Your favourite Sci-Fi books

rolfw

Believe it when I see it Admin.
Staff member
Joined
May 1, 1999
Messages
38,292
Reaction score
1,615
Points
113
My Satellite Setup
Technomate 5402 HD M2 Ci, DM7000s, Transparent 80cm Dish, Moteck SG2100 DiseqC motor, lots of legacy gear. Meters: Satlook Digital NIT, Promax HD Ranger+ spectrum analyser.
My Location
Berkshire
I have several favourites, as do probably most of us and they cross the genre.

My top is probably still Dune by Frank Herbert, but followed pretty closely by The Many Coloured Land and The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the unbeliever. More on the fantasy side, was the Anne McCaffrey Dragon series and the Ice Rigger series.

I guess that my initial interest was sparked by comic strips like Dan Dare and short story series like Perry Rodan (I still have most of the series), then the early Asimov books and the classic 2001 Arthur C Clarke Film.

There are many more I love, but will leave them until later. :)
 

Channel Hopper

Suffering fools, so you don't have to.
Staff member
Joined
Jan 1, 2000
Messages
35,533
Reaction score
8,554
Points
113
Age
59
Website
www.sat-elite.uk
My Satellite Setup
A little less analogue, and a lot more crap.
My Location
UK
Perry Rhodan was a fad at my secondary school, a lot of oneupmanship on book issues by the Dungeons and Dragons club members. I started, but found the stories got somewhat repetitive.

I was really interested in the EC Tubb series that led to Space 1999 with Gerry Anderson at about the same time. And of course UFO that went a few years earlier.


I might move some of Nets last thread over as it got hijacked by the usual subjects along the way. it mentions books in a bit more detail. I cant get on with a long book, of any type, must be the MTV era affected me more than most.
 

Channel Hopper

Suffering fools, so you don't have to.
Staff member
Joined
Jan 1, 2000
Messages
35,533
Reaction score
8,554
Points
113
Age
59
Website
www.sat-elite.uk
My Satellite Setup
A little less analogue, and a lot more crap.
My Location
UK
By the way if you look at the following link

http://www.kruse.co.uk/asimov.htm

scroll down to the foot of the page, there are a number of links to the worlds better known writers of Science Fiction

Elsewhere the main URL site of Mr Kruse has a lot of useful data on the Net and how it can improve your business, so give it a whirl.

As an aside Bill is going into hospital very soon for quite a major eye operation and so this link may not be updated for a while.
 

PaulR

Dazed and Confused Admin
Staff member
Joined
Jun 28, 2003
Messages
18,023
Reaction score
4,046
Points
113
My Satellite Setup
-----------See sig-----------
My Location
Wirral, NW UK and Vaucluse, France.
I know I'll be leaving a lot out but some that come to mind immediately are the Foundation series by Isaac Asimov, the Cities in Flight series by James Blish and, I seem to recollect, almost anything by Poul Anderson.

Later on some of Harlan Ellison's books are worth reading (I loved the name of his house - Ellison Wonderland) and more recently Steven Baxter is worth hunting down.

PaulR
 

T_G

The Consumate Dreamer
Staff member
Joined
Jan 1, 2000
Messages
6,693
Reaction score
241
Points
63
Age
58
My Satellite Setup
1 GigaBlue Quad plus, 1 Dreambox 5620, MOTECK SG2100A DISEqC Motor, 120 cm noname offset dish, Humax 95 cm offset dish and a few UK digiboxes.
My Location
Somewhere where the Sauer is Kraut and the Wurst is Brat
I did read a lot of SF, and of course I like the "classics". But my secret tip for any SF lover would be to look up books by Cordwainer Smith (Paul Linebarger is his real name).
He is considered one of the best and most imaginative writers from the good old days of the 50.
I can strongly recommend "The best of Cordwainer Smith" and "Norstrilia"...

I just bought one on e bay for £1.60 .... O-Ha
 

The Skipper

Regular Member
Joined
Oct 5, 2003
Messages
19
Reaction score
0
Points
0
Age
63
My Satellite Setup
Dreambox 7000s
My Location
Worcestershire, UK
With me its almost anything by Azimov!

Clifford Simak (Way Station, Time & Time Again City etc...)

Philip K Dick especially UBIK, Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep aka Blade Runner)

Harry Harrison

John Wyndham (The Chrysallids, Triffids, Village Of The Damned, Consider Her Ways etc..)

Edmund Cooper

Arthur C Clarke (Rama Series)

James White

But if I was to pick a few that really affected me !

UBIK (by Dick)
The Chrysallids (Wyndham)
Way Station (Simak)
Monsters & Medics "Second Ending" (White)

Getting a bit all nostalgic now........

Skip
 

spiney

Guest
Joined
Apr 29, 2005
Messages
1,514
Reaction score
1
Points
0
My Satellite Setup
Pace 2200 Sky digibox with ftv card, Comag SL65 FTA sat receiver, 40cm Sky minidish, Setpal terrestrial receiver (for free uk tv only!).
My Location
Midlands
Aha, real sci fi (nowt wrong wi’ Star Treck, it heap big fun, but pretty much “cowboys ‘n injuns in space”).

Yeah, Way Station great. Sit comfortably in your house, and have the universe pass through it (metaphor for television?). Also other Simak, esp Ring around The Sun, and All Flesh Is Grass (where flowers talk on telephones, oops I’ve given the plot away!).

Phil Dick (of course), but esp Tim Archer, his last and best.

Some Heinlein, esp Number Of The Beast (fine romp!), “future history” short stories, and Magic Inc, but can’t stand his right wing politics.

Norstrilia (bloated sheep!), but don’t like other Cordwainer.

Venus Equilateral, from George Smith, who invented telecom satellites (not Arthur Clarke!).

Most Silverberg sci fi (not later fantasy stuff, when he’d “given up”). Vornan 19, earlier and much better than KPAX. But best of all, Up The Line, hilarious, must be best ever time travel novel.

Scheckley’s Immortality Inc, satire on 1950s corporate USA, and the most chilling thing I’ve ever read. (also Journey of Jones, comedy sf, much better and earlier than over-hyped Doug Adams!).

Limbo 90 (who else has read that?).

1960s Brit Sci Fi. Especially John Lymington, not brilliant, but very atmospheric, sort of updated MR James. Chris Hodder William (98.4, Fistful Of Digits). Chris Priest, espec Dream of Wessex (and short story Boulter’s Canaries). John Wyndham’s “cosy catastrophes” (“world just ended, love? Never mind, put kettle on, let’s have a cuppa”).
 

T_G

The Consumate Dreamer
Staff member
Joined
Jan 1, 2000
Messages
6,693
Reaction score
241
Points
63
Age
58
My Satellite Setup
1 GigaBlue Quad plus, 1 Dreambox 5620, MOTECK SG2100A DISEqC Motor, 120 cm noname offset dish, Humax 95 cm offset dish and a few UK digiboxes.
My Location
Somewhere where the Sauer is Kraut and the Wurst is Brat
spine said:
Norstrilia (bloated sheep!), but don’t like other Cordwainer.


:eek: well, at least you know him. I actually read several times over the past 20 years " The best of Cordwainer Smith" and still liked it...
 

spiney

Guest
Joined
Apr 29, 2005
Messages
1,514
Reaction score
1
Points
0
My Satellite Setup
Pace 2200 Sky digibox with ftv card, Comag SL65 FTA sat receiver, 40cm Sky minidish, Setpal terrestrial receiver (for free uk tv only!).
My Location
Midlands
I've got Cordwainer's 4 main novels, plus some short stories. But, just can't "get into" his world of "underpeople", cat people, dog people, etc.

i understand he worked for the CIA, is there some hidden "political" message in there somewhere?
 

T_G

The Consumate Dreamer
Staff member
Joined
Jan 1, 2000
Messages
6,693
Reaction score
241
Points
63
Age
58
My Satellite Setup
1 GigaBlue Quad plus, 1 Dreambox 5620, MOTECK SG2100A DISEqC Motor, 120 cm noname offset dish, Humax 95 cm offset dish and a few UK digiboxes.
My Location
Somewhere where the Sauer is Kraut and the Wurst is Brat
Well, I tell you what, when I first read it it was around 1978 or so, I was just about 15 or so and I liked it. But then when I read it again it really hit me how his vision of animals bred to a human like appearance to do the dirty work for humams could really happen. I mean, when he was writing it in the 50ies, there was no Dolly the sheep, and cloning etc. I am sure somewhere in the world in the next 50 years some idiot is going to try to breed a chimpanze with a human and create a cheap labourer. I mean, already now people are breeding embriyos for future use or spare parts...So if we have half human half ape you get EXACTLY the situation he describes.
So I am not sure there is a hidden agenda or some political stuff, maybe just a very clever man who saw what would happen in the future??
 

Channel Hopper

Suffering fools, so you don't have to.
Staff member
Joined
Jan 1, 2000
Messages
35,533
Reaction score
8,554
Points
113
Age
59
Website
www.sat-elite.uk
My Satellite Setup
A little less analogue, and a lot more crap.
My Location
UK
The humans have already used dolphins to attach mines to ships, so its feasible that mans best friend, or a relative could be next in line for help.

I prefer the idea of carcases with minimal brain stems working on production lines myself
 

Analoguesat

Administrator
Staff member
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
Messages
50,739
Reaction score
11,220
Points
113
Location
Scottish Borders
My Satellite Setup
TM 5402HD
Sky+ UK.
My Location
Scottish Borders
Channel Hopper said:
The humans have already used dolphins to attach mines to ships, so its feasible that mans best friend, or a relative could be next in line for help.

I prefer the idea of carcases with minimal brain stems working on production lines myself

Dont most of those already work in the Sky call centres?? ;)
 

T_G

The Consumate Dreamer
Staff member
Joined
Jan 1, 2000
Messages
6,693
Reaction score
241
Points
63
Age
58
My Satellite Setup
1 GigaBlue Quad plus, 1 Dreambox 5620, MOTECK SG2100A DISEqC Motor, 120 cm noname offset dish, Humax 95 cm offset dish and a few UK digiboxes.
My Location
Somewhere where the Sauer is Kraut and the Wurst is Brat
Channel Hopper said:
The humans have already used dolphins to attach mines to ships, so its feasible that mans best friend, or a relative could be next in line for help.

I prefer the idea of carcases with minimal brain stems working on production lines myself


The problem is that the minute you got creatures like these who think or feel, you are going to have to give them their "human" rights....actually, just read the book!!! It is good! O-Ha
 

spiney

Guest
Joined
Apr 29, 2005
Messages
1,514
Reaction score
1
Points
0
My Satellite Setup
Pace 2200 Sky digibox with ftv card, Comag SL65 FTA sat receiver, 40cm Sky minidish, Setpal terrestrial receiver (for free uk tv only!).
My Location
Midlands
I first thought it was disguised social criticism, but yeah, TG is right, with biological engineering we'll probably get something like that. Arthur Clarke also tackled it, with "battery operated animals" in Rama, and "simps".
 

T_G

The Consumate Dreamer
Staff member
Joined
Jan 1, 2000
Messages
6,693
Reaction score
241
Points
63
Age
58
My Satellite Setup
1 GigaBlue Quad plus, 1 Dreambox 5620, MOTECK SG2100A DISEqC Motor, 120 cm noname offset dish, Humax 95 cm offset dish and a few UK digiboxes.
My Location
Somewhere where the Sauer is Kraut and the Wurst is Brat
Maybe it was social critisism as well, as he grew up in the east and was familiar with the then popular racism that people in the US had against yellow, black or red. I am not really in a position to judge that, I need to read the book again (which I am going to do very soon).
But, any book that targets the issue of human rights or social injustice (don't forget that when he wrote the book the USA was still deeply segregated (!)) is a good book in my book! I was just thinking about this the other day when I read a book about early black music in the US, founders of popular music and giants of Jazz weer not allowed to pi*s in the same bowl in the 60ies. Land of the free....
 

spiney

Guest
Joined
Apr 29, 2005
Messages
1,514
Reaction score
1
Points
0
My Satellite Setup
Pace 2200 Sky digibox with ftv card, Comag SL65 FTA sat receiver, 40cm Sky minidish, Setpal terrestrial receiver (for free uk tv only!).
My Location
Midlands
Very interesting, thanks for that info, must look him up via Google ....
 

loop-guru

Loop Dude
Joined
May 16, 2003
Messages
24
Reaction score
0
Points
0
Age
55
My Satellite Setup
1.2 Channel Master Jaeger 128 TM5000DAPCI DM7020 + loads of relics.
My Location
Kent
Asimov the Foundation triligy of course, raised on Jules Vern and Harry Harrison stainless steel rat books, no ones mentioned Michael Moorcock, Jerry Cornelius cure for cancer and all that... erm... Ray Bradury.? Fahrenheit 451 was a good book (oh and another hawkwind song :rolleyes: ) I kinda like the Illuminati Robert Anton Wilson books as well do they count..

blimey theres loads...

Loop. :-Loop
 

T_G

The Consumate Dreamer
Staff member
Joined
Jan 1, 2000
Messages
6,693
Reaction score
241
Points
63
Age
58
My Satellite Setup
1 GigaBlue Quad plus, 1 Dreambox 5620, MOTECK SG2100A DISEqC Motor, 120 cm noname offset dish, Humax 95 cm offset dish and a few UK digiboxes.
My Location
Somewhere where the Sauer is Kraut and the Wurst is Brat
Just bought on ebay THE UNDERPEOPLE, can't wait to read it again!

Downside of this is I am going to have to bid against you guys soon when ebaying for Crdwainer :-lmao
 

spiney

Guest
Joined
Apr 29, 2005
Messages
1,514
Reaction score
1
Points
0
My Satellite Setup
Pace 2200 Sky digibox with ftv card, Comag SL65 FTA sat receiver, 40cm Sky minidish, Setpal terrestrial receiver (for free uk tv only!).
My Location
Midlands
Dug out my Norstrilia (old Gollancz hardback, sold for 20p by local library, shame on them!). Slow start, but I persisted this time. Giant mutant sparrow attack quite good. Got to where he arrives on Mars, having been chopped into bits and transported there in pieces. Looking good.
 

T_G

The Consumate Dreamer
Staff member
Joined
Jan 1, 2000
Messages
6,693
Reaction score
241
Points
63
Age
58
My Satellite Setup
1 GigaBlue Quad plus, 1 Dreambox 5620, MOTECK SG2100A DISEqC Motor, 120 cm noname offset dish, Humax 95 cm offset dish and a few UK digiboxes.
My Location
Somewhere where the Sauer is Kraut and the Wurst is Brat
hey don't tell !!!! I am going to read it againas well! AS I can't remember much of it it is like reading a new one O-Ha

This is the benefit of age, you can read a good book several times and enjoy it every time as if it was the first....Coming to think of it, wouln't this be useful for other areas of life?..... Humping
 
Top