CDs and Science Fiction/Fantasy books

[Susan]

I voted "no," even though I've read a lot of sci-fi over the years. Having known people who really like sci-fi, I would say that I'm not one of them. Two books by Colin Wilson that I've read many times, The Philosopher's Stone, and The Mind Parasites, are borderland sci-fi.

Anita, two very good books in my opinion - yes they are in my collection too

[Kyra]

Very much a Sci-Fi nut. I started with comics and magazines, much like Carolynn. "Amazing Stories" was one of my favorites too! I dunno, there's just something about futuristic tales that just grab my attention. I read other works, both fiction and non-fiction, but I always tend to migrate back to my sci-fi roots.

Hugs,
Kyra

[April Rose]

I read it from time to time. I went through an Ursula LeGuin period some years ago. My favorites were "the Disposessed" and "The Lathe of Heaven" I never really liked Robert Heinlein.

Lately I seem to be drawn to fiction and nonfiction about the middle and far east. "The Sewing circles of Herat", "Stolen Lives", "the Life of PI" (I guess you could call that fantasy) and "The Hamilton Case' come right to mind. I liked "the Namesake" , too, but most of that takes place in the US.

If I have a guilty pleasure, fictionwise, it's probably Georgette Heyer. I own about a dozen of her "bodice rippers"! Nothing like a regency romance, written in the thirties, to give a girl the vapors.

[Wendae]

My first was Conan the Barbarian by REH and the 2nd a series of short stories by C.L.Moore. I was 12 yrs old and I'm still going strong.

[Celia]

I guess I have to say yes. I don't pick up just any piece of science fiction or fantasy (I'm not a fan of the genres, per se), but my library of fictional books constitutes plenty of damning evidence. Obviously, I've read Tolkien's The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. Though I never went very far with C. S. Lewis, I did at least read The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. I read a fair amount of Bradbury - Fahrenheit 451, The Martian Chronicles, and I don't really know how many other anthologies of his short stories. Of course, I've read Huxley's Brave New World and Orwell's 1984. Mostly during my college years in the 1980's, I read Douglas Adams's Hitchhiker's Guide series from the original through Mostly Harmless. I've read a lot of Kurt Vonnegut - Cat's Cradle, Slaughterhouse Five, Player Piano, Slapstick - and so it (the list) goes (on - and on) . . . .

-Celia

[Anita]

I do want to elaborate a little further here. I did enjoy Heinlein's books, and there was one in particular that might be of interest; I Will Fear No Evil, which concerns an aging man's brain successfully transferred to a young woman's body.

For some reason, I resisted Tolkien for years, and now I must have read The Lord of the Rings dozens of times. I was really impressed with how well the movies captured the essence of the books, for me personally.

I had forgotten Vonnegut--I read a lot of his books in the 70s. Although Hermann Hesse was not noted for sci-fi, The Glass Bead Game was a futuristic story that was a favorite of mine. And I liked one Phillip Dick novel, The Man in the High Castle. It concerned an alternative universe where Germany and Japan won the war, and within that world, there was a subversive novel about how the allies had won the war.

Although I never read it, there was a book called The Female Man that I picked up in the 70s. Reading about it now on Wikipedia, it appears that it might be of interest to people on the forum. I think I'll try to check it out.

[Susan]

If you like alternate history read Harry Turtledove's Worldwar series. Starts in 1942 with WW2 in full flow when aliens decide to invade Earth and get a nasty surprise.

Fun?