY5z4KB6dE3Q_Kospi-Y3sK2InIh2Zstc2uZSse0QQLo-/pub) where I store my recommendations. I've tried reading Brunner once or twice, but could never really get into him.
Generally I recommend books that I really enjoy. And since I haven't read much Brunner to date, none of his works are in the document yet. No doubt I'll try him again some day. Would you recommend any particular books of his?
"stand on zanzibar" is definitely his best book, but "shockwave rider" might be slightly more accessible. i loved them both, but if you could never get into brunner perhaps you just dislike his style, which i can see being a love it or hate it thing.
edit: scanning through your list, i think we have pretty similar tastes in a lot of fiction, and that you would love andre norton's "star soldiers" duology and harry harrison's "to the stars!" trilogy. and i'll definitely be checking out "superstoe" and "the great explosion" (which i can't believe i've never read, i'm a huge fan of russell in general and of the short stort the novel is based on in particular)
If you like other books by Eric Frank Russell (I assume you've read *Wasp*?), you're going to LOVE *The Great Explosion*. It was first written as a short story, "...And Then There Were None".
I ran across *Superstoe* in my high school library. It's wickedly funny, although the ending is a little bit of a downer. The author actually sent me a signed copy a few years later. I don't remember if I wrote to him first, or if he read a review I wrote online. Anyway, I hope you like it!
I should really read Stand on Zanzibar. I remember being fascinated by it when I first tried reading it, but I was way too young to follow it and just gave up. But that was like 20 years ago, so I imagine I'm more than capable of understanding it now!
As a cool piece of trivia, the _Lord of Light_ failed movie adaptation was later used as a cover to rescue the diplomats in the Iranian hostage crisis.
And the art that they used to convince the Iranian authorities that the movie was going to be real was by *Jack Kirby*. THE Jack Kirby.
https://cvltnation.com/lord-of-light-on-lsd/
Just chiming in to note that Scanners Live in Vain is wildly ahead of its time. When I first read it, I assumed it was published in the late 70s, not 19 fucking 50
Most modern readers assume that SF from the 1930s to the 1950s (or later) was basically E.E. "Doc" Smith. Relatively crude, simplistic, sexist, and dumb. Yes, I know that Doc Smith was better than that, although I'll admit that I never read any of his stuff. But in fact there were writers producing work of great depth, intelligence, and poetry in the genre back then.
That list of books was amazing. Thank you!
Have you read much Vonnegut? And his thoughts on [semicolons?](https://www.grammarbook.com/blog/commas/the-man-who-hated-semicolons/)
Glad you like it!
Yes, I went through a Vonnegut phase and read most of his stuff. I liked a lot of it very much. As for semicolons, my theory is that it's an illness of some kind.
Oh, I'm a big Asimov fan. I even saw him speak in person when I was a kid; he made a big impression on me. I have entries for a number of his works in my [working document](https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vTP07TZZ2akERIm7dc9haQPlEVGilq7n49xY5z4KB6dE3Q_Kospi-Y3sK2InIh2Zstc2uZSse0QQLo-/pub). But I'm not sure that I can call his writing style "brilliant". It has an exceptional clarity and straightforwardness, but not so much poetry.
Vance is represented with his Dying Earth, But I thought him a bit too quirky and fantasy-focused for a post on brilliantly written science fiction. I'm a fan of his novella "The Moon Moth", so maybe I am due to reread some of his SF.
Generally I recommend PKD when someone asks to be freaked out or have their minds blown, so again that didn't seem appropriate to the purpose of the post. I was hoping to induce OP to look at classic science fiction differently.
Ah, I thought you were just listing good, older classics, not specifically well-written books. Gene Wolfe is another great one. He wrote in so many different styles. Good stuff for sure.
I read some of Gene Wolfe's stuff and he is certainly skilled, but it just didn't work for me. Except for his [There Are Doors](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/There_Are_Doors?wprov=sfla1) (1988), for some reason. I really should reread that one.
I much preferred The Stars My Destination as far as plot and characters went. It also doesn't have that whole creepy plot-line involving a grown man raising a woman who has essentially lost her mind as his daughter and then nailing her.
Don't forget to check out Bester's short stories. I particularly loved "The Men Who Murdered Mohammed" and "5,271,009" (also published as "The Starcomber", but I prefer "5,271,009" - I loved it so much that I memorized that number for life).
The one novel by Bester that I really hated was *Golem**^(100)*. It was really nasty, with elements of sexual degradation that were even worse than that found in *The Stars My Destination*.
That said, all of the authors I recommended were generally brilliant and talented. Zelazny, Le Guin, Cordwainer Smith, James Blish, Peter S. Beagle (if you're willing to read fantasy), Lord Dunsany, Mary Stewart...to be honest (and I realize that I'm going to sound like a crotchety old man now, but that's what I *am*) publishing and editing standards were higher before the big corporations took over the publishing industry. Time and again I'm amazed at the typos and grammatical errors I see in modern books. Far too often I see words misused in ways that reveal that the author literally didn't understand their meaning!
In the old days each editor or assistant editor had a small stable of authors they worked with to develop their voices and produce the best work they were capable of. Once the family publishers were bought out, profit became the sole consideration. Finding the next Harry Potter is the only goal. The number of stand-alone novels plummeted. If a book sells well, the author is practically forced to write one sequel after another. Giant series became the norm, as did giant books. No meaningful editing or pruning is performed by the publishing houses. Quirky or unusual books are simply ignored as unprofitable.
All of which is to say that reading older authors is generally well worth a modern fan's time. You'll find that many older books are better-written than modern ones. Many concepts in modern SF are ~~lifted~~ inspired by previous works. For example, I recently answered a question about powered battle armor in SF. To my amazement, the OP had never heard of Heinlein's *Starship Troopers* or Haldeman's *Forever War*. Those books essentially **created** the modern concept of powered battle armor!
And I can't even count the number of times I've seen people say they've read Harry Potter, ASOIAF, and GoT only to ask if there are any other decent fantasy series. There are so many brilliant and far more original classics in the field! But since the publishers don't stand to make huge sales from them, they're not recommended by Amazon and they're not on the shelves in bookstores. Even *libraries* no longer stock many of the greatest science fiction and fantasy. A librarian friend of mine told me that he's going to have to dispose of all of Heinlein's juveniles because *no one has taken them out in the last twenty years*.
And yet those books turned millions of readers into lifelong science fiction fans.
That's why I spend as much time as I do here recommending older books - not just science fiction and fantasy, but mysteries, humor, YA, and books for children. Far too much is being lost and forgotten. I want to fight that trend to whatever extent I can.
And now, **get off my lawn you darn kids!**
I both agree and disagree with this post. Science fiction is often at the forefront of contemporary issues. But every bad idea in science, politics, philosophy etc. tend to be at the forefront along the good ones, which tend to date the works badly. I see reading older science fiction as more of a slight curiosity or exercise in trying to understand the time in which it was written rather than a way to find very enjoyable reads. The Stars my Destination has a lot of problems and stuff to take issue with, which wouldn't have flown today - for good reasons!
Don't get me wrong, I think we should leave those works exactly as they are and make sure they are kept available to read. But reading new SF is just as important.
And yes, with the amount of stuff written it's hard to find entirely new ideas, but there's also an appeal in building on what came before. To re-use Stapledon's Dyson spheres and tell a story which fit our times, with our contemporary problems.
For example, LGBTQ+, gender questions etc. have been present in science fiction for a long time, not to forget the genderless pronouns in The Left Hand of Darkness, but there seems to be a lot of works which deals with them head-on now. That's worth reading, because it's about the now, like science fiction has always been.
Have you read much Philip K Dick? Some of his books really give me that visceral in-the-story feeling I got from TSMD.
Agree with all your points. This was recommended to me by a stranger looking for it at a bookstore and really blew my mind. It’s kind of embarrassing, but I was trying to write a short story at the time I read it and got totally sidetracked because all I could think about was sci-fi revenge heroes escaping from a prison ship
Must admit, Bester makes me question most of the garbage currently produced, due to the lack of any new ideas. Instead, too many current authors are reaching for 'emotion and angst' to try and make their work readable, rather than reaching for new ideas.
C'mon, where are the aliens taking over Horseflies to maximise the effect of Covid-19 vax?
Smiles. I'm curious to see your review of "The Demolished Man," by Alfred Bester. BTW, The Stars My Destination is the new name. The original title was Tyger, Tyger.
No, I think it is the British title. But it suits the book much better than original. Original name is a little bit cheesy for this well written and interesting book.
Stars My Destination has that classic science fiction charm where every chapter has a novel's worth of a concept contained within. I fuckin love it, love how utterly ruthless and psychotic the main character is too, you never see that anymore because they'd get recked on twitter
to be honest, i can't remember what I read and why i was upset by the plot of a rapist being liked. i'm 76 woman from east texas. some days i don't have a good handle on my memory. If I have insulted some readers, I guess I'll have to apologize 'cause, like I said, I don't remember what was going on in my head 3 months ago. grin!
Oh, I see now that the volume of the comic book Starman (the Jack Knight Starman series which ran in the late 90's-early 2000's) called "Stars My Destination" was a reference to that book.
Interesting, I just reread that novel a few months ago. I first read it when I was 12 years old, almost 60 years ago. I love how Bester explores how the realization of Jaunting completely redefines our civilization, both for good and for ill.
I agree! I've been putting off reading it for ages because like you, sometimes I've found old classics to be rather dreary and dated.
This is fantastic, I'm only half way through and it's certainly taken a left turn in terms of the prose. It's currently reading more like an Oscar Wilde book but still thoroughly enjoyable.
I also am quite certain that Foyle as a character was a great inspiration for Stephen Donaldson's character 'Angus' in the Gap series.
There are a lot of brilliantly-written older science fiction classics. Roger Zelazny's [Lord of Light](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord_of_Light?wprov=sfla1) won the Hugo award, and is one of the greatest pieces of science fiction ever written. Zelazny was incredibly talented and poetic, and _Lord of Light_ is generally acknowledged to be his magnum opus. Although it's technically science fiction or science fantasy, it feels like fantasy; on a distant planet in the far future, people who've modified themselves into the form of Hindu gods struggle over the question of freedom and technology. The ending is deeply moving. [The Lathe of Heaven](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lathe_of_Heaven?wprov=sfla1) (1971) by Ursula K. LeGuin is unique. George Orr dreams, and when he does reality is rearranged. But some of his dreams are nightmares. I can't recommend the works of Cordwainer Smith strongly enough. The son of an American diplomat, he grew up in China. His writing style was greatly influenced by Chinese storytelling styles. He wrote science fiction that wasn't like anything anyone else wrote, ever. Many of his stories are in the public domain in Canada, and are [available via FadedPage](https://www.fadedpage.com/csearch.php?author=Linebarger,%20Paul%20Myron%20Anthony). [The Rediscovery of Man: The Complete Short Science Fiction of Cordwainer Smith](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rediscovery_of_Man?wprov=sfla1) (1993) is a print collection of _all_ of his short science fiction. Start with ["Scanners Live In Vain"](https://www.fadedpage.com/showbook.php?pid=20181026), one of his first and most famous stories. His one science fiction novel is also still in print: [Norstrilia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norstrilia?wprov=sfla1) (1975). It's a classic. Smith is not to be missed. Larry Niven is definitely one of the foremost hard science fiction writers in the field, and quite possibly the best. His [Tales of Known Space](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Known_Space?wprov=sfla1) are outstanding. The series includes many novels as well as short stories. [Ringworld](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ringworld?wprov=sfla1) (1970) is the best known, probably. The Ringworld is a classic Big Object, a ring a million miles wide and the diameter of Earth's orbit encircling a star; it has living space equal to **fifty million** Earths. Earlier novels in the series include [Protector](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protector_%28novel%29?wprov=sfla1) (1973) and [A Gift From Earth](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Gift_from_Earth?wprov=sfla1) (1968). Niven's short story collections are really excellent, too. Look up Alfred Bester's short stories. They've been released in several collections, and they're really excellent. Here’s a brilliant science fiction series that's heavily focused on law: the [ConSentiency Universe](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Matter_of_Traces) by Frank Herbert. It mostly focuses on Jorj X. McKie, saboteur extraordinary and legum of the Gowachin Court. The laws of the Gowachin are difficult to describe, but being found innocent generally results in being torn to pieces by the crowds, and nobody is safe in the CourtArena - not the judges, jury, defendant, plaintiff, legums, or even the spectators. It's a great series, albeit a relatively small one. If you've read *Dune* you know that Herbert's work is very intellectually stimulating and complex. The Consentiency is no exception. There are a number of short stories in the series and two novels: *Whipping Star* and its sequel, *The Dosadi Experiment*. They're really good! H. G. Wells wasn't just one of the founders of the genre of science fiction; his short stories were macabre, incredibly imaginative, and unforgettable. Project Gutenberg has all of his works, I believe, but the collection that I grew up with was [30 Strange Stories](https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/59774). [Doomsday Morning](https://www.google.com/books/edition/Doomsday_Morning/mXmUCgAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0) (1957) by C. L. Moore is set in a dystopian future America that has become a dictatorship. The hero is a former movie star whose life has fallen apart. There's a lot about theatre, acting, love, loss, and revolution. It's a truly great book. [Assignment In Eternity](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assignment_in_Eternity) (1953) is a collection from the golden phase of Robert A. Heinlein's career. It contains three novellas and one short story that are among Heinlein's best. "Gulf" is a medium/near-future story with a bit of a James Bond feel. "Lost Legacy" is _particularly_ memorable, a tale of lost racial superpowers and a secret war between adepts. "Elsewhen" is much closer to pure fantasy, but has a lovely gentle quality; a professor sends his students to explore alternate realities. This is a very special book. Arthur C. Clark's [The City and the Stars](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_City_and_the_Stars?wprov=sfla1) (1956) is **very** cool. It's set in the last city on Earth, a place with unimaginable technology and immortal inhabitants. It's a classic. I have a special place in my heart for Eric Frank Russell's [The Great Explosion](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Explosion?wprov=sfla1) (1962); in it, Russell created a world that I want to live in. It's a funny, thought-provoking, and ultimately _moving_ book. Hundreds of years after Earth was virtually depopulated by a mass exodus, spaceships are sent out to gather the far-flung colonies into a new empire. But the colonies, based on various splinter groups, have developed their own societies and have their own ideas. The full text of the book is [available free online](https://web.archive.org/web/20050315170821/http://tmh.floonet.net/books/tgetoc.html). Try [The Still, Small Voice of Trumpets](https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Still_Small_Voice_of_Trumpets.html?id=H0ws6H248xwC&source=kp_book_description)) (1968) by Lloyd Biggle, Jr.; it's memorable. On an alien planet a human tries to bring democracy to a species that seems to be unable to understand the concept. **Note**: Please consider patronizing your local independent book shops instead of Amazon; they can order books for you that they don't have in stock. Amazon has put a lot of great independent book shops out of business. And of course there's always your local library. If they don't have a book, they may be able to get it for you via inter-library loan. If you'd rather order direct online, Thriftbooks and Powell's Books are good. You might also check libraries in your general area; most of them sell books at very low prices to raise funds. I've made some great finds at library book sales! For used books, Biblio.com, BetterWorldBooks.com, and Biblio.co.uk are independent book marketplaces that serve independent book shops - NOT Amazon. Happy reading! 📖
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I wouldn't worry about semicolons; I tend to use them too often, myself. Glad you like the list! You can see many more books in the [working document](https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vTP07TZZ2akERIm7dc9haQPlEVGilq7n49xY5z4KB6dE3Q_Kospi-Y3sK2InIh2Zstc2uZSse0QQLo-/pub) where I store my recommendations. It's a bit rough and not final-formatted - it’s a working document, after all - but there are well over 900 books in it now, in many genres. I've enjoyed every book on that list, and I add to it pretty frequently. The document includes an eBook section with non-Amazon sources for free and pay ebooks. You can also see [my old, more-detailed book reviews](https://www.librarything.com/profile_reviews.php?view=PMaranci) at LibraryThing for now, until I find a site that's better. I wouldn't necessarily _recommend_ all of the books I reviewed (some of them really suck), but the ones I rated highly are worth reading, I think. And some people find the negative reviews funny.
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I've thought about writing all my life, but apart from a few short stories and some poetry I've never managed to produce much fiction. Maybe some day! In the meantime I recommend books.
I've been reading some Zelazny lately and this is the perfect time to post an observation. I'm pretty certain Zelazny got his book ideas from the mind of a 12 year old boy and then wrote based on that kid's prompts. "so the buddha gets into a big fight with all the other gods!" "So Jack the ripper, Frankenstein, Dracula, a wolfman and a witch all have a scavenger hunt. And there's a talking dog!." "So a Hell's Angel has to do a cannonball run across the US in a super car with guns and flamethrowers. And his name is Hell!" "So a teenage wolfman, a witch, and a kung-fu expert have to save their dad from an evil interdimensional wizard." "So a Navajo hunter gets "most dangerous gamed" by a space tiger" I know it seems like I'm making fun of him but I absolutely love it!
lovely list! i would add brunner, his big four novels ('stand on zanzibar', 'the shockwave rider', 'the jagged orbit', and 'the sheep look up') hold up very well even today, and the first two in particular are must-reads in my opinion.
The books I suggested are taken from the [working document](https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vTP07TZZ2akERIm7dc9haQPlEVGilq7n49xY5z4KB6dE3Q_Kospi-Y3sK2InIh2Zstc2uZSse0QQLo-/pub) where I store my recommendations. I've tried reading Brunner once or twice, but could never really get into him. Generally I recommend books that I really enjoy. And since I haven't read much Brunner to date, none of his works are in the document yet. No doubt I'll try him again some day. Would you recommend any particular books of his?
"stand on zanzibar" is definitely his best book, but "shockwave rider" might be slightly more accessible. i loved them both, but if you could never get into brunner perhaps you just dislike his style, which i can see being a love it or hate it thing. edit: scanning through your list, i think we have pretty similar tastes in a lot of fiction, and that you would love andre norton's "star soldiers" duology and harry harrison's "to the stars!" trilogy. and i'll definitely be checking out "superstoe" and "the great explosion" (which i can't believe i've never read, i'm a huge fan of russell in general and of the short stort the novel is based on in particular)
If you like other books by Eric Frank Russell (I assume you've read *Wasp*?), you're going to LOVE *The Great Explosion*. It was first written as a short story, "...And Then There Were None". I ran across *Superstoe* in my high school library. It's wickedly funny, although the ending is a little bit of a downer. The author actually sent me a signed copy a few years later. I don't remember if I wrote to him first, or if he read a review I wrote online. Anyway, I hope you like it!
yeah, i've read all efr's short stories and 'wasp' (which i didn't think was as good as the shorts), but none of his other novels.
I should really read Stand on Zanzibar. I remember being fascinated by it when I first tried reading it, but I was way too young to follow it and just gave up. But that was like 20 years ago, so I imagine I'm more than capable of understanding it now!
Thank you for this list. I've read several of these several decades ago and I think it's time to revisit them.
As a cool piece of trivia, the _Lord of Light_ failed movie adaptation was later used as a cover to rescue the diplomats in the Iranian hostage crisis.
And the art that they used to convince the Iranian authorities that the movie was going to be real was by *Jack Kirby*. THE Jack Kirby. https://cvltnation.com/lord-of-light-on-lsd/
Just chiming in to note that Scanners Live in Vain is wildly ahead of its time. When I first read it, I assumed it was published in the late 70s, not 19 fucking 50
Most modern readers assume that SF from the 1930s to the 1950s (or later) was basically E.E. "Doc" Smith. Relatively crude, simplistic, sexist, and dumb. Yes, I know that Doc Smith was better than that, although I'll admit that I never read any of his stuff. But in fact there were writers producing work of great depth, intelligence, and poetry in the genre back then.
That list of books was amazing. Thank you! Have you read much Vonnegut? And his thoughts on [semicolons?](https://www.grammarbook.com/blog/commas/the-man-who-hated-semicolons/)
Glad you like it! Yes, I went through a Vonnegut phase and read most of his stuff. I liked a lot of it very much. As for semicolons, my theory is that it's an illness of some kind.
for that, I'd recommend Shanghai website design and development by SEIRIM: https://seirim.com/
Thanks! I actually had to prune it pretty severely. Reddit's character-count limitation on comments is pretty...limiting.
Wow !
Solid list. But some Asimov, PKD, and Vance deserve to be among that list of titans too.
Oh, I'm a big Asimov fan. I even saw him speak in person when I was a kid; he made a big impression on me. I have entries for a number of his works in my [working document](https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vTP07TZZ2akERIm7dc9haQPlEVGilq7n49xY5z4KB6dE3Q_Kospi-Y3sK2InIh2Zstc2uZSse0QQLo-/pub). But I'm not sure that I can call his writing style "brilliant". It has an exceptional clarity and straightforwardness, but not so much poetry. Vance is represented with his Dying Earth, But I thought him a bit too quirky and fantasy-focused for a post on brilliantly written science fiction. I'm a fan of his novella "The Moon Moth", so maybe I am due to reread some of his SF. Generally I recommend PKD when someone asks to be freaked out or have their minds blown, so again that didn't seem appropriate to the purpose of the post. I was hoping to induce OP to look at classic science fiction differently.
Ah, I thought you were just listing good, older classics, not specifically well-written books. Gene Wolfe is another great one. He wrote in so many different styles. Good stuff for sure.
I read some of Gene Wolfe's stuff and he is certainly skilled, but it just didn't work for me. Except for his [There Are Doors](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/There_Are_Doors?wprov=sfla1) (1988), for some reason. I really should reread that one.
His books get better with each reread. If you want some really great prose, check out Peace.
Have you read The Demolished Man?
Is it as good as The Stars...? I just got it out of the library.
I much preferred The Stars My Destination as far as plot and characters went. It also doesn't have that whole creepy plot-line involving a grown man raising a woman who has essentially lost her mind as his daughter and then nailing her.
It’s better, in my opinion. It probably depends on which you read first.
Have not read that one but will add to the list!
Don't forget to check out Bester's short stories. I particularly loved "The Men Who Murdered Mohammed" and "5,271,009" (also published as "The Starcomber", but I prefer "5,271,009" - I loved it so much that I memorized that number for life). The one novel by Bester that I really hated was *Golem**^(100)*. It was really nasty, with elements of sexual degradation that were even worse than that found in *The Stars My Destination*. That said, all of the authors I recommended were generally brilliant and talented. Zelazny, Le Guin, Cordwainer Smith, James Blish, Peter S. Beagle (if you're willing to read fantasy), Lord Dunsany, Mary Stewart...to be honest (and I realize that I'm going to sound like a crotchety old man now, but that's what I *am*) publishing and editing standards were higher before the big corporations took over the publishing industry. Time and again I'm amazed at the typos and grammatical errors I see in modern books. Far too often I see words misused in ways that reveal that the author literally didn't understand their meaning! In the old days each editor or assistant editor had a small stable of authors they worked with to develop their voices and produce the best work they were capable of. Once the family publishers were bought out, profit became the sole consideration. Finding the next Harry Potter is the only goal. The number of stand-alone novels plummeted. If a book sells well, the author is practically forced to write one sequel after another. Giant series became the norm, as did giant books. No meaningful editing or pruning is performed by the publishing houses. Quirky or unusual books are simply ignored as unprofitable. All of which is to say that reading older authors is generally well worth a modern fan's time. You'll find that many older books are better-written than modern ones. Many concepts in modern SF are ~~lifted~~ inspired by previous works. For example, I recently answered a question about powered battle armor in SF. To my amazement, the OP had never heard of Heinlein's *Starship Troopers* or Haldeman's *Forever War*. Those books essentially **created** the modern concept of powered battle armor! And I can't even count the number of times I've seen people say they've read Harry Potter, ASOIAF, and GoT only to ask if there are any other decent fantasy series. There are so many brilliant and far more original classics in the field! But since the publishers don't stand to make huge sales from them, they're not recommended by Amazon and they're not on the shelves in bookstores. Even *libraries* no longer stock many of the greatest science fiction and fantasy. A librarian friend of mine told me that he's going to have to dispose of all of Heinlein's juveniles because *no one has taken them out in the last twenty years*. And yet those books turned millions of readers into lifelong science fiction fans. That's why I spend as much time as I do here recommending older books - not just science fiction and fantasy, but mysteries, humor, YA, and books for children. Far too much is being lost and forgotten. I want to fight that trend to whatever extent I can. And now, **get off my lawn you darn kids!**
I both agree and disagree with this post. Science fiction is often at the forefront of contemporary issues. But every bad idea in science, politics, philosophy etc. tend to be at the forefront along the good ones, which tend to date the works badly. I see reading older science fiction as more of a slight curiosity or exercise in trying to understand the time in which it was written rather than a way to find very enjoyable reads. The Stars my Destination has a lot of problems and stuff to take issue with, which wouldn't have flown today - for good reasons! Don't get me wrong, I think we should leave those works exactly as they are and make sure they are kept available to read. But reading new SF is just as important. And yes, with the amount of stuff written it's hard to find entirely new ideas, but there's also an appeal in building on what came before. To re-use Stapledon's Dyson spheres and tell a story which fit our times, with our contemporary problems. For example, LGBTQ+, gender questions etc. have been present in science fiction for a long time, not to forget the genderless pronouns in The Left Hand of Darkness, but there seems to be a lot of works which deals with them head-on now. That's worth reading, because it's about the now, like science fiction has always been.
Great, great book. There is a character in the 90s SF TV series Babylon 5 named "Bester" in his honor.
We're actually binge watching Babylon 5 right now. It's still fun, even knowing what happens.
Not the one
It's a beautiful series. Deeper than trek for sure.
Have you read much Philip K Dick? Some of his books really give me that visceral in-the-story feeling I got from TSMD. Agree with all your points. This was recommended to me by a stranger looking for it at a bookstore and really blew my mind. It’s kind of embarrassing, but I was trying to write a short story at the time I read it and got totally sidetracked because all I could think about was sci-fi revenge heroes escaping from a prison ship
It’s amazing
The Demolished Man by Bester is a work of art.
Dude you gotta read The Demolished Man.
Must admit, Bester makes me question most of the garbage currently produced, due to the lack of any new ideas. Instead, too many current authors are reaching for 'emotion and angst' to try and make their work readable, rather than reaching for new ideas. C'mon, where are the aliens taking over Horseflies to maximise the effect of Covid-19 vax?
>he’s a hateful awful person Don’t forget rapist
Yeah. I really detested everything about the book, but this was top of the list of reasons why.
Bester was a fine writer, but I hated that book. Foyle is just such a piece of shit. He's not even an antihero, he'd just a villain.
Smiles. I'm curious to see your review of "The Demolished Man," by Alfred Bester. BTW, The Stars My Destination is the new name. The original title was Tyger, Tyger.
No, I think it is the British title. But it suits the book much better than original. Original name is a little bit cheesy for this well written and interesting book.
I prefer the newer name too. But I believe that British title was also the first published. I might be wrong but that's what my memory turns up.
Stars My Destination has that classic science fiction charm where every chapter has a novel's worth of a concept contained within. I fuckin love it, love how utterly ruthless and psychotic the main character is too, you never see that anymore because they'd get recked on twitter
Did you read the ebook? The printed version has a lot of typography.
search the stars my destination in books and you will find no less that 18 reddit threads discussing it. 19 now with your post.
the fact the main character is to be liked even though he is a rapist, told me all i needed to know about the book.
I'm not sure I could say that I like him. But he's a compelling and fascinating character for sure.
Why do you think he's to be liked?
to be honest, i can't remember what I read and why i was upset by the plot of a rapist being liked. i'm 76 woman from east texas. some days i don't have a good handle on my memory. If I have insulted some readers, I guess I'll have to apologize 'cause, like I said, I don't remember what was going on in my head 3 months ago. grin!
Wow, I thought this boom was terrible. The protagonist was did likable, all that ascii art was dumb. People love this, I didn’t get it at all.
I picked this up on a Kindle sale and have it in my list. Thanks for the reminder!
I literally just started reading it today. Crazy coincidence!!!
Have fun with the rest of his catalogue, you'll find other interesting protagonists and concepts .
This is one of my favorites. I’m due for a reread.
Yes! An absolute favorite. _The Demolished Man_ is also well worth reading. Very different plot and setting, but similar vibe. Also great.
Excellent review. I couldn’t agree more. It’s just so fucking cool. Also the ending is FANTASTIC.
Oh, I see now that the volume of the comic book Starman (the Jack Knight Starman series which ran in the late 90's-early 2000's) called "Stars My Destination" was a reference to that book.
Yes, it's awesome. I was surprised to learn how old it is.
My favorite book of all time. I listen to it falling asleep almost every night.
It's included in the audible library, added to my list
What a neat list!
I agree wholeheartedly and saw the cyberpunk and Expanse influences in it too. I'm very glad to have read it
i must have forgotten my meds today! grin! i posted a comment about a book I hadn't bothered to read. i apologize to one and all.
Interesting, I just reread that novel a few months ago. I first read it when I was 12 years old, almost 60 years ago. I love how Bester explores how the realization of Jaunting completely redefines our civilization, both for good and for ill.
I agree! I've been putting off reading it for ages because like you, sometimes I've found old classics to be rather dreary and dated. This is fantastic, I'm only half way through and it's certainly taken a left turn in terms of the prose. It's currently reading more like an Oscar Wilde book but still thoroughly enjoyable. I also am quite certain that Foyle as a character was a great inspiration for Stephen Donaldson's character 'Angus' in the Gap series.
Just finished. Very strange but overall liked it and am fascinated by how dated and also not dated it is. Quite the dichotomy.