Love The Exile Waiting? Readers share 67 books like The Exile Waiting...

By Vonda N. McIntyre,

Here are 67 books that The Exile Waiting fans have personally recommended if you like The Exile Waiting. Shepherd is a community of 12,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of The Left Hand of Darkness

Scott F. Kiesling Author Of Language, Gender, and Sexuality: An Introduction

From my list on challenge myths about gender and sex.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve been studying language and gender since I started graduate school in 1990. I’m an odd gender scholar in some ways in that I am a white cisgendered heterosexual masculine person. I think I’m interested in the topic because conversation and ‘being a man’ has always seemed hard and like a lot of work to me. So, I started studying these things in the 1990s with a project on language use in a college fraternity in the US. Since then I've published many articles on language and masculinities, including a 2004 article on the word dude, which is still popular in introductory linguistics courses today.

Scott's book list on challenge myths about gender and sex

Scott F. Kiesling Why did Scott love this book?

Le Guin is my favorite author, and all of her power is on display in this science fiction novel about an emissary who visits a planet (Gethen) where, most of the time, the people have no sex differentiation. Sex traits only become apparent in the two days per month of “kemmer,” and Gethenians may kemmer as male or female (and which is not completely predictable).

Because of Le Guin’s skill as a novelist, the implications of this arrangement are explored in subtle but powerful ways, more as the warp and weft of the cultural background than the main feature of the plot (although it is definitely significant). The book shows how deeply gender and sex infuse our own culture through the contrast with Gethen. The bonus is that this is a masterpiece of a novel, one often mentioned on lists of the best science fiction novels of all time. Le…

By Ursula K. Le Guin,

Why should I read it?

22 authors picked The Left Hand of Darkness as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

50TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION-WITH A NEW INTRODUCTION BY DAVID MITCHELL AND A NEW AFTERWORD BY CHARLIE JANE ANDERS

Ursula K. Le Guin's groundbreaking work of science fiction-winner of the Hugo and Nebula Awards.

A lone human ambassador is sent to the icebound planet of Winter, a world without sexual prejudice, where the inhabitants' gender is fluid. His goal is to facilitate Winter's inclusion in a growing intergalactic civilization. But to do so he must bridge the gulf between his own views and those of the strange, intriguing culture he encounters...

Embracing the aspects of psychology, society, and human emotion on an…


Book cover of A Wrinkle in Time

T. Alan Horne Author Of Secret Sky: The Young Universe

From my list on middle grade books that adults can appreciate.

Why am I passionate about this?

As an author of experimental and genre-bending books, I evangelize people not only to read more books but to read books outside of their comfort zone. And while it doesn’t take much work to get adult readers to consider Young Adult titles, getting them to read Middle-Grade books has been a much greater challenge, which is a shame because middle school has a lot to offer. Some of the best and most life-changing books exist within the Middle-Grade category. My own Middle-Grade books were written with readers of many age ranges in mind. 

T.'s book list on middle grade books that adults can appreciate

T. Alan Horne Why did T. love this book?

I can’t find a more deeply philosophical book, among all adult literature, to compare with the works of Madeleine L’Engle.

The protagonists of these stories may be children, but they live in a world of scientific supernature that blurs the lines between measurable, observable reality and mystic philosophy. Even before researching Madeleine L’Engle’s life, I could tell that she was a serious thinker.

Few books have had such a profound impact on the way I approach living in the “real” world of adults. Einstein would have loved this book.

By Madeleine L'Engle,

Why should I read it?

16 authors picked A Wrinkle in Time as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 10, 11, 12, and 13.

What is this book about?

Puffin Classics: the definitive collection of timeless stories, for every child.

We can't take any credit for our talents. It's how we use them that counts.

When Charles and Meg Murry go searching through a 'wrinkle in time' for their lost father, they find themselves on an evil planet where all life is enslaved by a huge pulsating brain known as 'It'.

Meg, Charles and their friend Calvin embark on a cosmic journey helped by the funny and mysterious trio of guardian angels, Mrs Whatsit, Mrs Who and Mrs Which. Together they must find the weapon that will defeat It.…


Book cover of Kindred

Hajar Yazdiha Author Of The Struggle for the People's King: How Politics Transforms the Memory of the Civil Rights Movement

From my list on understanding revisionist history politics.

Why am I passionate about this?

I studied forty years of the political misuses of the memory of Dr. King and the Civil Rights Movement as a sociologist at USC and the daughter of Iranian immigrants who has always been interested in questions of identity and belonging. My interest in civil rights struggles started early, growing up in Virginia, a state that celebrated the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday alongside Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson. I wanted to understand how revisionist histories could become the mainstream account of the past and how they mattered for the future of democracy.

Hajar's book list on understanding revisionist history politics

Hajar Yazdiha Why did Hajar love this book?

I am, to put it lightly, obsessed with the way Octavia Butler revolutionizes the timescape and invites us to speculate about worlds that could be. In this and so many of her books, her vision of Afrofuturism is one that reminds us that our ancestral pasts and our imagined futures are always connected. 

I thought a lot about the future when I wrote my book, and I share Butler’s conviction that there is collective healing and liberation in revisiting and reimagining the past.

I also love that my neighborhood library in Pasadena is the one Octavia Butler used to frequent!

By Octavia E. Butler,

Why should I read it?

15 authors picked Kindred as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

From the New York Times bestselling author of Parable of the Sower and MacArthur “Genius” Grant, Nebula, and Hugo award winner

The visionary time-travel classic whose Black female hero is pulled through time to face the horrors of American slavery and explores the impacts of racism, sexism, and white supremacy then and now.

“I lost an arm on my last trip home. My left arm.”

Dana’s torment begins when she suddenly vanishes on her 26th birthday from California, 1976, and is dragged through time to antebellum Maryland to rescue a boy named Rufus, heir to a slaveowner’s plantation. She soon…


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Book cover of The Ballad of Falling Rock

The Ballad of Falling Rock by Jordan Dotson,

Truth told, folks still ask if Saul Crabtree sold his soul for the perfect voice. If he sold it to angels or devils. A Bristol newspaper once asked: “Are his love songs closer to heaven than dying?” Others wonder how he wrote a song so sad, everyone who heard it…

Book cover of The Female Man

David Wellington Author Of Paradise-1

From my list on genre mashups in science fiction and fantasy.

Why am I passionate about this?

Science fiction and Fantasy have always been about exploring new ideas in novel ways—right from the beginning, Mary Shelley saw the story of Frankenstein as a chance to explore ideas of liberation and equality that, at the time, were too uncomfortable for mainstream stories. Since then many writers have found success by mashing up sf with other literary genres to discover the boundaries—and the gray areas—between them. In my latest book I explore the deep connection between horror (the fear of the unknown) and sf (the drive toward wonder). Some of my most cherished books have similarly charted these murky borderlands.

David's book list on genre mashups in science fiction and fantasy

David Wellington Why did David love this book?

This science fiction and mystery story is about an astronaut from a world without men crashes on Earth and blows all our minds… except we’re also reading a story about a woman living in our 1970s, and a parallel Earth where WWII never happened… it gets a little confusing, in a really fun way.

Russ uses this engaging, sometimes funny, sometimes tragic multiverse story to explore topics of sex essentialism and gender fluidity in a way that still feels bracing and mind-expanding today.

You could say this is as much a philosophical treatise as a novel but that makes it sound like it isn’t any fun, when in fact it’s a blast. If you’re open to a far-out read you will not be disappointed.

By Joanna Russ,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked The Female Man as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A landmark book in the fields of science fiction and feminism.

Four women living in parallel worlds, each with a different gender landscape. When they begin to travel to each other's worlds each woman's preconceptions on gender and what it means to be a woman are challenged.

Acclaimed as one of the essential works of science fiction and an influence on William Gibson, THE FEMALE MAN takes a look at gender roles in society and remains a work of great power.


Book cover of A Song for Lya

C. S. Friedman Author Of This Alien Shore

From my list on aliens in science fiction.

Why am I passionate about this?

I have always been fascinated by the workings of the human mind. What instincts and influences make us who we are? This Alien Shore grew out of research I was doing into atypical neurological conditions. It depicts a society that has abandoned the concept of “neurotypical”, embracing every variant of human perspective as valid and valuable. One of my main characters, Kio Masada, is autistic, and that gives him a unique perspective on computer security that others cannot provide. What might such a man accomplish, in a world where his condition is embraced and celebrated? Good science fiction challenges our definition of “Other,” and asks what it really means to be human, all in the context of an exciting story.

C. S.'s book list on aliens in science fiction

C. S. Friedman Why did C. S. love this book?

Years before Game of Thrones became a household name, Martin was best known for this hauntingly beautiful and deeply disturbing novella. Two telepaths, Robb and Lya, are sent to an alien planet to investigate a disturbing religious movement. The planet is home to a race called the Shkeen, and to a gelatinous parasite called the Greeshka. In middle age the Shkeen allow the Greeshka to infect them, and ten years later they visit a cave where they allow a massive specimen to consume them. Some humans living on the planet have even joined the native religion, and have allowed themselves to be infected and devoured. The administrators are desperate to know why.

Robb and Lya have an unusually close relationship, but she suffers from a sense of isolation that telepathy cannot banish. While they watch some Shkeen being devoured by the Greeshka, she can sense how isolated the Shkeen feel…

By George R. R. Martin,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked A Song for Lya as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Two telepaths investigate the newly discovered world of Shkea, where every native inhabitant, and an increasing number of human colonists, worships a mysterious and deadly parasite. Winner of the 1975 Hugo Award for Best Novella.


Book cover of The Forerunner Factor

Kurt D. Springs Author Of Price of Vengeance

From my list on sci-fi that meld military and paranormal themes.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am Kurt D. Springs. If you read my back of the book bio, you’ll find I have advanced degrees in anthropology and archaeology and a focus on European prehistory. However, I’ve always been fascinated by military history. I’ve recently studied how modern warfare has changed many old paradigms. I’ve also studied modern and ancient religions, and many of the fiction works I enjoy have ESP or magic elements, especially Andre Norton’s works. I am also a fan of the HALO game universe. I like to tell people my stories are the children of Andre Norton’s Forerunner series and HALO.

Kurt's book list on sci-fi that meld military and paranormal themes

Kurt D. Springs Why did Kurt love this book?

Forerunner is the book that made me a fan of Andre Norton. I enjoyed how she mixed space travel, ESP powers, and remarkable world-building.

Andre Norton’s Forerunner influenced the paranormal part of my own world-building. The alien girl, Simsa, was a compelling character. Starting off as a streetwise orphan on the planet Kuxortal, the human spaceman Thom takes her on a journey of self-discovery.

They must stop space pirates from plundering ancient warships. To do so, she must discover her true heritage of power and nobility.

By Andre Norton,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Forerunner Factor as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 16, and 17.

What is this book about?

On ancient port world planet Kuxortal, young Simsa grows up among garbage pickers who live upon the ancient ruins of a fallen galactic civilization - the Forerunners. But Simsa has always been different. Her skin is iridescent blue-black and she shares a telepathic bond with an alien pet, a bat-like zorsal, like no other. When Simsa's mentor dies, she must scrape a poor existence from an unyielding planet. But then Thom, a star ranger, arrives from the heavens, leading Simsa on a path to the discovery of her origins that takes both through danger to the ultimate revelation. The truth…


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Book cover of After World

After World by Debbie Urbanski,

After World imagines a not-so-distant future where, due to worsening global environmental collapse, an artificial intelligence determines that the planet would be better off without the presence of humans. After a virus that sterilizes the entire human population is released, humanity must reckon with how they leave this world before…

Book cover of All the Weyrs of Pern

Chrys Cymri Author Of The Temptation of Dragons

From my list on great dragon characters.

Why am I passionate about this?

My first toy was a plastic dinosaur, which I took to school and it bears my toothmarks on the tail. As a young teenager, I stumbled across the Dragonriders of Pern books, and my allegiance transferred to dragons. I find them fascinating, both beautiful and dangerous, and prefer books in which they have their own cultures and are strong characters in their own right. The novels I’ve recommended have great world building to draw you into the fascinating lives of dragons, and the humans who come to know them. 

Chrys' book list on great dragon characters

Chrys Cymri Why did Chrys love this book?

I love all of the Pern novels, but I’ve chosen this one because it features my favorite dragon and human characters. What I enjoy most about the Pern books is their setting in the future, when humans have settled in an alien world.

Some of the humans form a telepathic bond with a native species which look like dragons, and work with their dragons to preserve life on Pern. I would love to live on Pern and to be the rider of a gold dragon!

By Anne McCaffrey,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked All the Weyrs of Pern as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Let Anne McCaffrey, storyteller extraordinare and New York Times and Sunday Times bestselling author, take you on a journey to a whole new world: Pern and discover not only its flora, fauna, population and cultural hierarchy, but the history of an entire civilization. If you like David Eddings, David Gemmell and Douglas Adams, you will love this.

**Finalist for the Hugo Award for Best Novel**
** Winner of the HOMer Award for Science Fiction**
**Finalist for the Locus Award for Best Novel**

'Anne McCaffrey, one of the queens of science fiction, knows exactly how to give her public what it…


Book cover of Codey: Crossing the Multiverse

Jay Miles Author Of The Mariverse: Guardians

From my list on the multiverse that dives through worlds beyond worlds.

Why am I passionate about this?

The Multiverse had been my deepest passion of interest for a long time. Experiencing crossover stories in various mediums, both official and fan-made, especially fan-made. To see how two different worlds would meet. I spent hours reading fanfictions involving crossovers, as well as conjuring up my own. I considered the multiverse as a grand bedrock to create any story, hence why I wrote The Mariverse, followed by The Mariverse: Guardians, to create my own bedrock for my writing career.

Jay's book list on the multiverse that dives through worlds beyond worlds

Jay Miles Why did Jay love this book?

For those who don’t want to read a novel length but want to experience worlds beyond worlds, this book I would recommend, a neat short story where the protagonist uses the multiverse as a form of self-discovery, experiences he would never have in his own life and considers to a change of character.

Might not be a full-blown adventure, but a calmer mundane life experience, relatable while simplifying the multiverse without any complexities. 

By Deivy Garrido,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Codey as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.


Book cover of Babel-17/ Empire Star

Mike Cooley Author Of Crystal Warrior

From my list on fantasy and science fiction with feminist themes.

Why am I passionate about this?

When writing fantasy and science fiction, I enjoy writing about strong female characters and strong female leads. I also like exploring fundamental questions such as what it means to be human. I grew up reading all the science fiction and fantasy I could get my hands on, and that vast landscape of stories has influenced my writing in many ways. I love to explore the limits of consciousness and darkness. I hope the books on this list inspire you and make you think. They have all influenced me in one way or another and made me a better writer.    

Mike's book list on fantasy and science fiction with feminist themes

Mike Cooley Why did Mike love this book?

From the strong female protagonist—who is telepathic and a poet—to the use of language as a kind of mind weapon, to the non-traditional exploration of sexuality, I found this novel to be original and interesting. It also explores the nature of perception, which is something I have always been interested in. Samuel is a genius, and I very much enjoy the way he writes. 

By Samuel R. Delany,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Babel-17/ Empire Star as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The Nebula Award Winner: “By looking at a typical space opera adventure from a different angle, Delany . . . give[s] us a weird, welcoming book” (Tor.com).

 At twenty-six, Rydra Wong is the most popular poet in the five settled galaxies. Almost telepathically perceptive, she has written poems that capture the mood of mankind after two decades of savage war. Since the invasion, Earth has endured famine, plague, and cannibalism—but its greatest catastrophe will be Babel-17.
 
Sabotage threatens to undermine the war effort, and the military calls in Rydra. Random attacks lay waste to warships, weapons factories, and munitions dumps,…


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Book cover of Forsaking Home

Forsaking Home by I. Graham Smith,

Forsaking Home is a story about the life of a man who wants a better future for his children. He and his wife decide to join Earth's first off-world colony. This story is about risk takers and courageous settlers and what they would do for more freedom. 

Book cover of New Contact

Gigi Sedlmayer Author Of Come Fly With Me

From my list on fiction about overcoming challenges.

Why am I passionate about this?

After being rejected in school, because I had to move with my family again and again, I never had really friends and knew how being left alone and rejected felt. So I put my nose into books and developed a love for writing. Since I didn’t know what to do with them, I left them alone when I married. After being diagnosed with cancer later in my life, I couldn’t go back to work, I remembered my love to write and read so I started to write short stories again. I want to help young people going through similar rejections and bullying, to lift them up, and take the negativity out of their minds. 

Gigi's book list on fiction about overcoming challenges

Gigi Sedlmayer Why did Gigi love this book?

I love reading sci-fi YA books and this book was really talking to me. Peaceful contact or not?

Reading this book by the author – her first  it reminded me of the much-loved movie Avatar, which I also love.

Like in the movie, when Captain Melissa and her crew finally arrived at the new planet, to contact the people living there, they looked peaceful. They find out, that they are telepathic, not only the people, the plants, and animals as well.

After the people of the planet perform a play, they find out, what was really going on there. Not everything you see can be trusted when you look behind the scenes. From the outside, it was all peaceful, but when you touch the plants, they speak to you.

By Lynn Miclea,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked New Contact as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

As the crew sets foot on a new world, human aggression meets the peaceful nature of an advanced race.

Captain Melissa Shakeworth leads her crew to a new world to make first contact with a tranquil, nonviolent, advanced race of beings.

As she tries to maintain control over her unpredictable crew in a world that is peaceful, she struggles to stay respectful and honorable as things quickly spin out of control.

One crew member’s volatility and aggressiveness goes too far, endangering his life and the safety of the crew and the entire mission.

The captain must face her greatest fear…


Book cover of The Left Hand of Darkness
Book cover of A Wrinkle in Time
Book cover of Kindred

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Interested in telepathy, earth, and extraterrestrial life?

Telepathy 56 books
Earth 319 books