The most recommended classic science fiction books

I once witnessed, at a science-fiction convention, Isaac Asimov and Harlan Ellison debate esoteric matters to the delight of fans. The Naked Sun deals with such matters. Earth detective Elijah Baley, assisted by robot Daneel Olivaw, investigates the death of Rikaine Delmarre, a prominent scientist. Delmarre died in unusual circumstances at his estate on the planet Solaria. In the 48th century, mankind has adapted to life in a variety of suns. Solaria’s population is sparse, and robots vastly outnumber humans. People avoid personal contact and live on distant estates, alone or with their spouses. Solarians customarily communicate remotely by holographic viewing. Baley and Olivaw have a puzzling assignment because except for Delmarre’s wife and house robots, considered incapable of murder, no one was at the estate at the time.

I loved this book for the new concepts it brought to me about psychic abilities, specifically telepaths that could block other’s psychic abilities.

After this, I was drawn to the book for the way it blurred the lines of reality, making me question alongside the main character if anything they were experiencing was real. I also thought the idea of the UBIK drug that kept people in a 'half-life' was fascinating and a different way to show addiction and its consequences.

Lastly, the ending was quite thrilling and kept me reading into the wee hours of the morning, even though I had work the next day! 

During a lengthy hospital stay once, I needed to escape. Magazines were formulaic and newspapers dark. This book materialized on a library trolley. A plain dark blue hard cover looking dull and aged amongst the same-old paperbacks. After only the first story of this magical collection I was hooked away from all around me and into Wells’ tales of incredible imagination. Wells’ other shorts have become well known to the masses but here contained over forty lesser-known proto-sci-fi gems. In the way that Dickens did with characters that others could not, Wells was not constrained by conventions of science. The thought-provoking The Door in the Wall and The Red Room remain today are examples of skill for all contemporaries to aspire to.

A wild ride of what could be a fictional depiction of Man(mad?)chester where our protagonists search in every hook and cranny for vurts, a feather that transports you into a virtual dream world experience. Needless to say, once you get burned out on these feathers you go searching for even deeper trips, with deeper conundrums and deeper labyrinths to escape from.

Noon’s writing puts us in location immediately and does not wait for you to catch up. You’re in his world now, and it’s up to you to keep up. The narrative moves at a hundred miles per hour, and you’re left scratching your head by the end, perhaps wishing to try one of these feathers yourself (or, at least reminiscing about your past lives on the lookout for deeper trips).

Humans are always curious about what the future will look like. They are also concerned about the state impinging on their privacy and interfering with their lives. George Orwell masterfully combined these two human impulses in his classic novel. He wrote the book in 1949 to present his view of the future.

I read this book when I was in my mid-20s. I found it an interesting read, especially since many of his predictions did not come true. I was curious to know how past generations viewed our generation. 

I am a huge fan of dreampunk books and this book helped create the genre. Reading it took me into a dreamworld that lead into another dreamworld and then yet another.

As with all Philip K. Dick books I was left wondering if I ever did return to the reality I believe I live in. I also found the character of Palmer Eldritch himself to be one of my all-time favorites.

I only recently read this book based on a friend’s recommendation (and because I wanted to read it before watching the movie). I was blown away by the depth and breadth of the world-building in Dune.

Though my general agreement with Herbert’s social philosophy might impact this pick, there’s no denying his prodigious world-building skills. 

Hoyle was a genuine leading scientist, and I recognize his views on how the science community works, including how the hacks behave. He combines the "slices of spacetime" concept from relativity and the many-worlds interpretation from quantum mechanics to construct a story where Earth suddenly gets fragmented into a number of different time zones. Like Wells in The Time Machine Hoyle proposes how the future will turn out. To keep the science simple, the story is recorded by a composer.

I am also involved in quantum theory, I write science fiction, and I compose music as a hobby. Leaving aside Hoyle's talent, I can see myself here, and see Hoyle's understanding of both science and music.

This classic 1966 movie and the novelization by SF icon Isaac Asimov really hooked me on science fiction. So much so that I later felt compelled to write an hommage to it. Travelling through the human bloodstream? Being attacked by antibodies and white blood cells? Irresistible! One of the things SF does best is to show us familiar things from an entirely new perspective, and Fantastic Voyage did that in spades with a premise that was outlandish but completely serious and groundbreaking. Although Asimov wrote the novel version from the screenplay, it was released before the movie and it’s difficult to separate the two. I really recommend enjoying both.

Asimov later wrote a novel of his own (not a sequel) called Fantastic Voyage II: Destination Brain published in 1987, but it isn’t all that memorable.

Really, what could be more uncanny than dozens of golden-eyed children conceived while an entire town was unconscious? To say nothing of the not-so-subtle complications of nature versus nurture as their mothers attempt—or avoid—bonding with their strange, unwanted progeny. 

From the mid-century English setting to the focus on male narrative perspectives, Wyndham contrasts what’s normal and abnormal, human and “other,” with a simple tale that spawns (pun intended) a fear of perfect, emotionally disconnected children who cannot—or will not—be loved. A classic, through and through.