Feminist Science Fiction Books (42 books)

Feminist Science Fiction Books

The book on this list feature strong female protagonist or explore themes that advance our understanding of gender within the framework of extrapolative fiction, in particular science fiction. (Please don't add any fantasy or horror titles.)

all votes add books to this list

1	The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood (Goodreads Author) 3.95 avg rating — 131,082 ratings score: 3,389, and 35 people voted	My rating:
2	The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin 3.94 avg rating — 15,377 ratings score: 2,066, and 21 people voted	My rating:
3	Lilith's Brood (Xenogenesis, Books 1-3) by Octavia E. Butler 4.22 avg rating — 2,372 ratings score: 1,280, and 13 people voted	My rating:
4	The Female Man by Joanna Russ 3.48 avg rating — 849 ratings score: 1,185, and 12 people voted	My rating:
5	The Gate to Women's Country by Sheri S. Tepper 4.04 avg rating — 2,556 ratings score: 882, and 9 people voted	My rating:
6	The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood (Goodreads Author) 3.90 avg rating — 13,122 ratings score: 683, and 7 people voted	My rating:
7	Bloodchild and Other Stories by Octavia E. Butler 4.17 avg rating — 1,617 ratings score: 490, and 5 people voted	My rating:
8	Woman On The Edge Of Time by Marge Piercy 3.86 avg rating — 2,969 ratings score: 488, and 5 people voted	My rating:
9	Grass by Sheri S. Tepper 4.01 avg rating — 2,178 ratings score: 482, and 5 people voted	My rating:
10	Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler 4.09 avg rating — 6,183 ratings score: 396, and 4 people voted	My rating:
11	The Adventures Of Alyx by Joanna Russ 3.43 avg rating — 58 ratings score: 295, and 3 people voted	My rating:
12	Native Tongue by Suzette Haden Elgin 4.08 avg rating — 380 ratings score: 292, and 3 people voted	My rating:
13	Gibbon's Decline and Fall by Sheri S. Tepper 3.81 avg rating — 723 ratings score: 289, and 3 people voted	My rating:
14	The Telling by Ursula K. Le Guin 3.75 avg rating — 1,227 ratings score: 198, and 2 people voted	My rating:
15	Air by Geoff Ryman 3.70 avg rating — 532 ratings score: 195, and 2 people voted	My rating:
15	Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman 3.40 avg rating — 2,231 ratings score: 195, and 2 people voted	My rating:
17	Mission Child by Maureen F. McHugh 3.54 avg rating — 104 ratings score: 191, and 2 people voted	My rating:
18	The Unit by Ninni Holmqvist 3.77 avg rating — 1,516 ratings score: 190, and 2 people voted	My rating:
19	The Shore of Women by Pamela Sargent (Goodreads Author) 3.76 avg rating — 142 ratings score: 189, and 2 people voted	My rating:
20	The Snow Queen by Joan D. Vinge 3.89 avg rating — 2,218 ratings score: 188, and 2 people voted	My rating:
21	The Slave and the Free: Books 1 and 2 of 'The Holdfast Chronicles': 'Walk to the End of the World' and 'Motherlines' by Suzy McKee Charnas 3.61 avg rating — 61 ratings score: 187, and 2 people voted	My rating:
21	Califia's Daughters by Leigh Richards 3.72 avg rating — 181 ratings score: 187, and 2 people voted	My rating:
23	Daughter of Elysium by Joan Slonczewski 3.83 avg rating — 64 ratings score: 178, and 2 people voted	My rating:
24	Out of the Everywhere, and Other Extraordinary Visions by James Tiptree Jr. 4.35 avg rating — 43 ratings score: 100, and 1 person voted	My rating:
24	Thinner Than Thou by Kit Reed (Goodreads Author) 3.17 avg rating — 152 ratings score: 100, and 1 person voted	My rating:
26	The Invention of Everything Else. Samantha Hunt by Samantha Hunt 3.52 avg rating — 825 ratings score: 98, and 1 person voted	My rating:
26	Rimrunners (Company Wars, #3) by C.J. Cherryh (Goodreads Author) 3.79 avg rating — 521 ratings score: 98, and 1 person voted	My rating:
26	Dawn (Xenogenesis, #1) by Octavia E. Butler 4.08 avg rating — 2,474 ratings score: 98, and 1 person voted	My rating:
26	Oryx and Crake (MaddAdam Trilogy, #1) by Margaret Atwood (Goodreads Author) 3.92 avg rating — 32,865 ratings score: 98, and 1 person voted	My rating:
30	Dragonflight by Anne McCaffrey 4.00 avg rating — 21,115 ratings score: 97, and 1 person voted	My rating:
30	The Kin of Ata Are Waiting for You by Dorothy Bryant 4.12 avg rating — 518 ratings score: 97, and 1 person voted	My rating:
32	Wild Seed by Octavia E. Butler 4.16 avg rating — 2,810 ratings score: 96, and 1 person voted	My rating:
33	Far North by Marcel Theroux 3.71 avg rating — 584 ratings score: 94, and 1 person voted	My rating:
34	Not of Woman Born by Robert Silverberg (Editor) 3.52 avg rating — 23 ratings score: 93, and 1 person voted	My rating:
35	New Eves: Science Fiction about the Extraordinary Women of Today and Tomorrow by Janrae Frank (Goodreads Author) 3.85 avg rating — 13 ratings score: 91, and 1 person voted	My rating:
36	Freehold by Michael Z. Williamson 4.06 avg rating — 263 ratings score: 90, and 1 person voted	My rating:
37	Nekropolis by Maureen F. McHugh 3.59 avg rating — 140 ratings score: 89, and 1 person voted	My rating:
38	The Rising of the Moon by Flynn Connolly 3.28 avg rating — 18 ratings score: 86, and 1 person voted	My rating:
39	The Conqueror's Child (Holdfast Chronicles, #4) by Suzy McKee Charnas 3.71 avg rating — 34 ratings score: 85, and 1 person voted	My rating:
40	The Judas Rose: Native Tongue II by Suzette Haden Elgin 3.86 avg rating — 128 ratings score: 84, and 1 person voted	My rating:
41	Mutineer (Kris Longknife #1) by Mike Shepherd 3.74 avg rating — 646 ratings score: 83, and 1 person voted	My rating:
42	Glory Season by David Brin (Goodreads Author) 3.61 avg rating — 927 ratings score: 82, and 1 person voted	My rating:

42 books · 56 voters · list created August 15th, 2009 by Kevis Hendrickson.

Tags: feminist, femsf, fiction, sci-fi, science, and sf

Lists are re-scored approximately every 500 seconds.

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Comments (showing 1-6 of 6) (6 new)

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message 1: by Killthepopular (last edited Aug 17, 2009 04:00am) (new)

Aug 15, 2009 02:59pm

Why create this list when the other list already exists? Merely to publicise your own work?

http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1226....

Is there a good reason why i shouldn't delete this entirely superfluous list?

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message 2: by Greyweather (new)

Aug 16, 2009 06:25pm

I was going to say that there's no rule against making redundant lists, but it turns out that there actually is one:

If a "Best Fantasy Books" list [or in this case "Best Feminist Science Fiction" list:] already exists - no need to create another - it will be merged eventually anyways.

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message 3: by Killthepopular (new)

Aug 17, 2009 04:00am

huh. So how does it get merged? do we librarians have the ability to do tht?

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message 4: by Greyweather (last edited Aug 17, 2009 03:35pm) (new)

Aug 17, 2009 03:33pm

Apparently not.
It was suggested to me that we try the contact us form to request a merge.

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message 5: by Teresa (new)

Oct 08, 2011 06:52am