Looking for Scifi that is NOT about war

[Mary Carolyn]

I would love some suggestions for great Scifi that is not about war. Seems like every book is about war, or running from the bad guy, fighting the bad guy, surviving the bad guy. The worst for me right now are the post apocalyptic scenarios where the decent people are besieged by the psychopath who wants to rule the world. I am starved for some great books that aren't based on war of conflict. I loved Blood Music and Dragon's Egg because they focused on great ideas. Any suggestions are welcome. Thank you!

[Scott]

If you like mysteries, Jack McDevitt's Alex Benedict series is great. There is usually a bad guy though...

1st book: A Talent for War

Uh, I know that looks like it is about war, but the war is in the past and in a historical context (I think there might be some flashbacks.) If you *really* don't want to read that one, you can start with the second book with no problem.

Or his Academy series which is about exploration mostly: The Engines of God

[Kirsten]

Some I've read:

When Gravity Fails / A Fire in the Sun / The Exile Kiss by George Alec Effinger

Moonfall by Jack McDevitt

The Three-Body Problem by Liu Cixin

Rendezvous with Rama by Arthur C. Clarke

The Boat of a Million Years by Poul Anderson

All Flesh is Grass by Clifford D. Simak

Blue Remembered Earth by Alastair Reynolds

Man Plus / Mars Plus by Frederik Pohl

The Robots of Dawn by Isaac Asimov

Survival by Julie E. Czerneda

[Laz]

Just about anything by C.J. Cherryh.

How about The Stainless Steel Rat?

[Mary JL]

Daniel Keyes' "Flowers for Algernon".

[Micah]

Almost every book by Philip K. Dick.

Many books by Joe Haldeman. (I think pretty much all of them outside his Foever War series.)

Many books by Greg Bear, like the two Darwin's Radio books and the books in his Quantum Logic series (Quantico, Maricopa, Queen of Angels--aka Slant--, Heads, Moving Mars) and those in his Way series (Eon, Eternity, Legacy).

Or try SF detective stories like the Retrieval Artist books by Kristine Kathryn-Rusch. Or the Carlucci trilogy by Richard Paul Russo Carlucci 3-in-1.

Or some android(ish) stuff like vN (self replicating nano-based humanoids trying to make good in a world full of paranoid flesh-bags, aka humans).

Or fall back on some old '60s and '70s SF by the likes of Stanislaw Lem (philosophy and satire) and Robert Sheckley (humorist/absurdist).

In fact I think most of the SF I've read are not "about" war. War might be part of their stories, but usually it's not what the story is about or most concerned with. Just stay away from Military SF and Space Opera and you'll find an endless supply of works to explore.

For example, perhaps the greatest SF book of all times, Hyperion is not about war. There is a war brewing, and there is a lot of violence in it, but the actual story is not about that. The characters have to navigate through a world rife with war and violence and deceit and politics and extremism...but the meat of the story is far more complicated and satisfying that any of those.

[Alexa]

Do you want to avoid just war, or any major violence at all, or any serious grimness?

Some of my favorites:

The Time Traveler's Wife (this definitely has its grim moments, but there's no villain, just difficult circumstances)
Jaran
Station Eleven (post-environmental-apocalypse, a minor villain)
Doomsday Book (environmental apocalypse, seriously grim, though the following ones in this "series" are very funny)
The Dispossessed (I can't remember a war in this ...?)
Native Tongue
Transformation (does deal with post-war slavery)
The Handmaid's Tale (slavery of sorts)
Kindred (deals with slavery, so can be grim - two others of hers, Parable of the Sower and Dawn also grim, but environmental grimness)
Uncharted Territory (completely delightful!)
Woman on the Edge of Time (grim)
The Left Hand of Darkness (if there's any war it's very inconsequential to the story)
Code of Conduct
In the Garden of Iden
Hammered (in spite of the cover, no war)
Grass (tension with aliens)
Dreamsnake
A Brother's Price
Queen City Jazz
The Highest Frontier
The Age of Miracles (environmental apocalypse)
Archangel (technically this counts as sci-fi, but many would consider it romantic fantasy)

[Kirsten]

Handmaid's Tale is the GOP's political platform for women.

[CD]

The The Riverworld Series starting with To Your Scattered Bodies Go is one that any non-'war oriented' reader will want to add to their list.

Author Philip José Farmer created an interesting world that is inhabited by . . . everybody!

[Mary Carolyn]

What a wonderful group you are! Thank you all so much. I have titles here to keep me busy for a very long time. I have been noticing how many scifi books today are based on war and desperate conflict and I am currently so down about the state of the world, that I want to get away from the whole war and destruction scenario. I no longer have the stomach to spend time with literary psychopaths, or read in fear for the fate of a character or world I have come to love. Currently reading Camelot by Forward. It's not riveting character stories, but it moves forward with positivity and the science is so intriguing. Again, thank you all so much for taking the time to offer me these titles.

[Mary Carolyn]

Kirsten *Dogs Welcome - People Tolerated" wrote: "Handmaid's Tale is the GOP's political platform for women."

It has been so long since I read that book. I remember trying to watch the movie but it sickened me to such an extent I had to stop.

[Mary Carolyn]

Micah wrote: "Almost every book by Philip K. Dick.

I think it's time to revisit P.K. Dick, and Scheckley. Thank you.
Carolyn

[Mary]

Archangel by Sharon Shinn
Little Fuzzy by H. Beam Piper and its sequels
Any of the Hoka books by Poul Anderson and Gordon R. Dickson
Tower of Dreams by Jamil Nasir
Cosmicomics by Italo Calvino

[Michelle]

robert j sawyer

[Mike]

I liked Childhood's End a lot

[[deleted user]]

Carolyn wrote: "Micah wrote: "Almost every book by Philip K. Dick.

I think it's time to revisit P.K. Dick, and Scheckley. Thank you.
Carolyn"

If you're revisiting the 60's then I really think the go to author for you is Robert Silverbeg, something like'Time of Changes' and a host of others.

[mark, personal space invader]

one of my favorite authors!

[Dan]

Pilgrimage: The Book of the People in the current poll for December's read https://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/1... has nothing to do with war.

[Dan]

Bill wrote: "If you're revisiting the 60's then I really think then I really think the go to author for you is Robert Silverbeg, something like'Time of Changes' and a host of others."

I'm inclined to agree. I just finished my first Silverberg read, Hawksbill Station, and I was stunned at how modern and serious (dark) the work was. My review is here https://www.goodreads.com/review/show.... I definitely intend to seek out more Silverberg.

[Kirsten]

CD wrote: "The The Riverworld Series starting with To Your Scattered Bodies Go is one that any non-'war oriented' reader will want to add to their list.

Author Philip José Farmer..."

I remember reading those in high school. My dad insisted he just loved them.

[Laz]

Mike wrote: "I liked Childhood's End a lot"

Soon to be on SyFy: Dec 14th. Intriguing...

[Mickey]

Are both the "Expanse" series and "Childhood's End" starting on the same day dec 14? Leviathan Wakes.

I have gotten emails about getting to watch the expanse series early on the Internet. I will wait unit December to watch it.

It is busy this time of year, I have pies and other deserts to make and lots of shopping this weekend.