Science Fiction's Best Books

[mark, personal space invader]

there is!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_...

[Packi]

It’s also a simple case of distribution. Lets distribute the last hundred years into equal intervals of decades. There are many more decades previous to the most recent decade. So naturally most books will have been written in those previous decades.

Also there is the test of time which is relevant. Some books you appreciate more, when they still ring true today, and maybe even more so than back when they where written, like 1984.

[Brandon]

Publicity also was different in decades past. I'm not sure if fewer sci-fi books were published by the big publishers, but there were definitely less titles getting a lot of media spotlight, so a larger portion of the reading audience knows and reads the sci-fi classics than many of the sci-fi offerings of today.

[manohar]

Finished "The Martian" by Andy Weir , though it wasn't initially in my read in 2017 list, my friend dropped it by and i couldn't wait to begin it. I've watched the movie last year and it was amazing, after reading the book i felt the same excitement. Really good content on technology and chemistry and biology too. Really enjoyed mark's daring endeavors and his sense of humor.

[Adrian]

Stand on Zanzibar - John Brunner
Dune - Frank Herbert
Lord of Light - Roger Zelazny
Foundation - Isaac Asimov
Hyperion - Dan Simmons
Dragonflight - Anne McCaffrey
Spin - Robert Charles Wilson
Rendezvous with Rama - Arthur C. Clarke
The Martian Chronicles - Ray Bradbury
Speaker for the Dead - Orson Scott Card
Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card
A Canticle for Leibowitz - Walter Miller Jr.
The Rediscovery of Man - Cordwainer Smith
A Fire Upon the Deep - Vernor Vinge
Ubik - Philip K. Dick
The Forever War - Joe Haldeman
Frysepunket (English title: Freezing Down) - Anders Bodelsen
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? - Philip K. Dick
The Windup Girl - Paolo Bacigalupi
Childhood's End - Arthur C. Clarke
The Stars My Destination - Alfred Bester
Downbelow Station - C.J. Cherryh
Stardance - Spider and Jeanne Robinson
The Mote in Gods Eye - Niven/Pournelle
Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
Old Man's War - John Scalzi
The Warrior's Apprentice - Lois McMaster Bujold
Gateway - Frederik Pohl
Stranger in a Strange Land - Robert Heinlein
Consider Phlebas - Iain Banks
Altered Carbon - Richard K. Morgan
The Fifth Head of Cerberus - Gene Wolfe
Adiamante - L.E. Modesitt Jr.
The Left Hand of Darkness - Ursula K. Le Guin
Dawn - Octavia E. Butler
Neuromancer - William Gibson
Damnation Alley - Roger Zelazny
The Diamond Age - Neal Stephenson
Methuselah's Children - Robert A. Heinlein
Way Station - Clifford D. Simak
Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
Pandora's Star - Peter F. Hamilton
Battlefield Earth - L. Ron Hubbard
The Sparrow - Mary Doria Russell
Startide Rising - David Brin
To Your Scattered Bodies Go - Phillip Jose Farmer
Ringworld - Larry Niven
The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
The Paradox Men - Charles L. Harness
Voyage of the Space Beagle - A.E. van Vogt
Native Tongue - Suzette Haden Elgin
Dhalgren - Samuel R. Delany
Diaspora - Greg Egan
Cities in Flight - James Blish
Schismatrix - Bruce Sterling
The City and The Stars - Arthur C. Clarke
The Time Machine - H.G. Wells
Glimpses - Lewis Shiner
Cat's Cradle - Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
Judas Unchained - Peter F. Hamilton
The Caves of Steel - Isaac Asimov
Dying Inside- Robert Silverberg
The Demolished Man - Alfred Bester
The Engines of God - McDevitt
War of the Worlds - H.G. Wells
Nineteen Eighty-Four(1984) - George Orwell
The Gone-Away World - Nick Harkaway
The Shadow of the Torturer - Gene Wolfe
Snow Crash - Neal Stephenson
The Unit by Ninni Holmqvist
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
When Gravity Fails- George Alec Effinger
The Drowned World - J.G. Ballard
Blindsight - Peter Watts
Red Moon - David S. Michaels
Tower of Glass - Robert Silverberg
Red Mars - Kim Stanley Robinson
Carve the Sky - Alexander Jablokov
The Dispossessed - Ursula K. Le Guin
Nexus - Ramez Naam
Star Maker - Olaf Stapledon
Crystal Singer - Anne McCaffrey
The Gate to Women's Country - Sheri S. Tepper
Children of the Lens - E. E. "Doc" Smith
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress - Robert A. Heinlein
The Snow Queen- Joan Vinge
Thirteen (Th1rte3n) - Richard K. Morgan
Dragon's Egg by Robert L. Forward
Golden Witchbreed by Mary Gentle
Blades of Winter by G.T. Almasi
The Many-Coloured Land - Julian May
Memory by Lois McMaster Bujold
The Last Legends of Earth - A. A. Attanasio
The Weapon Shops of Isher - A E van Vogt


I've added one of my favourites, (some of the others are already on the list). I suppose because of my age, I have added yet another "Golden Age" book.

[Mickey]

Adrian wrote: "I've added one of my favourites, (some of the others are already on the list). I suppose because of my age, I have added yet another "Golden Age" book."

It takes an old fossil to recognize an old fossil. Great minds must think alike. I am the one that listed another Vogt.
"Voyage of the Space Beagle - A.E. van Vogt".

[Mike (the Paladin)]

Too bas we only get to add one huh?

[Adrian]

Mickey wrote "It takes an old fossil to recognize an old fossil. Great minds must think alike. I am the one that listed another Vogt.
"Voyage of the Space Beagle - A.E. van Vogt". "

Ha ha thanks Mickey, I'll accept the old fossil tag, especially when it comes to SF. And yes I think I would've nominated your book if you hadn't beaten me to it.

Mike wrote "Too bad we only get to add one huh?"

Yes, it is too bad, although about a dozen of my favourite (SF) books are already on the list, which is great. Maybe one day I'll have to see how many I have read over the years (as GR only reflects the last few years).

[David]

Stand on Zanzibar - John Brunner
Dune - Frank Herbert
Lord of Light - Roger Zelazny
Foundation - Isaac Asimov
Hyperion - Dan Simmons
Dragonflight - Anne McCaffrey
Spin - Robert Charles Wilson
Rendezvous with Rama - Arthur C. Clarke
The Martian Chronicles - Ray Bradbury
Speaker for the Dead - Orson Scott Card
Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card
A Canticle for Leibowitz - Walter Miller Jr.
The Rediscovery of Man - Cordwainer Smith
A Fire Upon the Deep - Vernor Vinge
Ubik - Philip K. Dick
The Forever War - Joe Haldeman
Frysepunket (English title: Freezing Down) - Anders Bodelsen
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? - Philip K. Dick
The Windup Girl - Paolo Bacigalupi
Childhood's End - Arthur C. Clarke
The Stars My Destination - Alfred Bester
Downbelow Station - C.J. Cherryh
Stardance - Spider and Jeanne Robinson
The Mote in Gods Eye - Niven/Pournelle
Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
Old Man's War - John Scalzi
The Warrior's Apprentice - Lois McMaster Bujold
Gateway - Frederik Pohl
Stranger in a Strange Land - Robert Heinlein
Consider Phlebas - Iain Banks
Altered Carbon - Richard K. Morgan
The Fifth Head of Cerberus - Gene Wolfe
Adiamante - L.E. Modesitt Jr.
The Left Hand of Darkness - Ursula K. Le Guin
Dawn - Octavia E. Butler
Neuromancer - William Gibson
Damnation Alley - Roger Zelazny
The Diamond Age - Neal Stephenson
Methuselah's Children - Robert A. Heinlein
Way Station - Clifford D. Simak
Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
Pandora's Star - Peter F. Hamilton
Battlefield Earth - L. Ron Hubbard
The Sparrow - Mary Doria Russell
Startide Rising - David Brin
To Your Scattered Bodies Go - Phillip Jose Farmer
Ringworld - Larry Niven
The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
The Paradox Men - Charles L. Harness
Voyage of the Space Beagle - A.E. van Vogt
Native Tongue - Suzette Haden Elgin
Dhalgren - Samuel R. Delany
Diaspora - Greg Egan
Cities in Flight - James Blish
Schismatrix - Bruce Sterling
The City and The Stars - Arthur C. Clarke
The Time Machine - H.G. Wells
Glimpses - Lewis Shiner
Cat's Cradle - Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
Judas Unchained - Peter F. Hamilton
The Caves of Steel - Isaac Asimov
Dying Inside- Robert Silverberg
The Demolished Man - Alfred Bester
The Engines of God - McDevitt
War of the Worlds - H.G. Wells
Nineteen Eighty-Four(1984) - George Orwell
The Gone-Away World - Nick Harkaway
The Shadow of the Torturer - Gene Wolfe
Snow Crash - Neal Stephenson
The Unit by Ninni Holmqvist
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
When Gravity Fails- George Alec Effinger
The Drowned World - J.G. Ballard
Blindsight - Peter Watts
Red Moon - David S. Michaels
Tower of Glass - Robert Silverberg
Red Mars - Kim Stanley Robinson
Carve the Sky - Alexander Jablokov
The Dispossessed - Ursula K. Le Guin
Nexus - Ramez Naam
Star Maker - Olaf Stapledon
Crystal Singer - Anne McCaffrey
The Gate to Women's Country - Sheri S. Tepper
Children of the Lens - E. E. "Doc" Smith
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress - Robert A. Heinlein
The Snow Queen- Joan Vinge
Thirteen (Th1rte3n) - Richard K. Morgan
Dragon's Egg by Robert L. Forward
Golden Witchbreed by Mary Gentle
Blades of Winter by G.T. Almasi
The Many-Coloured Land - Julian May
Memory by Lois McMaster Bujold
The Last Legends of Earth - A. A. Attanasio
The Weapon Shops of Isher - A E van Vogt
City - Clifford Simak

[G.Cellerier]

Great list, it seems I have the same taste as I remember most of them as memorable but now I have those I missed to look forward to reading. And also to re-read some of them. Many thanks for both
P.S. I will try to remember what I could add

[Phil]

Stand on Zanzibar - John Brunner
Dune - Frank Herbert
Lord of Light - Roger Zelazny
Foundation - Isaac Asimov
Hyperion - Dan Simmons
Dragonflight - Anne McCaffrey
Spin - Robert Charles Wilson
Rendezvous with Rama - Arthur C. Clarke
The Martian Chronicles - Ray Bradbury
Speaker for the Dead - Orson Scott Card
Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card
A Canticle for Leibowitz - Walter Miller Jr.
The Rediscovery of Man - Cordwainer Smith
A Fire Upon the Deep - Vernor Vinge
Ubik - Philip K. Dick
The Forever War - Joe Haldeman
Frysepunket (English title: Freezing Down) - Anders Bodelsen
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? - Philip K. Dick
The Windup Girl - Paolo Bacigalupi
Childhood's End - Arthur C. Clarke
The Stars My Destination - Alfred Bester
Downbelow Station - C.J. Cherryh
Stardance - Spider and Jeanne Robinson
The Mote in Gods Eye - Niven/Pournelle
Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
Old Man's War - John Scalzi
The Warrior's Apprentice - Lois McMaster Bujold
Gateway - Frederik Pohl
Stranger in a Strange Land - Robert Heinlein
Consider Phlebas - Iain Banks
Altered Carbon - Richard K. Morgan
The Fifth Head of Cerberus - Gene Wolfe
Adiamante - L.E. Modesitt Jr.
The Left Hand of Darkness - Ursula K. Le Guin
Dawn - Octavia E. Butler
Neuromancer - William Gibson
Damnation Alley - Roger Zelazny
The Diamond Age - Neal Stephenson
Methuselah's Children - Robert A. Heinlein
Way Station - Clifford D. Simak
Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
Pandora's Star - Peter F. Hamilton
Battlefield Earth - L. Ron Hubbard
The Sparrow - Mary Doria Russell
Startide Rising - David Brin
To Your Scattered Bodies Go - Phillip Jose Farmer
Ringworld - Larry Niven
The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
The Paradox Men - Charles L. Harness
Voyage of the Space Beagle - A.E. van Vogt
Native Tongue - Suzette Haden Elgin
Dhalgren - Samuel R. Delany
Diaspora - Greg Egan
Cities in Flight - James Blish
Schismatrix - Bruce Sterling
The City and The Stars - Arthur C. Clarke
The Time Machine - H.G. Wells
Glimpses - Lewis Shiner
Cat's Cradle - Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
Judas Unchained - Peter F. Hamilton
The Caves of Steel - Isaac Asimov
Dying Inside- Robert Silverberg
The Demolished Man - Alfred Bester
The Engines of God - McDevitt
War of the Worlds - H.G. Wells
Nineteen Eighty-Four(1984) - George Orwell
The Gone-Away World - Nick Harkaway
The Shadow of the Torturer - Gene Wolfe
Snow Crash - Neal Stephenson
The Unit by Ninni Holmqvist
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
When Gravity Fails- George Alec Effinger
The Drowned World - J.G. Ballard
Blindsight - Peter Watts
Red Moon - David S. Michaels
Tower of Glass - Robert Silverberg
Red Mars - Kim Stanley Robinson
Carve the Sky - Alexander Jablokov
The Dispossessed - Ursula K. Le Guin
Nexus - Ramez Naam
Star Maker - Olaf Stapledon
Crystal Singer - Anne McCaffrey
The Gate to Women's Country - Sheri S. Tepper
Children of the Lens - E. E. "Doc" Smith
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress - Robert A. Heinlein
The Snow Queen- Joan Vinge
Thirteen (Th1rte3n) - Richard K. Morgan
Dragon's Egg by Robert L. Forward
Golden Witchbreed by Mary Gentle
Blades of Winter by G.T. Almasi
The Many-Coloured Land - Julian May
Memory by Lois McMaster Bujold
The Last Legends of Earth - A. A. Attanasio
The Weapon Shops of Isher - A E van Vogt
City - Clifford Simak
The Martian - Andy Weir

As much as I love classic sci-fi, this one blew me away. Wish there was more like it.

[Amanda]

Hey, guys, I've inserted all the books listed in post 262 in this list. This way it's easier to see what books we have not read yet, and add them to our to-read shelves. I think it would be great if, from now on, people add their books to the Listopia as well.

[mark, personal space invader]

Love it. Thank you Amanda!

[Maggie, space cruisin' for a bruisin']

Very Cool, Amanda, Thank you!

[Jim]

More Than Human

I was surprised that "More Than Human" by Theodore Sturgeon wasn't already on the list.

[Stefan]

Stand on Zanzibar - John Brunner
Dune - Frank Herbert
Lord of Light - Roger Zelazny
Foundation - Isaac Asimov
Hyperion - Dan Simmons
Dragonflight - Anne McCaffrey
Spin - Robert Charles Wilson
Rendezvous with Rama - Arthur C. Clarke
The Martian Chronicles - Ray Bradbury
Speaker for the Dead - Orson Scott Card
Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card
A Canticle for Leibowitz - Walter Miller Jr.
The Rediscovery of Man - Cordwainer Smith
A Fire Upon the Deep - Vernor Vinge
Ubik - Philip K. Dick
The Forever War - Joe Haldeman
Frysepunket (English title: Freezing Down) - Anders Bodelsen
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? - Philip K. Dick
The Windup Girl - Paolo Bacigalupi
Childhood's End - Arthur C. Clarke
The Stars My Destination - Alfred Bester
Downbelow Station - C.J. Cherryh
Stardance - Spider and Jeanne Robinson
The Mote in Gods Eye - Niven/Pournelle
Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
Old Man's War - John Scalzi
The Warrior's Apprentice - Lois McMaster Bujold
Gateway - Frederik Pohl
Stranger in a Strange Land - Robert Heinlein
Consider Phlebas - Iain Banks
Altered Carbon - Richard K. Morgan
The Fifth Head of Cerberus - Gene Wolfe
Adiamante - L.E. Modesitt Jr.
The Left Hand of Darkness - Ursula K. Le Guin
Dawn - Octavia E. Butler
Neuromancer - William Gibson
Damnation Alley - Roger Zelazny
The Diamond Age - Neal Stephenson
Methuselah's Children - Robert A. Heinlein
Way Station - Clifford D. Simak
Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
Pandora's Star - Peter F. Hamilton
Battlefield Earth - L. Ron Hubbard
The Sparrow - Mary Doria Russell
Startide Rising - David Brin
To Your Scattered Bodies Go - Phillip Jose Farmer
Ringworld - Larry Niven
The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
The Paradox Men - Charles L. Harness
Voyage of the Space Beagle - A.E. van Vogt
Native Tongue - Suzette Haden Elgin
Dhalgren - Samuel R. Delany
Diaspora - Greg Egan
Cities in Flight - James Blish
Schismatrix - Bruce Sterling
The City and The Stars - Arthur C. Clarke
The Time Machine - H.G. Wells
Glimpses - Lewis Shiner
Cat's Cradle - Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
Judas Unchained - Peter F. Hamilton
The Caves of Steel - Isaac Asimov
Dying Inside- Robert Silverberg
The Demolished Man - Alfred Bester
The Engines of God - McDevitt
War of the Worlds - H.G. Wells
Nineteen Eighty-Four(1984) - George Orwell
The Gone-Away World - Nick Harkaway
The Shadow of the Torturer - Gene Wolfe
Snow Crash - Neal Stephenson
The Unit by Ninni Holmqvist
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
When Gravity Fails- George Alec Effinger
The Drowned World - J.G. Ballard
Blindsight - Peter Watts
Red Moon - David S. Michaels
Tower of Glass - Robert Silverberg
Red Mars - Kim Stanley Robinson
Carve the Sky - Alexander Jablokov
The Dispossessed - Ursula K. Le Guin
Nexus - Ramez Naam
Star Maker - Olaf Stapledon
Crystal Singer - Anne McCaffrey
The Gate to Women's Country - Sheri S. Tepper
Children of the Lens - E. E. "Doc" Smith
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress - Robert A. Heinlein
The Snow Queen- Joan Vinge
Thirteen (Th1rte3n) - Richard K. Morgan
Dragon's Egg by Robert L. Forward
Golden Witchbreed by Mary Gentle
Blades of Winter by G.T. Almasi
The Many-Coloured Land - Julian May
Memory by Lois McMaster Bujold
The Last Legends of Earth - A. A. Attanasio
The Weapon Shops of Isher - A E van Vogt
City - Clifford Simak
The Martian - Andy Weir
Arkady and Boris Strugatsky - Hard to Be a God

Fantastic book that really gets down to what Science Fiction is really about. I would recommend this book to anyone, whether or not they are SF fans or not.

[Rafael]

I hope I have not misunderstood this thread

Stand on Zanzibar - John Brunner
Dune - Frank Herbert
Lord of Light - Roger Zelazny
Foundation - Isaac Asimov
Hyperion - Dan Simmons
Dragonflight - Anne McCaffrey
Spin - Robert Charles Wilson
Rendezvous with Rama - Arthur C. Clarke
The Martian Chronicles - Ray Bradbury
Speaker for the Dead - Orson Scott Card
Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card
A Canticle for Leibowitz - Walter Miller Jr.
The Rediscovery of Man - Cordwainer Smith
A Fire Upon the Deep - Vernor Vinge
Ubik - Philip K. Dick
The Forever War - Joe Haldeman
Frysepunket (English title: Freezing Down) - Anders Bodelsen
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? - Philip K. Dick
The Windup Girl - Paolo Bacigalupi
Childhood's End - Arthur C. Clarke
The Stars My Destination - Alfred Bester
Downbelow Station - C.J. Cherryh
Stardance - Spider and Jeanne Robinson
The Mote in Gods Eye - Niven/Pournelle
Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
Old Man's War - John Scalzi
The Warrior's Apprentice - Lois McMaster Bujold
Gateway - Frederik Pohl
Stranger in a Strange Land - Robert Heinlein
Consider Phlebas - Iain Banks
Altered Carbon - Richard K. Morgan
The Fifth Head of Cerberus - Gene Wolfe
Adiamante - L.E. Modesitt Jr.
The Left Hand of Darkness - Ursula K. Le Guin
Dawn - Octavia E. Butler
Neuromancer - William Gibson
Damnation Alley - Roger Zelazny
The Diamond Age - Neal Stephenson
Methuselah's Children - Robert A. Heinlein
Way Station - Clifford D. Simak
Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
Pandora's Star - Peter F. Hamilton
Battlefield Earth - L. Ron Hubbard
The Sparrow - Mary Doria Russell
Startide Rising - David Brin
To Your Scattered Bodies Go - Phillip Jose Farmer
Ringworld - Larry Niven
The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
The Paradox Men - Charles L. Harness
Voyage of the Space Beagle - A.E. van Vogt
Native Tongue - Suzette Haden Elgin
Dhalgren - Samuel R. Delany
Diaspora - Greg Egan
Cities in Flight - James Blish
Schismatrix - Bruce Sterling
The City and The Stars - Arthur C. Clarke
The Time Machine - H.G. Wells
Glimpses - Lewis Shiner
Cat's Cradle - Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
Judas Unchained - Peter F. Hamilton
The Caves of Steel - Isaac Asimov
Dying Inside- Robert Silverberg
The Demolished Man - Alfred Bester
The Engines of God - McDevitt
War of the Worlds - H.G. Wells
Nineteen Eighty-Four(1984) - George Orwell
The Gone-Away World - Nick Harkaway
The Shadow of the Torturer - Gene Wolfe
Snow Crash - Neal Stephenson
The Unit by Ninni Holmqvist
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
When Gravity Fails- George Alec Effinger
The Drowned World - J.G. Ballard
Blindsight - Peter Watts
Red Moon - David S. Michaels
Tower of Glass - Robert Silverberg
Red Mars - Kim Stanley Robinson
Carve the Sky - Alexander Jablokov
The Dispossessed - Ursula K. Le Guin
Nexus - Ramez Naam
Star Maker - Olaf Stapledon
Crystal Singer - Anne McCaffrey
The Gate to Women's Country - Sheri S. Tepper
Children of the Lens - E. E. "Doc" Smith
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress - Robert A. Heinlein
The Snow Queen- Joan Vinge
Thirteen (Th1rte3n) - Richard K. Morgan
Dragon's Egg by Robert L. Forward
Golden Witchbreed by Mary Gentle
Blades of Winter by G.T. Almasi
The Many-Coloured Land - Julian May
Memory by Lois McMaster Bujold
The Last Legends of Earth - A. A. Attanasio
The Weapon Shops of Isher - A E van Vogt
City - Clifford Simak
The Martian - Andy Weir
Arkady and Boris Strugatsky - Hard to Be a God
A Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess

[Jim]

E A M Harris wrote: "I like the list but am rather surprised how many of the books were written a long time ago. Is there a 'golden age' of sic fi like for mystery fiction?"

Very definitely! There are different definitions of what constitutes a golden age for SF with various dates. For me the Golden Age for SF began around 1939, through the 1950's and ended with the New Wave era that began around 1964. The 1939 date is based on the editorship of Astounding magazine by john W. Campbell. He started in 1937 but didn't really hit his stride selecting stories and grooming authors until a couple of years later.

The major writers that contributed to the golden age were Jack Vance, James Blish, Poul Anderson, Damon Knight, William Tenn, Frederik Pohl, Arthur C. Clarke, C. M. Kornbluth, Ray Bradbury, Alfred Bester, Robert Heinlein, Isaac Asimov, Fredric Brown, A. E. Van Vogt, Clifford Simak, Theodore Sturgeon, John Wyndham E. E. "Doc" Smith and, a little later, Algis Budrys, Marion Zimmer Bradley, Philip K. Dick, Robert Sheckley, Philip José Farmer, Walter M. Miller Jr. and James E. Gunn

WW2 put a crimp in the golden age with authors in the service and publishing switching to the more pressing concerns brought about by the war. But in the 50's after WW2, SF seemed to get it's second wind and really took off.

[Mike (the Paladin)]

I note you didn't mention Heinlein..had to include him.

:)

[Jim]

Mike (the Paladin) wrote: "I note you didn't mention Heinlein..had to include him.

:)"
Your right, how did I miss Heinlein. I'm sure there are some others that should have been included also.

[Mike (the Paladin)]

Yeah I was reading science fiction in the 1950s...A. E. van Vogt was one. Would you include E.E."Doc" Smith? He was very much pulp space opera. There was Sturgeon, Blish, Wyndham and as you said so many more.

I used to try to get my dad to stop by my favorite News Stand which we passed when we went to my grand-parents on the weekends.

Back then a News Stand was a small book store that had newspapers, magazines, comics and paper backs.

[Pat the Book Goblin]

I just got into classic science fiction and I bought the whole Dune series by Frank Herbert and Foundation series by Isaac Asimov if anyone would be interested in a buddy reads. Does this group do a buddy reads?

[mark, personal space invader]

the group has read the Foundation series - always feel free to add in your thoughts to those threads. people who've commented there before will get a notification that new comment has been made.

[Scott]

Patrick wrote: "I just got into classic science fiction and I bought the whole Dune series by Frank Herbert and Foundation series by Isaac Asimov if anyone would be interested in a buddy reads."

I would do a Dune buddy read with you, at least for the first book.

I want to give Foundation another try at some point as well.

[Jim]

Mike (the Paladin) wrote: "Yeah I was reading science fiction in the 1950s...A. E. van Vogt was one. Would you include E.E."Doc" Smith? He was very much pulp space opera. There was Sturgeon, Blish, Wyndham and as you said so..."

In retrospect my list was very incomplete. I missed van Vogt, Wyndham, E. E. Smith, Asimov, Fredric Brown, Simak and Sturgeon.

I had mixed feeling about including E. E. Smith because of it being considered pulp space opera by many. But I looked at his career on the internet a little more deeply and it seems that he was held in higher esteem by his peers than I had thought. I never liked his stuff but that's a personal choice and doesn't reflect on his impact on the genre.

I was definitely reading science fiction by the late 50's (I was born in 1947). My early favorites were the juvenile SF written by Heinlein - Space Cadet, Red Planet, Farmer in the Sky, etc.

[Mike (the Paladin)]

Yeah his teen reads. I was never really a Doc Smith fan either but he has a couple of series that are considered "landmark". A friend of mine used to go on and on about the "inertialess drive". in his Skylark stories.

I was born in '52 and recall summers reading books I'd scrounged up. We lived on a farm and mostly I was limited to what I got from the school library. Now and then I'd get a paperback (never had much pocket money). I remember reading Wyndham's The Day of the Triffids and some books I can't even find anymore. One was Where Were You Last Pluterday? which I had to search for forever to find here. I read several by van Vogt.

[Adrian]

@Mike and @ Jim
I am afraid both you gentlemen have a few years on me, as I wasn't born until 59. That said I can empathise with you both regarding authors. I did read van Vogt, Heinlein, Wyndham, Wells, Verne, but most especially Asimov and EE Doc Smith (Yes his Skylark stories are actually quite enjoyable).
All that said I do quite enjoy some of the more modern SF authors, but have to regress back to the Golden Age every so often 😁

[Mike (the Paladin)]

...I was 7 in 1959 and that was the first year I came to start thinking of years by the date. In my mind it was 1959 for several years.

[Adrian]

I know what you mean, I first really remember the year 1966 (when here in England we won (for the first and only time) the World (soccer) Cup ).

Oh one other name I will add to my list earlier although not strictly SF was JRR Tolkein, my cousin introduced me to the Hobbit, around the late 60s and Ive never looked back.

[Mike (the Paladin)]

Oh love Tolkien...just didn't list him among science fiction writers. It's like Moorcock he's more fantasy than sci/fi though there is some crossover.

[Jim]

Mike (the Paladin) wrote: "Yeah his teen reads. I was never really a Doc Smith fan either but he has a couple of series that are considered "landmark". A friend of mine used to go on and on about the "inertialess drive". in ..."

I wasn't a fan of Wyndham or early British SF in general. I have to admit sheepishly that in my younger years I was also a fan of Tom Swift, Jr. before I moved on to the Heinlein juveniles. I never liked Heinlein's adult SF as much as I enjoyed those juveniles. They really turned me on to the genre. I also read some of the Tom Corbett, Space Cadet but they weren't as good as Heinlein even though they copied a lot of their ideas from Heinlin's novel "Space Cadet".

[Jim]

Adrian wrote: "@Mike and @ Jim
I am afraid both you gentlemen have a few years on me, as I wasn't born until 59. That said I can empathise with you both regarding authors. I did read van Vogt, Heinlein, Wyndham, ..."

When you reach my age your memory will start slipping a little and you can read all those great golden age novels all over again !!

[Mike (the Paladin)]

Hey! Don't apologize for Tom Swift (Jr or otherwise). I found TS when I was just a kid. One of the few books I actually owned was Tom Swift on The Phantom Satellite. I later found Tom Swift and His Electric Rifle (couldn't find the picture of the 1911 edition here). Tom Swift opened the imagination of a lot of kids over the years.

I was never into the Hardy boys or mysteries even young.

[Jim]

Mike (the Paladin) wrote: "Hey! Don't apologize for Tom Swift (Jr or otherwise). I found TS when I was just a kid. One of the few books I actually owned was Tom Swift on The Phantom Satellite. I later found [bo..."

Wow. I didn't know anybody else who had access to Tom Swift (senior) books. I remember going up to Maine to visit my grandmother and my cousin who was a couple of years older than my 13 years old (I lived in Philly). We were rummaging in the garage of one of her friends when we found a collection of original Tom Swift books. If I remember correctly they were original hardbacks with a plain light brown cover. I don't remember any illustrations on the cover, just the title and author. My cousin's fiend's father was saving them so if I wanted to read them I had to read them in the garage. I was a fast reader and managed to read several before my vacation was over. I was also spending my time trying to "enjoy" swimming in Maine's extremely cold lakes and ocean in July. While the books were very dated to me then (1960) I still found them interesting.

But I guess my earliest experience to "speculative fiction" was L. Frank Baum's "wizard of Oz" series. I was lucky that I had a local library branch about 1/1/2 blocks from me and could get access to books at an early age. It was a different time and walking 1 1/2 blocks to a library when you were 10 years old was no big thing. I didn't even need to take a bottle of water so I could "hydrate" on the way!!

[Mike (the Paladin)]

You and I had a lot in common as to reading if not location. I lived on a farm and there was no public library nearby. During the school year I had access to the school library but it was very limited (small country school 1950s and '60s). I owned Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn, Black Beauty (which I hated), Tom Swift, Davy Crockett's bio and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

I read and reread the Oz book till the cover fell off and finally the pages were coming out. As I recall my copy started about the time Dorthy got to Oz by the time I laid it aside as too young.

LOL

[mark, personal space invader]

I love those Oz books! I just reread one of his non-Oz books, Policeman Bluejay. still such a good read.

[Jim]

Mike (the Paladin) wrote: "You and I had a lot in common as to reading if not location. I lived on a farm and there was no public library nearby. During the school year I had access to the school library but it was very limi..."

We didn't have much money. I grew up in a housing project in South Philly. I remember when I was in my early teens going to some store (??) with my parents that had a rack of out of date magazines and older paperbacks that were pretty cheap. The magazines had half the cover torn off and the paperbacks had the whole cover torn off. I assume they bought any previous month magazines that hadn't sold and tearing off part of the cover must have been part of the deal. I assume it was similar with the paperbacks. They bought the extra copies the publisher wasn't able to sell or wanted to make room for newer stuff. My mother read a lot and got her books that way and that was how I got my reading material in addition to getting it from the library.

[Mike (the Paladin)]

Probably they were issues and paperbacks that were supposed to be destroyed. Used to unsold books would have their covers torn off and sent back and the cost would be refunded. The books themselves were supposed to be destroyed and not sold... Often however the books found their way into thrift stores and were sold for like a nickle or dime.

I never saw a used book place until I was grown. There was a Newsstand I used to beg my dad to stop into when I had a quater or some pocket money to look at the comics, mags and paperbacks.

[LindaJ^]

I read the Tom Swift Jr series after reading my father's Tom Swift books. My sister and I loved coming up with Tom Swifties -- "It's a dry month we're having," he said aridly.

Also grew up on a farm in the 1950-60s. Often, my father, sister, and I visited the town library and stocked up, taking out as many as allowed and then all of us reading all the books before they were due. We read lots of the golden age sci fi books.

[Mike (the Paladin)]

I never got to the public library. The distance was too far for my bike and dad was usually working. I went through all my small school library had. I think I was 14 or 15 ('66 or'67) before I found Heinlein and burned through his.

[Kirsten]

LindaJ^ wrote: "I read the Tom Swift Jr series after reading my father's Tom Swift books. My sister and I loved coming up with Tom Swifties -- "It's a dry month we're having," he said aridly.

Also grew up on a fa..."

My dad used to talk about those!!

[Mike (the Paladin)]

I read them. They're also mentioned in To Kill a Mockingbird.

[LindaJ^]

I'm going to resist the urge to say more about Tom Swift and Robert Heinlein and focus on the books on the list. I downloaded a number of the golden oldies to my Kindle before leaving on a 30 day trip to Africa. While I did not get them all read, I did get to check another 5 off the list of Best Science Fiction books created by the members of this GR group. By my count, there are now 99 books on the list. I have read 62 of them, which is just of 60%. Some of them, such as Stand on Zanzibar by John Brunner and City by Clifford D. Simak, are now among my favorite sci fi books ever. How I missed those authors, and others from the golden age, I do not know, but thanks to the list, I am now rectifying my ignorance.

[mark, personal space invader]

I like your tastes, Linda! those are two of my favorites. I'm glad that the list has been useful to you.

[Yvonne]

Stand on Zanzibar - John Brunner
Dune - Frank Herbert
Foundation - Issac Asimov
Hyperion - Dan Simmons
Dragonflight - Anne McCaffrey
Spin - Robert Charles Wilson
Rendezvous with Rama - Arthur C. Clarke
The Martian Chronicles - Ray Bradbury
Speaker for the Dead - Orson Scott Card
Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card
A Canticle for Leibowitz - Walter Miller Jr.
The Rediscovery of Man: The Complete Short Science Fiction of Cordwainer Smith - Cordwainer Smith
A Fire Upon the Deep - Vernor Vinge
Ubik - Philip K. Dick
The Forever War - Joe Haldeman
Into the Gap - Stephen Donaldson

reply | flag *

[mark, personal space invader]

Stand on Zanzibar - John Brunner
Dune - Frank Herbert
Lord of Light - Roger Zelazny
Foundation - Isaac Asimov
Hyperion - Dan Simmons
Dragonflight - Anne McCaffrey
Spin - Robert Charles Wilson
Rendezvous with Rama - Arthur C. Clarke
The Martian Chronicles - Ray Bradbury
Speaker for the Dead - Orson Scott Card
Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card
A Canticle for Leibowitz - Walter Miller Jr.
The Rediscovery of Man - Cordwainer Smith
A Fire Upon the Deep - Vernor Vinge
Ubik - Philip K. Dick
The Forever War - Joe Haldeman
Frysepunket (English title: Freezing Down) - Anders Bodelsen
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? - Philip K. Dick
The Windup Girl - Paolo Bacigalupi
Childhood's End - Arthur C. Clarke
The Stars My Destination - Alfred Bester
Downbelow Station - C.J. Cherryh
Stardance - Spider and Jeanne Robinson
The Mote in Gods Eye - Niven/Pournelle
Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
Old Man's War - John Scalzi
The Warrior's Apprentice - Lois McMaster Bujold
Gateway - Frederik Pohl
Stranger in a Strange Land - Robert Heinlein
Consider Phlebas - Iain Banks
Altered Carbon - Richard K. Morgan
The Fifth Head of Cerberus - Gene Wolfe
Adiamante - L.E. Modesitt Jr.
The Left Hand of Darkness - Ursula K. Le Guin
Dawn - Octavia E. Butler
Neuromancer - William Gibson
Damnation Alley - Roger Zelazny
The Diamond Age - Neal Stephenson
Methuselah's Children - Robert A. Heinlein
Way Station - Clifford D. Simak
Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
Pandora's Star - Peter F. Hamilton
Battlefield Earth - L. Ron Hubbard
The Sparrow - Mary Doria Russell
Startide Rising - David Brin
To Your Scattered Bodies Go - Phillip Jose Farmer
Ringworld - Larry Niven
The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
The Paradox Men - Charles L. Harness
Voyage of the Space Beagle - A.E. van Vogt
Native Tongue - Suzette Haden Elgin
Dhalgren - Samuel R. Delany
Diaspora - Greg Egan
Cities in Flight - James Blish
Schismatrix - Bruce Sterling
The City and The Stars - Arthur C. Clarke
The Time Machine - H.G. Wells
Glimpses - Lewis Shiner
Cat's Cradle - Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
Judas Unchained - Peter F. Hamilton
The Caves of Steel - Isaac Asimov
Dying Inside- Robert Silverberg
The Demolished Man - Alfred Bester
The Engines of God - McDevitt
War of the Worlds - H.G. Wells
Nineteen Eighty-Four(1984) - George Orwell
The Gone-Away World - Nick Harkaway
The Shadow of the Torturer - Gene Wolfe
Snow Crash - Neal Stephenson
The Unit by Ninni Holmqvist
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
When Gravity Fails- George Alec Effinger
The Drowned World - J.G. Ballard
Blindsight - Peter Watts
Red Moon - David S. Michaels
Tower of Glass - Robert Silverberg
Red Mars - Kim Stanley Robinson
Carve the Sky - Alexander Jablokov
The Dispossessed - Ursula K. Le Guin
Nexus - Ramez Naam
Star Maker - Olaf Stapledon
Crystal Singer - Anne McCaffrey
The Gate to Women's Country - Sheri S. Tepper
Children of the Lens - E. E. "Doc" Smith
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress - Robert A. Heinlein
The Snow Queen- Joan Vinge
Thirteen (Th1rte3n) - Richard K. Morgan
Dragon's Egg by Robert L. Forward
Golden Witchbreed by Mary Gentle
Blades of Winter by G.T. Almasi
The Many-Coloured Land - Julian May
Memory by Lois McMaster Bujold
The Last Legends of Earth - A. A. Attanasio
The Weapon Shops of Isher - A E van Vogt
City - Clifford Simak
The Martian - Andy Weir
Arkady and Boris Strugatsky - Hard to Be a God
A Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess
Into the Gap - Stephen Donaldson

[Miranda]

Gosh, I have a lot of reading to do. But also, how no Lem?!?

Stand on Zanzibar - John Brunner
Dune - Frank Herbert
Lord of Light - Roger Zelazny
Foundation - Isaac Asimov
Hyperion - Dan Simmons
Dragonflight - Anne McCaffrey
Spin - Robert Charles Wilson
Rendezvous with Rama - Arthur C. Clarke
The Martian Chronicles - Ray Bradbury
Speaker for the Dead - Orson Scott Card
Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card
A Canticle for Leibowitz - Walter Miller Jr.
The Rediscovery of Man - Cordwainer Smith
A Fire Upon the Deep - Vernor Vinge
Ubik - Philip K. Dick
The Forever War - Joe Haldeman
Frysepunket (English title: Freezing Down) - Anders Bodelsen
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? - Philip K. Dick
The Windup Girl - Paolo Bacigalupi
Childhood's End - Arthur C. Clarke
The Stars My Destination - Alfred Bester
Downbelow Station - C.J. Cherryh
Stardance - Spider and Jeanne Robinson
The Mote in Gods Eye - Niven/Pournelle
Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
Old Man's War - John Scalzi
The Warrior's Apprentice - Lois McMaster Bujold
Gateway - Frederik Pohl
Stranger in a Strange Land - Robert Heinlein
Consider Phlebas - Iain Banks
Altered Carbon - Richard K. Morgan
The Fifth Head of Cerberus - Gene Wolfe
Adiamante - L.E. Modesitt Jr.
The Left Hand of Darkness - Ursula K. Le Guin
Dawn - Octavia E. Butler
Neuromancer - William Gibson
Damnation Alley - Roger Zelazny
The Diamond Age - Neal Stephenson
Methuselah's Children - Robert A. Heinlein
Way Station - Clifford D. Simak
Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
Pandora's Star - Peter F. Hamilton
Battlefield Earth - L. Ron Hubbard
The Sparrow - Mary Doria Russell
Startide Rising - David Brin
To Your Scattered Bodies Go - Phillip Jose Farmer
Ringworld - Larry Niven
The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
The Paradox Men - Charles L. Harness
Voyage of the Space Beagle - A.E. van Vogt
Native Tongue - Suzette Haden Elgin
Dhalgren - Samuel R. Delany
Diaspora - Greg Egan
Cities in Flight - James Blish
Schismatrix - Bruce Sterling
The City and The Stars - Arthur C. Clarke
The Time Machine - H.G. Wells
Glimpses - Lewis Shiner
Cat's Cradle - Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
Judas Unchained - Peter F. Hamilton
The Caves of Steel - Isaac Asimov
Dying Inside- Robert Silverberg
The Demolished Man - Alfred Bester
The Engines of God - McDevitt
War of the Worlds - H.G. Wells
Nineteen Eighty-Four(1984) - George Orwell
The Gone-Away World - Nick Harkaway
The Shadow of the Torturer - Gene Wolfe
Snow Crash - Neal Stephenson
The Unit by Ninni Holmqvist
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
When Gravity Fails- George Alec Effinger
The Drowned World - J.G. Ballard
Blindsight - Peter Watts
Red Moon - David S. Michaels
Tower of Glass - Robert Silverberg
Red Mars - Kim Stanley Robinson
Carve the Sky - Alexander Jablokov
The Dispossessed - Ursula K. Le Guin
Nexus - Ramez Naam
Star Maker - Olaf Stapledon
Crystal Singer - Anne McCaffrey
The Gate to Women's Country - Sheri S. Tepper
Children of the Lens - E. E. "Doc" Smith
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress - Robert A. Heinlein
The Snow Queen- Joan Vinge
Thirteen (Th1rte3n) - Richard K. Morgan
Dragon's Egg by Robert L. Forward
Golden Witchbreed by Mary Gentle
Blades of Winter by G.T. Almasi
The Many-Coloured Land - Julian May
Memory by Lois McMaster Bujold
The Last Legends of Earth - A. A. Attanasio
The Weapon Shops of Isher - A E van Vogt
City - Clifford Simak
The Martian - Andy Weir
Arkady and Boris Strugatsky - Hard to Be a God
A Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess
Into the Gap - Stephen Donaldson
Solaris - Stanislaw Lem

[Yvonne]

I think there are a number of factors, many of which have been mentioned. I also think that as technology was more in its infancy historically, that stories were better because they had to rely more on soft science with suspenseful stories with decent plots and characters. Now I'm afraid to say that some modern authors just give you a book full of science and battles, with a weak plot.

[Jim]

Yvonne wrote: "I think there are a number of factors, many of which have been mentioned. I also think that as technology was more in its infancy historically, that stories were better because they had to rely mor..."

If you are looking for great SF story telling try Clifford Simak or Theodore Sturgeon.

[Critterbee❇]

Stand on Zanzibar - John Brunner
Dune - Frank Herbert
Lord of Light - Roger Zelazny
Foundation - Isaac Asimov
Hyperion - Dan Simmons
Dragonflight - Anne McCaffrey
Spin - Robert Charles Wilson
Rendezvous with Rama - Arthur C. Clarke
The Martian Chronicles - Ray Bradbury
Speaker for the Dead - Orson Scott Card
Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card
A Canticle for Leibowitz - Walter Miller Jr.
The Rediscovery of Man - Cordwainer Smith
A Fire Upon the Deep - Vernor Vinge
Ubik - Philip K. Dick
The Forever War - Joe Haldeman
Frysepunket (English title: Freezing Down) - Anders Bodelsen
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? - Philip K. Dick
The Windup Girl - Paolo Bacigalupi
Childhood's End - Arthur C. Clarke
The Stars My Destination - Alfred Bester
Downbelow Station - C.J. Cherryh
Stardance - Spider and Jeanne Robinson
The Mote in Gods Eye - Niven/Pournelle
Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
Old Man's War - John Scalzi
The Warrior's Apprentice - Lois McMaster Bujold
Gateway - Frederik Pohl
Stranger in a Strange Land - Robert Heinlein
Consider Phlebas - Iain Banks
Altered Carbon - Richard K. Morgan
The Fifth Head of Cerberus - Gene Wolfe
Adiamante - L.E. Modesitt Jr.
The Left Hand of Darkness - Ursula K. Le Guin
Dawn - Octavia E. Butler
Neuromancer - William Gibson
Damnation Alley - Roger Zelazny
The Diamond Age - Neal Stephenson
Methuselah's Children - Robert A. Heinlein
Way Station - Clifford D. Simak
Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
Pandora's Star - Peter F. Hamilton
Battlefield Earth - L. Ron Hubbard
The Sparrow - Mary Doria Russell
Startide Rising - David Brin
To Your Scattered Bodies Go - Phillip Jose Farmer
Ringworld - Larry Niven
The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
The Paradox Men - Charles L. Harness
Voyage of the Space Beagle - A.E. van Vogt
Native Tongue - Suzette Haden Elgin
Dhalgren - Samuel R. Delany
Diaspora - Greg Egan
Cities in Flight - James Blish
Schismatrix - Bruce Sterling
The City and The Stars - Arthur C. Clarke
The Time Machine - H.G. Wells
Glimpses - Lewis Shiner
Cat's Cradle - Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
Judas Unchained - Peter F. Hamilton
The Caves of Steel - Isaac Asimov
Dying Inside- Robert Silverberg
The Demolished Man - Alfred Bester
The Engines of God - McDevitt
War of the Worlds - H.G. Wells
Nineteen Eighty-Four(1984) - George Orwell
The Gone-Away World - Nick Harkaway
The Shadow of the Torturer - Gene Wolfe
Snow Crash - Neal Stephenson
The Unit by Ninni Holmqvist
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
When Gravity Fails- George Alec Effinger
The Drowned World - J.G. Ballard
Blindsight - Peter Watts
Red Moon - David S. Michaels
Tower of Glass - Robert Silverberg
Red Mars - Kim Stanley Robinson
Carve the Sky - Alexander Jablokov
The Dispossessed - Ursula K. Le Guin
Nexus - Ramez Naam
Star Maker - Olaf Stapledon
Crystal Singer - Anne McCaffrey
The Gate to Women's Country - Sheri S. Tepper
Children of the Lens - E. E. "Doc" Smith
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress - Robert A. Heinlein
The Snow Queen- Joan Vinge
Thirteen (Th1rte3n) - Richard K. Morgan
Dragon's Egg by Robert L. Forward
Golden Witchbreed by Mary Gentle
Blades of Winter by G.T. Almasi
The Many-Coloured Land - Julian May
Memory by Lois McMaster Bujold
The Last Legends of Earth - A. A. Attanasio
The Weapon Shops of Isher - A E van Vogt
City - Clifford Simak
The Martian - Andy Weir
Arkady and Boris Strugatsky - Hard to Be a God
A Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess
Into the Gap - Stephen Donaldson
Solaris - Stanislaw Lem
The Fifth Season - N.K. Jemisin