Any list of science-fiction classics is a very subjective thing. I don’t doubt that every fan of science-fiction novels who sees this list may disagree with my selection. Classic can mean one of three things: and old book, a famous book or an influential book. I’m going with influential. These are the novels that other science-fiction authors talk about and often imitate.
Some of these books I liked, some I didn’t and some I haven’t yet read. Some entries have FURTHER READING listed. The titles under FURTHER READING are not classics but are books by the same author in the same setting (often with the same characters). These are listed in case you decide you really like the story and want to pursue it further.
The Time Machine by H. G. Wells
The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells
A Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne
Lensman Series by Edward E. “Doc” Smith
Triplanetary
First Lensman
Galactic Patrol
Gray Lensman
Second Stage Lensman
Children of the Lens
Robot Series by Isaac Asimov
The Complete Robot
Caves of Steel
The Naked Sun
FURTHER READING
The Robots of Dawn
Robots and Empire
Empire Novels by Isaac Asimov
The Currents of Space
The Stars, Like Dust
Pebble in the Sky
Foundation Series by Isaac Asimov
Foundation
Foundation and Empire
Second Foundation
FURTHER READING
Prelude to Foundation
Forward the Foundation
Foundation’s Edge
Foundation and Earth
Foundation’s Fear by Gregory Benford
Foundation and Chaos by Greg Bear
Foundation’s Triumph by David Brin
Space Trilogy by C. S. Lewis
Out of the Silent Planet
Perelandra
That Hideous Strength
Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
FURTHER READING
Speaker for the Dead
Xenocide
Children of the Mind
Dune Series by Frank Herbert
Dune
FURTHER READING
Dune Messiah
Children of Dune
God Emperor of Dune
Heretics of Dune
Chapterhouse Dune
Starship Troopers by Robert A. Heinlein
Ringworld Series by Larry Niven
Ringworld
The Ringworld Engineers
FURTHER READING
The Ringworld Throne
Ringworld’s Children
What science-fiction novels do you think should be on this list? Leave a comment and let me know.
The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy- Douglas Adams
The Sprawl Trilogy- William Gibson
Neuromancer
Count Zero
Mona Lisa Overdrive
Rendezvous with Rama- Arthur C. Clarke
Voyage From Yesteryear- James P. Hogan
The Forever War- Joe Halderman
The Uplift Trilogy- David Brin
Blood Music- Greg Bear
Stranger in a Strange Land- Robert A. Heinlein
The Sprawl Trilogy, Rendezvous with Rama, The Forever War and Stranger in a Strange Land would certainly count as influential books. I should have included them.
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and Brin’s first Uplift trilogy were great books. I really liked them a lot.
I’ve never heard of Voyage From Yesteryear. Was it good?
The Chronicles of Amber, A Canticle to Leibowitz, and Enough Time for Love by Heinlein.
Check out my first and recently released novel, Long Journey to Rneadal. This exciting story is a romantic action adventure in space.
Yeah, it’s about a colony that is established in the system Alpha Centauri by an unmanned deep spacecraft before the outbreak World War III. They send a message to Earth 20 years later and a colony ship from Earth is sent to make contact. What they discover is a society that has no central form of government, law enforcement or military, nor a system of currency, but they are technologically advanced, free of prejudice, crime or war. The story focuses on how the political and military leaders of Earth try to negotiate with them and the civilians who begin into a society free of all the social customs and expectations they’re used to.
To me, Hogan’s writing compares to Asimov or Clarke but is more human-centric and character-driven, he cares more about telling the stories of the people living in his worlds that how cool or fantastic the world is.