David Brin, Bruce Sterling & Daniel Suarez – Manual for Civilization Lists

Photo by Particia Chang

Our brickstarter drive for The Interval at Long Now ends October 1, 02014. Please consider a donation today to support completing The Interval, the home of the Manual for Civilization.

The Manual for Civilization is a crowd-curated collection of the 3500 books you would most want to sustain or rebuild civilization. It is also the library at The Interval, with about 1000 books on shelves floor-to-ceiling throughout the space. We are about a third of the way done with compiling the list and acquiring selected the titles.

We have a set of four categories to guide selections:

Cultural Canon: Great works of literature, nonfiction, poetry, philosophy, etc
Mechanics of Civilization: Technical knowledge, to build and understand things
Rigorous Science Fiction: Speculative stories about potential futures
Long-term Thinking, Futurism, and relevant history (Books on how to think about the future that may include surveys of the past)

Our list comes from suggestions by Interval donors, Long Now members, and a some specially-invited guests with particular expertise. All the book lists we’ve published so far are shown here including lists from Brian Eno, Stewart Brand, Maria Popova, and Neal Stephenson. Interval donors will be the first to get the full list when it is complete.

Today we add selections from science fiction authors Bruce Sterling, David Brin, and Daniel Suarez. All three are known for using contemporary science and technology as a starting point from which to speculate on the future. And that type of practice is exactly why Science Fiction is one of our core categories.

David Brin is a scientist, futurist and author who has won science fiction’s highest honors including the Locus, Campbell, Nebula, and Hugo awards. His 01991 book Earth is filled with predictions for our technological future, many of which have already come true. He has served on numerous advisory committees for his scientific expertise.

David Brin (photo by Cheryl Brigham)

David Brin’s list

De Nuptiis Philologiae Et Mercurii Et De Septem Artibus Liberalibus Libri Novem  by Martianus Capella
Feynman Lectures  by Richard Feynman
The Complete Sherlock Holmes: All 4 Novels and 56 Short Stories  by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Alas Babylon  by Pat Frank
The Disposessed  by Ursula K. Le Guin
Stand on Zanzibar  by John Brunner
Tunnel in the Sky  by Robert Heinlein
The Culture Boxed Set: Consider Phlebas, Player of Games and Use of Weapons  by Iain Banks

Bruce Sterling‘s first novel was published in 01977. In 01985 he edited Mirrorshades the defining Cyberpunk anthology, and went on to win two Hugos and a Campbell award for his science fiction. His non-fiction writing including his long-running column for Wired are also influential. He spoke for Long Now in 02004.

Bruce Sterling (photo by Heisenberg Media)

Bruce Sterling’s list

Last and First Men and Star Maker : Two Science Fiction Novels  by Olaf Stapledon
Endless Frontier  by Pascal Zachary
Anticipations  by H G Wells
The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction  by John Clute and Peter Nicholls
Trillion Year Spree: The History of Science Fiction  by Brian Wilson Aldiss and David Wingrove

Daniel Suarez made a huge stir with his 02006 self-published debut novel Daemon . Its success led to him speaking in 02008 for Long Now’s Seminar series and to a deal with a major publisher. In 02014 he published his fourth novel Influx.

Daniel Suarez (photo by Steve Payne)

Daniel Suarez’s list

Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark  by Carl Sagan
The Medieval Machine: The Industrial Revolution Of The Middle Ages  by Jean Gimpel
The Master Switch  by Tim Wu
The Wild Trees  by Richard Preston
The Age of Reconnaissance: Discovery, Exploration and Settlement, 1450-1650  by J. H. Parry
The Evolution of Civilizations  by Carroll Quigley
Contact  by Carl Sagan
Old Mans War  by John Scalzi
Altered Carbon  by Richard Morgan
Distraction  by Bruce Sterling
Foundation’s Edge  by Isaac Asimov
Second Foundation  by Isaac Asimov
Foundation  by Isaac Asimov
Perdido Street Station  by China Miéville
Player Piano  by Kurt Vonnegut
Neuromancer  by William Gibson
Green Mars  by Kim Stanley Robinson
Blue Mars  by Kim Stanley Robinson
Red Mars  by Kim Stanley Robinson
The Diamond Age: Or a Young Lady’s Illustrated Primer  by Neal Stephenson
Snow Crash  by Neal Stephenson
Cryptonomicon  by Neal Stephenson
A Fire Upon the Deep  by Vernor Vinge
Rainbow’s End  by Vernor Vinge
1491 by Charles C. Mann
What Technology Wants by Kevin Kelly
The Wild Trees by Richard Preston

Getting science fiction recommendations from great authors is an honor and a privilege. And we appreciation their support for The Interval, in helping to give it the best library possible, as well as of The Long Now Foundation as a whole. Books from all three of these authors will appear in the Manual for Civilization, as well as these selections that they’ve made of books that are important to them.

We hope that you will give us your list, too. If you’ve donated then you should have the link to submit books. And if you haven’t, then hurry up and give before October 1 at 5pm–your last chance to become a charter donor.

 

Photo by Because We Can