5 Quintessential Science Fiction Books
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- Опубликовано: 5 авг 2024
- You want to get started with Classic Scifi? These books might just be the ones for you!
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To everyone who keeps commenting Dune, I am not a fan 🤷♂️
Daniel Greene unsubscribed.
Love this.
I hear ya, it's not for everyone. I'm pretty lukewarm on Heinlein, so there you go.
I bought it a couple months back but haven't read it yet. I find that I agree with you on about 70% of things, but then our tastes are wildly different in other areas. For example, I just couldn't get into WoT. So maybe that means I'll love Dune?
Your loss daniel
Fahrenheit 451 is the book to encourage people to write their own book. Bradbury literally thought it up without having written any other book and typed it on a coin operated typewriter at the public library. It's one of the most regarded books of the 20th century.
Bradbury was a godling. Fahrenheit 451 and George Owell's works opened up my mind against govt censorship and propaganda, and how to fight against them.
I read that in highschool
The Martian. Some once asked “what’s it about”. . . I answered. . . a Potato Farmer. . .
Excellent choice! I do not read modern SF but I gobbled up The Martian like candy... or should I say, potatoes!
The Martian is also about space piracy. Because don't all good stories involve Pirates?
David Stoyanoff : whereas all (not all, bit mist) good stories involve Pirates, I missed that in “The Martian”
@@dewiz9596 in the movie when he went to the ship to make his Escape From Mars , he had no legal right under international law to board that ship. Ergo, piracy. I don't remember if that was in the book
David Stoyanoff : hmmm. . . Yes, I think it was in the book, and ‘’I ain’t no lawyer”. . . but I think taking the ship would be called “salvage”. . .
And I really enjoyed both the book and the film.
I ended up reading Fahrenheit 451 back in 9th grade because my teacher was too cool for this world and mentioned a bunch of books that were banned from classrooms because he was convinced that all the kids that won't read the books we had to read would defiantly want to read the ones the school system saw as bad
It’s literally my favourite book
No way they banned the book about banning books
My Life science teacher was like that. He got me into reading Heinlein, Asimov, and Clarke. The picture that he had of himself shaking hands with Clarke in a New York restaurant was the sealer of the deal. He gave me a box of books to read. The Foundation series was one of my favorites.
Mind sharing with us which other books were banned in your school so we can read them?
The book I always recommend to people that don't read SF and is a deeply moving and personal story is "Flowers For Algernon" by Daniel Keyes.
Charlie Gordon....tragic hero.
i forget that qualifies as a sci fi book
Fantastic suggestion. My partner has the book and put it in my hands saying I’d enjoy the story. Going in with zero knowledge of the story is my suggestion for anyone who wants to pick this up.
I’m 64 so these are authors I read when I was younger & they’re books I’ve shared with my kids.
64 yet still struggling with grammar. You must be american :)
@@Halo_Legend What's wrong with it?
@@Halo_Legend
Or English might not be their native language....
Correcting other peoples grammer is fine, Mocking is not.
Very wholesome. Hope the kids are enjoying the stories.
A little bit funny though...
-"The person who loves epic fantasy and classic sci-fi. I'm talking to you"
- Hmm, that sounds like me
*The Foundation Trilogy*
- Yep, it was me all along
Sameee
Ah yes, stranger in a strange land, the book that starts on some amazing sci fi world building and then ends on a sex cult
What?! That’s crazy.
A friend of mine recommended it to me but warned, "it's trippy." And he wasn't lying. I'm glad I read it, but I never would read it a second time. I don't know that I fully grok it
Hated this novel. Never has "author self insert" been so creepy. Or had so maybe meanings...
At the time it was written it was as close to modern "gender studies" as was allowed. Religious Cancel Culture was much more powerful than it is today. Heinlein was being Very Brave to even broach these ideas.
Gross.
Overview of the 5, or 6, ehhh no, 5 book recommendations:
1:19 The Foundation Trilogy (Isaac Asimov)
2:58 Stranger in a Strange Land (Robert A. Heinlein) / Fahrenheit 451 (Ray Bradbury)
5:25 I, Robot (Isaac Asimov)
7:16 The Martian (Andy Weir)
8:47 The Past Through Tomorrow (Robert A. Heinlein)
If I may add a suggestion myself which I enjoyed reading a lot and touches on many intriguing and fascinating Sci Fi concepts: Pushing Ice (Alastair Reynolds).
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy trilogy are five of the best science fiction books ever written.
If you've read the series, you know that I wrote that correctly.
The first book seemed almost like a fantasy to me.
Yeah, I love Bradbury and Asimov but Adams is where I cut my teeth. Also why I'm so into discworld ATM.
Never could get the hang of Thursdays
No they're not.
Works best as the original radio broadcasts.
For those looking for the last one on the list here, the title is "The Past Through Tomorrow". (Not "Passage Through Tomorrow" as sleepy Daniel in the video said. Minor detail!)
for character driven sci-fi I've gotta put in my two cents.
HYPERION CANTOS!! Sci-fi with "modern fantasy" elements in character and world/universe building but in a more science-fantasy setting. It's up there with the Dune series for sci-fi "best of's" from what I can tell. It's quite character based, going into everyone's past and motivations in depth in Hyperion (book1). its a dope fiction epic, would reccomend.
Hyperon and Fall of Hyperion are my all time favorite sci-fi books. They are flat out amazing and blew my mind on the first read through.
Hyperion and Endymion are just amazing. I love Dune, The Foundation series, mostly everything from Heinlein and Clarke, but the Hyperion Cantos are truly something special!
@@Sandor_Barta If I like Dune and Hyperion would I also like the Foundation series?
@@pip5188 Hey Pip, I would say yes. The quality of the prose drops a bit when you read Asimov (especially compared to Simmons), but the stories and plot are really good and there's always a mystery or two to uncover, so definitely a lot of fun. I'd say start with Foundation (the first original volume) and if it doesn't grip you, leave it at that. Best wishes! 😊
Man I was sure I’d see Dune or Hyperion in the video. I’m 90% done with Hyperion and I might like it a smidge more than Dune. The references to Keats and poetry do it for me.
"A Canticle for Leibowitz" by Walter M. Miller, Jr. A challenging read but well worth it.
Also, never apologize for an author's work. It's not our place to do so.
gorflunk: Right. But very old school and so a hard sell to anyone under 60 years old . . .
gorflunk fogot I read this book way back when.
Read this through every year or two. Fantastic.
Yes, this was a great book, really surprised me.
Canticle for Leibowitz is a gem of a book, and it only gets more powerful when you find out why he wrote it.
I enjoyed Childhood’s End by Arthur C. Clarke when I first started getting into Sci-fi
It's strangely terrifying.
That's one I didn't get into until *decades* after I started reading SF/F. Really liked it though
Fall of Moondust
Im 15, Its was my first scifi book because of this comment, and i just wanted to say thank you.
It is one of the two books by him that I've read. I don't remember the name atm of the other one, but it was set in a future so far off as to be daunting on its own.
The best classic sci-fi is Le Guin’s The Left Hand of Darkness. Big ideas? Yes. Intimate and personal? Yes. Beautifully written? Oh yes. Has it held up after 40 years? Yes.
I had a hard time getting into this one.
Also Always Coming Home.
I agree. It's also a very somber story. Very moving and unforgettable.
I loved that story. I read it back in the 70s and I'd like to read it again.
@@thedoncrazephaze5375 Me, too. I liked The Lathe of Heaven.
Am I the only one surprised "Dune" wasn't among this
Yes. He doesn't like Dune.
I've read the full series, I went back and read the first book 3 times because I didn't love it and felt like I must be wrong since everyone seems to rave about it so much.
I still don't love it 😂
It seems to me that everything builds up for so long then the ending just kinda... Happens.
@@Kieran0 i'm currently reading the series, i just finished the 3rd book. The first one i thought it was amazing, the second one i was a bit disapointed, the 3rd one i thought the story was good but it was unnecessarily long. In conclusion i think Dune (the book) it´s amazing, but the series is underwhelming.
Forgive my english, it's not my first language
Dune is not a great entry point - it’s equally likely to intrigue or put off.
No. It's highly overrated.
“I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream” is one of my favorite books as well as one of my favorite sci-fi books
Harlan! He was a friend of Joe Haldeman, as an aside.
When it comes to CSF anything by Asimov, Bradbury, Clarke and Heinlein will give you pretty much the best to offer.
Clarke is overrated.
And Vonnegut just so you get the references to Ice-9.
@@calebmauer1751 i had to scroll so far to find someone mentioning vonnegut. thank you, kind sir
Heinlein is childish.if you are over 14 you are too old to take it seriously
@@steveneinselen9784 He is quintessential, but also basic.
I was blown away by David Brin's. Startide Rising. Indeed, his whole theme of the Uplift War is very original and quite compelling and reads like something that Clark, Asimov or Heinlein would have been proud of.
Startide Rising is my favorite science fiction novel. It would make a KILLER movie. His second trilogy, Brightness Reef/Heaven's Reach/Infinity's Shore is just as good.
I read Foundation in Jr high and told a friend about how this trilogy was the best thing I'd ever read. He told me about another trilogy he had just read and was the best he had ever read. So we loaned each other our trilogies. I finished his over a weekend. When we returned the books he said Foundation was great, but he still thought his trilogy was the best he had read. I agreed. It was LOTR, and Foundation moved into #2 for me.
LotR is great, but nothing tops the (septology?) book series A Song of Ice and Fire.
CSF = Classic Sci-Fi. CFS = Chicken-Fried Steak.
also csf = cerebrospinal fluid (i study bio)
Dan simmon hyperion series is hands down the best sci fi.... his other great sci fi is illium definately worth reading also, its a sci fi mashed with the trojan war... very interesting.
Well, the first two were pretty good but the Endymion half of the story was pretty weak. Also, Illium was freaking great but the follow up Olympos was probably the worst and most insulting book I've ever read. So If you read Illium, just stop there. lol
Dune blows it away. I enjoyed it none the less.
I've read that illium and the other one are the same universe as hyperion. Illium really drives home that Martin is a self insert for Simmons though lol
@@jacobthellamer I've heard that you have to stick with dune past the first book for it to get interesting. Is that true? I got super bored with the descriptions of drug trips. It's like listening to someone talk about a dream, I have a real hard time giving a shit
I generally agree. The first two Hyperion books may be the best books I have ever read, however I too was disappointed with the second two. I understand to a degree it is just a different type of book, but I was disappointed. I like to think of the first two as a stand alone and then the next two as well done fan fiction. I’m not saying they were bad books, but it was a major genre shift half way through the series and is filled with retcons. The second two are going to be enjoyed by a different type of reader than the first, which is odd to do in the middle of a series
Arthur C Clarke was my 'in', to sci-fi.
Jabbawonger, A, B, and C.
I think H G Wells is the real genius behind sf. Much, if not most of the genre consists of variations on themes first developed by Wells in ,The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds, the Island of Dr Moreau and others, mostly written between 1895 and 1914.
Dune, ringworld, enders game, mote in gods eye. definitely agree with foundation series. But choices are tough a lot of good classic sci-fi out there.
I personally started with sci-fi in 4th or fifth grade. lol that would have been 1971 or so. Think I started reading fantasy cause I read all the Sci-fi in my middle school library and then high school library. Love both now but I always feel very nostalgic about the universe that sci-fi opened up for me. Dont get me wrong fantasy is great and seems to grab more great writers nowadays but SCI-FI always seemed more human to me more based in what could be rather then building new worlds. Anyway my take on why I love sci-fi and the top books I read that truly cemented that love in my heart.
Ringworld should be a necessity to absolutely any avid reader. Dune is incredible, just don't bother with Herberts sons books.
@@stonehorn4641 I feel like Niven doesn't get anywhere near enough love.
Alfred Bester: The Stars my Destination, and The Demolished Man. Joe Haldeman: The Forever War
The forever war was such a pleasant surprise for me. A friend leant it to me, and I was blown away
Superb book.
My God, I forgot how good The Demolished Man was!!! A masterpiece waaay ahead of it´s time!
YES to all of these. The Stars My Destination, The Forever War and Dune are my top three SF novels (in no particular order).
I used to re-read "Starship Troopers", "The Forever War" and "Bill, the Galactic Hero" as a sort of trilogy. Been a while, though.
Asimov isnt talked about much today in spite of his books being classics. Thank you for shedding light on him and other classic authors that are often ignored.
I mostly prefer Asimov's nonfiction, as he tends to be heavy on developing an idea but light on character development.
I agree with some of the others here. My list would include Dune (it's ok if you're not a fan - nobody's perfect 😁 ), Enders Game, The Martian Chronicles and Childhood's End. I also have always loved most things written by Jules Verne and Andre Norton. Norton's Witch World series is one I can't get enough of. It's one of those that's just the perfect mix of Sci-Fi and Fantasy. And I can't forget Edgar Rice Burroughs and his John Carter of Mars. I mean come on...a mix of Sci-Fi and barbarian fantasy? Yes please.
If you want dystopian science fiction with an intimate experience just pick up 1984.
Neuromancer by William Gibson I'd rate as probably one of the most influential SF novels for the late 20th early 21st century. Coined "cyberspace" as a description of the web, popularized ICE (Intrusion Countermeasures Electronics) and spun a tale thick with vivid descriptions of a world never seen before it's publication in 1984. Heavily influenced the Wachowskis in their Matrix trilogy and also sits on Time magazines 100 best English-language novels written since 1923.
Additionally I'd add Alfred Bester's 'The Demolished Man', the first Hugo Award winner in 1953 for being seminal sci-fi that normalizes telepathy and weaves it expertly into what is a police procedural set in a sci-fi world. It's so well thought out and easy to read (partly due to it's period of publication).
Some good books on that list though! I'd still definitely squeeze Neuromancer in to replace one of those though.. particularly given you've got a RUclips channel on the web that Gibson envisioned :)
Neuromancer, mona liza over drive and count Zero are by far the best syfi books I've ever read. Number two Dune. I totally agree with you, they should be on the list
The sky above the port was the colour of a television, tuned to a dead channel. I'll never forget that line.
After a lifetime of Sci Fi love, I JUST completed Neuromancer. I guess I've always been a bit resistant to the whole cyber punk atmosphere, and though I started it once or twice, I never felt it drawing me in.
Anyway, recognizing the exceptional quality of the writing, I finally gave it a proper effort. It took me several chapters to get accustomed to his voice and for the story's universe to gel in my mind, but then I was rewarded with an exceptional experience and ideas that will fertilize my imagination for the rest of my life.
Good call.
Also, Snow Crash. It may not be the best or the deepest sci-fi book I ever read, but it is definitely the most FUN.
It's one of the most visual books I've ever read. Like this frenetic, far-out over the top comic book in your mind.
LITERALLY one of the most overhyped authors in history. Story is GARBAGE!
I'm going to suggest Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clarke. I read this in a Science Fiction Literature course in University and was blown away.
Great story indeed
Excellent book
Pink Floyd's rendition is the best!
Really changed what Sci Fi was for me
Me too ! I was an engineering major and had to fulfill coursework from outside my major and one of the English class offerings was "Special Topics - Science Fiction". I loved this class as it introduced me to some of the great SF authors as opposed to the pulp I had been reading.
It was really fun scanning the comments & seeing everyone elses favorites. I think these lists will vary depending on how much you've read ( how long you've been reading scifi or how old you are ack) & what stories resonated with or impacted you most. So everyone's list is valid in that sense. I'm just thrilled to see the interest in scifi still alive 💖
Great to see a focus on old school SF. A lot of these authors are no longer with us, and it’s great to see their work still being appreciated.
Ender's Game? I suppose it's not classic SciFi, but that's definitely the book that got me into the genre. I stayed for Asimov though :)
Enders's Game is the worst book of the series. It was such a pain to get through i should have just read the last 30 pages and than start with the second book which is great.
Enders´s game is the most famous one of the series, but I found Bean´s p.o.w. totally awesome. Ender as a grown up was much better read than E.G.
@@ItVex I only read Ender's game, Ender's shadow and The speaker for the dead and I must say you are probably right. I still think that Ender's game is bloody briliant but compared to Speaker it just pales.
Yeah, the series gets soo good! I just realized a few months ago that there's more than just the 4 books!
ITS GREAT AND SO IS I HAVE NO MPUTH AND I MUST SCREAM
I'm glad you kicked off the list with "The Foundation Trilogy", it is the book that got me hooked on scifi. Still the best I have read.
Don't even have to read. There are audio books available on RUclips for Foundation, Foundation and Empire, and Second Foundation (as well as some others related and add on books).
Me too. Asimov is my godfather of Sci-Fi
I read quite a bit of classic and modern SF, but Vernor Vinge is the best. Noone else.can take the most strangely unbelievable aliens and concepts and make them the most facinating I've ever read. His few books are all classics.and highly praise. Many great books mention in the comments, hyper ion, Rama, etc.. I admit that the first 25 pages of dune was the hardest to get into, but after that great. also, I thought the foundation series was a bore with no heart. Expansive but really lacking. Asimov wrote so many better books.
Aah I'm so happy you mentioned Bobverse cuz that's probably my absolute favourite series at the moment and it's criminal that it isn't talked about more
What do you think of some of the super early authors of CSF like H.G Wells? War of the Worlds, The Time Machine etc.
Have you read any Peter F. Hamilton? He's a modern sci-fi writer who stays very technical focused and also has great character writing.
My 5 quintessential SF: The Forever War by Joe Haldeman, Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, Dune by Frank Herbert, The Demon Princes by Jack Vance, Neuromancer by William Gibson.
Great list!
Nice to see a nod to Jack Vance, my favorite SF author. He'll help you build your vocabulary, too; in a most entertaining way
I loved The Demon Princes. To me it is the ultimate good vs evil book. 😎
I''d love to see a screen adaptation of Frankenstein that follows the original story line. The monster was not a sympathetic character!
One more for Jack Vance, just brilliant.
Dangerous Visions edited by Harlan Ellison is a collection of short stories which is a great way to browse through a smorgasbord of some of the greatest science fiction writers ever. (Also the sequel Again, Dangerous Visions.)
The Forever War by Joe Haldeman is another great Sci-Fi read, and it happens to hit the high concept, technically oriented aspects of science fiction, but it also centers the character and their personal problems around the novel’s main concept. The Forever War is an amazing book, and I highly recommend it for anyone getting into science fiction novels (it’s a short read, too).
Read it in college and loved it.
There is an edition with the parts Joe Haldeman was forced to cut. Makes an awesome book even better
I loved that book. I should probably read it again. It’s been a long time.
Mindbridge by Haldeman is great too
@@adamhaywood4808 Agree about both of Haldeman's books. The Forever War was written during Vietnam, as I recall. Mindbridge was excellent as well. I should go back and read this one.
Ancillary Justice is a great modern sci-fi novel I think fantasy readers would love.
I'm surprised you didn't say Dune, even though you aren't a fan of it. Or Hyperion.
and Ringworld
Hyperion Cantos is a true masterpiece.
Hyperion is an absolute masterpiece
How heavily does Dan Simmons' politics bleed through into the *Hyperion* stuff? Because I know that is he a pretty hard Right Winger, and I really don't want to inflict that upon myself.
Hyperion Cantos is my absolute favorite sci-fi, but then he wrote Endymion...
Glenn Myron, I didn't know about his hard right views but I didn't notice anything glaring in the series, it's definitely not Raynd.
Try "The Mote in God's Eye" by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle.
Top 5 is definitely too short of a list for Science Fiction books. I get why he went there... short list... Intro list... Oh well...
Larry Niven is one of my favorite all time authors. Tough for him not to be in the top five.
(I cannot argue with the selection. I own all of the books, except The Martian.)
So true, one of the greats.
@@Golfnut_2099 I always like "The Protector". We have to introduce the Belters somewhere.
@@Golfnut_2099 The Martian doesn't fit the classic definition (I think, in my own opinion) of science fiction. It's more of a mainstream novel written to more literary than action/SF standards/guidelines.
Hmmm hard choice, but I would choose "Footfall" over it.
I missed Jules Verne. And for classic SF Opera: E.E. Smith and his Lensmen-Cycle. This inspired in part the Babylon 5-series.
I love Jules Verne. Read everything I could get my hands on. I even read his 3 history of exploration books.
I really like Iain M Banks Use of Weapons and Against a Dark Background and the Expanse series.
Iain M Banks is such a great writer and the Culture series deserves to be more known. The player of games was amazing too.
The 3 Body Problem is a really good Chinese sci-fi book. It's modern but feels a lot like classic sci-fi.
Have you seen or read Wandering Earth?
hans gruber nope but I’ve heard of it.
I've tried but couldn't really get into 3 Body Problem. Maybe I just need to get past the first few chapters.
RobertWF42 It gets better. This book can be somewhat dry at times. It’s very “hard” sci fi with a lot of real physics and other scientific concepts being explored. I believe the author is an engineer or something.
If you haven’t gotten to the first chapter where they introduce the 3 body problem “game” you should really keep reading.
The ending of 3body problem is in a way perfect. But I am still mad!
"Semiosis" by Sue Burke is a great modern science fiction novel. She speculates about plant intelligence on an alien world.
Stanger in a Strange Land was the first sci-fi book I ever read - this was in high school and it blew my mind. I got hooked on Heinlein and proceeded to read everything he wrote over the next several years. Anyone interested in this genre has to read this book.
While I agree that Heinlein's Stranger in a Strange Land is more 'personal' than technological, I would point you to LeGuin's The Left Hand of Darkness or The Dispossessed for a really great examination of people and intimate storytelling. LeGuin utilizes the SF settings of alien races/planets and futuristic technologies to shine a light on humanity- and she does it masterfully!
Classic science fiction... Cant get anymore classic than the Lensmen series by EE Doc Smith. Try it out.
LeGuin is the best SF writer in my opinion. Both books you mentioned are my Top 2 SF books.
I agree completely. LeGuin was the name which immediately came to mind when he mentioned a personal story.
Do you know what I like about Stranger in a Strange Land? Nudist colony!
And then Puppet Masters brought it into the whole human civilization!
YAY!!!
“But how can you not mention (insert book title that doesn’t fit the criteria you mentioned in the beginning of the video)!? How dare you!”
Ray Bradbury is really amazing at combining personal stories, beautiful poetic language, and cerebral sci-fi/fantasy. Just an amazing writer all around. Plus he’s not afraid to get cheesy and pulpy at times with his short story collections. The Martian Chronicles is my goto recommendation for a sci-fi short story collection
Asimov: Novels of intrigue,
Clarke: Novels of exploration,
Heinlein: Novels of self-discovery.
I like Clarke, but sometimes he can be frustrating. He introduces these grand themes, but then doesn't flesh them out.
Clarke is my favourite Science Fiction author. His sense of irony is matched by his sense of wonder and awe and he is the most literate of S.F. authors... Perhaps only Bradbury writes more beautifully than Clarke.
Herbert - Novels of Humanity
For me it's
1. The Forever War (military Science Fiction is my favorite genre and this is the perfect book for me. Very much like if Hemingway wrote Science Fiction. The psychological ramifications of that book are astounding.)
2. Hyperion Cantos (Dan Simmons is my favorite author and I don't think I could do this series justice)
3. Neuromancer (The book that got me addicted to books and reading)
4. Old Man's War (The book that got me hooked on Military Science Fiction
5. Children Of Time (Magnificent book. Best Sci-Fi books in years)
Forever War is great! Have you read Forever Peace?
Agree with you on the Hyperion books. Wish he'd write more SF.
Nice. We share some favorites I see.
I read the Forever War. The whole idea of the soldiers going out to the stars and taking so long to get there was just brilliant.
Children of Time :)
Heinlen is awesome. Moon is a harsh mistress comes to mind as well
I like that one much better than SIASL but I will say SIASL made me think and rethink about how and what I believe. it really doesn't feel like SF
Time enough for love is my favorite
Dont forget about the masterpiece that is starship troopers
@@Aurelian_Augustus777 agree ,,,the book is so much better than that WTF movie they made ,,,always thoht it would make a great movie but the that pos came out instead
To Sail Beyond The Sunset or the Cat Who Walks Through Walls are some of my favorite books. I could go on and on with his books.
Greatest Sci-Fi novel I ever read: A Canticle for Leibowitz, by Walter M. Miller, Jr. Yes, I like it better even than “Childhood’s End” by Clarke.
@Mark Wilson: Right. But it's so old school conceptually that it's the equivalent of trying to get people to read Shakespeare . . .
@@QED_ I personally think that the prose in canticle for leibowitz sounds much more contemporary than anything I've read by Heinlein (Stranger In A Strange Land, Starship Troopers). The last act of the book in particular I think.
"Eat! Eat!" cried the pope's child.
@@lukeivan1 - Other than the periodically humorous, "hey Pop! That sounds swell!" kind of dialogue I never found Heinlein difficult to read.
@@colin1818 You're getting at what I meant for the most part, I've only read SIASL and TMIAHM by Heinlein but the dialogue in both (especially the former) sounds like a Noir Film.
I think a good one to get people into SF, which has that "human touch" is Clifford Simak's, Way Station. I gave it to my wife to read and she really liked it, even though she doesn't like sci-fi. Asimov once said, "To read science fiction is to read Simak". High praise indeed.
Larry Niven's Ringworld is high on my recommendation list, but not it's sequels.
My personal favorite.
One of my favorites as well. I would throw "Integral Trees" out there as an alternate.
Too much Rishathra
I would include Ringworld Engineers. But ONLY that addition. And it’s with the caveat that you will NOT like what happens to one of the characters from the previous book.
I like allot of Larry Nivens stories. Known space, etc. It is a pity that Ringworld was so successful because we just got a whole lot of highly profitable rehash and Rishath' when we might have got some more clever original stuff.
How could you not mention PHILIP K DICK? He is the absolute master
I was thinking of a "scanner darkly" as a good character driven classic SF.
I love PKD but I feel like a lot of his stories are speculative techno thrillers.
I love Philip K Dick, but his work is super hit or miss. Some is great, some you can tell were written in a few days while on a meth bender. IMO, A Scanner Darkly, Valis and Flow my tears...are his best works. I’ve read a LOT of them.
@@7yep4336dfgvvh the prolific title belongs to Asimov, not Philip.
@@nerdymanjoe4948 VALIS is beyond this world. I am mostly a fan of his short stories, but VALIS is a masterpiece and the best book I have ever read probably. Sure, Dune or Hyperion are in top 5, but Valis is simply on another level.
"Slan" by A E van Vogt, "Childhood's End" and "Against the Fall of Night" by Arthur C. Clarke. Hands down.
Childhoods end is my favorite Clarke.
I think his short stories are better. I think Destination Universe is one of his best, particularly the one about the astronaut marooned on Mars.
The short stories published in the 1930s and 40s are among the best in Hard S.F.
Slan was my favorite book when I was in high school. Can't forget The Weapons Shop of Isher, either. Van Vogt was a master.
Hey Daniel, first time watching one of your videos, insta-subscribed.
I was about to comment about Dune because I figured it would be a better fit than Foundation for your first category (Foundation never struck me as fantasy but I found Dune to be just the perfect balance of the two genres), but I saw you already addressed that haha.
Regarding modern sci fi I suppose you also received many recommandations, personally I would recommend you Paolo Bacigalupi and John Scalzi. The former for the speculative fiction on modern problematics, the latter because nobody got me hooked up as much as him in recent years, I pretty much read one of the books of his Old man's war series per day during my last holiday.
Cheers, looking forward to more content from you (fantasy as well as sci fi, of course)
Ian. M. Banks is probably my favourite author of all time. Lots of emphasis on characters while at the same time crafting a complex and intricate universe. Feesum Enjin is a lovely example of his ability to switch his writing style up and view something from a different perspective. Excession would perhaps be my favourite book by him but it's honestly very difficult to choose
For IMB, it has to be “The algebraist”
My introduction to Sci Fi was The Caves of Steel by Asimov. Part of the “Robot” series. Basically the detective/PI genre in space with some big sci fi ideas. Very easy to relate to.
My favorite series is The Gap series by Stephen R Donaldson. It’s not deep at all. He is a fantasy author and this is just a sci fi story told like a fantasy story. What I really like about it is that it starts out looking one way and ends up on its head - it’s hard to tell who the hero’s and villains are.
Also, the most fantasy-like sci-fi story has to be Dune. It’s hard to read, but never mind how sci fi it acts it is basically hero’s, prophecies and wizards in space. And all is not as it seems there either - if you stop at the first book you are really missing where the story is going.
Wow awesome to hear someone mention the Gap series. I hardly ever hear anyone mention it, it's as rare to hear as Tad Williams Otherland series which was quite deep, (I'm from the place part of it is set in and Williams knowledge of archaeology, in a sci-fi setting, really does shine through)
@@deisophiagaming8216 - Donaldson's Thomas Covenant books are also worth pursuing, if a bit depressing. As far as the Otherland books, I thought it was really clever of Tad Williams to come up with a device to use his considerable fantasy chops in a science fiction novel (well, four novels).
@@onlyrick Actually I've read the Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, all nine of them! And his lesser known series Mordant’s Need. But thanks for the recommendation, if anyone passes by this thread... They're excellent reads.
DUNE - Like you said, the biggest mistake is people stop with DUNE. The series (not the books by Brian Herbert mind you - they may be a fun read, but lack depth) will make you ponder humanity in ways the great classics and the best philosophers can. I won't spoil it, and they are not easy to read, but the fruit at the end will be well worth the effort.
Fahrenheight 451 is one of my favourite books of all time, in any genre. As an author, I think there are few who match Bradbury in terms of creating an atmosphere in objectively trivial scenes!
My top 5 less well-known and rather recent science fiction books are:
-Pandora's Star/Judas Unchained by Peter F. Hamilton (one long book in two volumes)
-The Peripheral by William Gibson
-Lexicon by Max Barry (literally un-put-downable)
-Daemon/Freedom(tm) by Daniel Suarez (I count these as one since they're so tightly coupled)
-Perilous Waif by E. William Brown
I've read each of these at least three times since I bought them.
Peter F Hamilton, The Commonwealth saga. Epic.
LOVE. Reading Salvation Lost right now.
Don't miss Neal Asher, "the Polity" series, and "the Owner" series; equal to Peter F Hamilton, but a different streak
@@jeepwran me too!
Night's Dawn trilogy is another epic tale.
@@BertGrink A great world he built, full of promises, and he ruined it with revenants :-( so sad
Good list, I was reading the Foundation trilogy, Robert Heinlein and Ray Bradbury at about the same time I was reading Lord of the Rings and Conan in the mid 70s, I love it all
That's super awesome, dude!!! :)
Wow, you just made me feel young, and I thought I would be the old person around here being in my mid 40s
@@TheGeekyHippie You're welcome! :)
LOL
That was my Teen to Tween arch. LOL Constant rotation from fantasy to hard sci-fi. Then Urban Fantasy and Sci-Fi.
If you liked "The Martian" have you read "Saturn Run" by John Sandford ? Sandford is already an established veteran of the action adventure genre with co-author Ctein providing the ways and means of the technology. Saturn Run focuses on the imminent technology and the human ingenuity to travel to Saturn in 2067 with a twist. Very enjoyable read, I really hope they make a movie out of this one.
If you read from Asimovs I robot through caves of steel to the end of the foundation trilogy and all in between, you will cover 10,000 years of his universe. The well of souls series is awesome too. The integral tree is eye opening as well. The crystal singer has a strong female lead is very good too.Jack Vance, and Keith Laumer are great authors.
Would Logan's Run fit in the CSF category? If so, how do you guys feel it holds up?
WhoDatBoy, one of my most favoritest movies.
so so book, far better movie - but the concept...
I echo The Foundation. I read the first book because of your videos and it was so good IMO.
Have you read any of Michael Crichton books? My favorite of his is called Sphere. I highly recommend it
How was the book the foundation trilogy? Please only ones that have already read the book please reply. And if you haven’t read the book please don’t reply. Trying to decide if this book would be good for me to read.
I think Orwell's *1984* should be here. Is a must on any dystopia and/or Sci-Fi list
Definitely. Or possibly Brave New World, depending on your political leanings.
recindedblessing Orwell is grade school compared to the mastery of Huxley. But still necessary.
Dune at least deserves a mention even if you're not a fan of it. Also Neuromancer is another really important sci fi book that everyone seems to forget.
Invaderzod I’m one of the weirdos that didn’t like Neuromancer, though I do love other cyberpunk like Snow Crash. I plan on trying it again though.
@@spencerryanmusic It's not a particularly good book but the ideas in it make it important and worth reading.
@@spencerryanmusicI'm looking forward to the Amazon TV adaptation of 'Snow Crash'. But it will need an epic budget to do it justice.
Dune was just a fantasy which happened to happen in the future. That's the extent of it's scifi.
boulderbash19700209 everything in Dune is explained through science though. I agree that it has a fantasy structure but it is undeniably sci fi
Great selection! Thanks for posting. Completely agree with your list. Not necessarily my top 5 but still great choices. Such a hard task to only select 5 from Classic Sci-Fi! There are so many great books in the field! Anyway, well done.
Daniel, have you read Ray Bradbury's slim paperback, The Martian Chronicles? Or William Gibson's Neuromancer (CLAS-FI)? Or George Orwell's 1984? or Urusla Le Guin's Left Hand of Darkness? Or Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut?
Bonus: Philip K. Dick's Do Android Dream of Electric Sheep?
"City" by Clifford D. Simak (1952). "Deathworld" 1, 2 & 3 by Harry Harrison (serialized 1960-1968). "Lord of Light" by Roger Zelazny (1968).
I've recently become a big fan of Simak. He has so many classic novels. Waystation, Cemetery World, Why Call Them Back From Heaven, etc.
Wow. Did not think anyone else was a fan of City or Lord of Light - almost never hear them talked about. Great choices!
Simak and Zelazny are just the best! Both books you mentioned came to mind as he was talking. And both are good re-reads.
I was trying to remember who wrote "Deathworld". Thanks. It blew my mind (was one of my firts reads). Grear books the others, too.
Zelazny can definitely be both big idea and personal. Glad I'm not the only one championing his work.
The lack of Hyperion Cantos on your list is a serious oversight in my opinion. Probably the best books I’ve ever read, regardless of genre. True masterpiece.
The Hyperion Books are in my top three, for sure!
Ilium was damn good too, very underrated.
Never understood Hyperion...
I've read Fahrenheit 451, and was now searching for some other recommendations to go forward into sci-fi reading. I'll try to check some of those books out, thanks!
As a bridge between sci fi and fantasy, I'd recommend 'The Martian Chronicles', by Ray Bradbury. It's got bits of both without being heavy on either. Plus he has a really unique way of describing things.
Some must reads. Personally I think Dune should be here but I saw the review here so I get why you left it out, but what about Ender's Game, Player of Games (or one of the other culture books like the Use of Weapons), The Stars My Destination or The Hitchhikers Guide to the Universe
Hey Daniel have you read The Forever War? It blew my mind!
I gotta shout out Forever Peace as well.
The mote in god’s eye is my pick for the best science fiction novel I’ve ever read. Period. Of course each person will have their own preference.
try peter f Hamilton... fallen dragon
I wish someone would make this into a movie series, highly original.
@@CarlosGonzalez-qy7qd Which one? Mote or FallenDragon?
The "Mote". I really enjoyed that.
Heinlein wrote something similar about Mote. I believe it was the only novel he had endorsed up to then.
Hey Daniel, just wanted to say that I have been thinking about doing my own channel with short reviews focused mainly on Science Fiction. I was happy to see we really have similar tastes. I was not a huge fan of Stranger in a Strange Land, and haven't even heard of the last book you mentioned thank you for that. Thank you for this video.
All these choices are great Daniel! Now, here are a few alternates:
1) for the fantasy fan: Nine Princes in Amber, (First book in the Amber series) by Roger Zelazny.
2) for an intimate, personal story, All My Sins Remembered, by Joe Haldeman
3) Classic Science Fiction: Rendezvous with Rama, by Arthur C. Clarke.
4) Modern science fiction: either Neuromancer by William Gibson, Pandora's Star by Peter F. Hamilton, or A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge.
I love the Amber Chronicles, such a good series!
I NEVER hear anyone that still talks about the Amber series. It had potential to be my favorite fantasy if not for Zelinsky's inability to put all the loose ends into a satisfying conclusion. I always think of the bar "Bloody ---'s", named after the last owner to get killed there.
Jack Campbell's The Lost Fleet is one great read and a relatively new series out there.
For "soft" modern classic sci-fi, Kazuo Ishiguro's 'Never Let Me Go' is a fantastic start: intimate and character-driven, but with a definite concept/idea-based story.
I am saving this video for the good recommendations of Sci-fi books to read.
And to give my own recommendation list:
Bobiverse series
Anything by John scalzi - especially old man's war
The adventure of Tom Stranger - for a great laugh, quick read and would recommend listening to it.
Uplift war series
Hitch hikers guide to the Galaxy
The daily grind
The Martin
I switch between Sci-fi and fantasy.
I was wondering what you would classify "Hell Gate London" as?
If you haven't read Hyperion, you are missing out on something truly special. Hyperion and the Fall of Hyperion are essentially one book, and should not be read separately if you want to get the whole picture.
For me it always will be The Star Diaries by Stanisław Lem. The guy was genius and has written some of the most logical, complex and hilarious sci fi stories.
Thank you so much for mentioning The Star Diaries by S. Lem! Lem was little known in the West during the Cold War and "got away" with critiquing Soviet Bloc society by placing his stories in outer space. And he wrote some of the best SF humor I ever read!
Agreed, a grossly underappreciated author these days.
I have found some old si fi books and one of them is Returning from the Stars also by Lem
@@Stefan-lz7vj not my fave, I prefer more lighter Lem's books, but still good and worth reading :)
I believe I read all of the books you recommended (except for The Martian) when I was young in the 60s. Good choices, all! Well done!
ah, well ... I started diving into sf with the Radch trilogy by Ann Leckie which was a mindblowing thing reading this at first (regardless of some Jules Verne I read as a youngster - well, I'm surely older than you!)
Okay, I got a crush on well written space operas, but also on social fiction, which may be a little dystopian - I don't like dystopian storys. "Fahrenheit 451" is one of my favourite books, and I'm sure the "Foundation's" are to be read this year.
At your wish I don't talk "Dune", but I have to tell you it's one of my favourites, closely followed by the Ringworld series - I would rather appreciate of what you think about the (original) Larry Niven saga.
Nice channel by the way! Got it subscripted by ... now :-)
I’m sorry, but to do a video on essential sci-fi and not include Dune as THE quintessential classic sci-fi book is bad. Even if you don’t like it, not even a mention?
As someone who read mainly sci-fi until the last year (when I got into fantasy thanks to Daniel), here’s my list that no one asked for:
1. Dune, Dune Messiah, Children of Dune (the closest to a true fantasy epic that the genre has ever produced).
2. Hyperion Cantos (a sci-fi fantasy retelling of the Canterbury tales that is equal parts sci-fi, horror, and fantasy).
3. Foundation Trilogy (this contains-along with I, Robot-the purest exploration of scientific and philosophical ideas in the genre, though Asimov’s characters have always been one-dimensional).
4. Stranger in a Strangeland (mainly a philosophical and theological exploration. Fantastic characters).
5. Ender’s Game (pure enjoyment, but deftly handles some massive moral questions. It’s sequel, Speaker For the Dead is just as good or better).
Honorable Mentions: Revelation Space by Alistair Reynolds, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Rendesvous With Rama, The Left Hand of Darkness, and The Forever War.
Spencer Askew when you say that dune is the closest to a fantasy epic the genre produced- I think that’s kinda the point. Dune is great, I love it, but it’s a fantasy story that happens to be in space.
@@LOCKEYJ Maybe the title should be "5 Quintessential Hard Science Fiction Books". He talks about science themes. The different between Science Fiction and Fantasy is sometimes just that one is explained through science and the other is not.
You can have a space story, say the Dragonriders of Pern series, that begins mainly as a fantasy story. As the series develops past the initial trilogy, it becomes more science fiction.
But, have you read the 3rd and 4th enders game series? Totally full-on science, theology, and moral dilemmas and thats really amazing, but they are really long books
Yes, it is certainly true that you are the final word on the five essential science fiction books. Everyone else who does not agree with you is wrong.
Do Androids dream of electic sheep. One of the best sci fi... that and dune 🤣🤣🤣
Why is that one of the best for you?
Because of the movie?
Blade Runner the book is hardly exciting, it's actually pretty bland. And most of the philosophical questions are only implied, there's no thorough exploration of them.
I tried so hard to get into Electric Sheep. I think my problem was that I was already such a huge Bladerunner fan that I expected something the book wasn’t. It’s still something I feel bad about
Takes a brave soul to do a top five picks of anything on youtube.
The mars trilogy by Kim Stanley Robinson, covered both hard core Sci-fi and the personal story aspects. I don't know if you could call it a classic yet. Asimov also masterfully connected the robot, empire, and foundation series later on. I did not like the trilogy that came after Asimov done by another writer though.
Currently working through green mars and LOVING it. Red mars absolutely captivated me, I also recommend Aurora very very highly. Kim Stanley Robinson is a genius
@@JohnDoe-mj6cc Be prepared for green mars, no spoilers though... I felt like I was a hundred years old after that....
There's so much Dune dune in WoT, it could be a Fifth Age...
One name: China Mieville. Incomparable imagination.
Too out there for me
Thank you! Was scrolling the comments for this
Love your list, you hit almost every one that I would've chosen. I get the Heinlein issues, but he was a damn interesting writer who could entertain you and make you think. I would also have suggested The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert Heinlein, but that would've kicked you above five.