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Dave Itzkoff's comments about SF have certainly garned a lot of attention. Along with that attention, has come close scrutiny of his list of favorite SF books. This list shouldn't surprise anyone as it definately seems to come from someone who thinks SF is too geeky. So, as a result, I thought I'd challenge the loyal SF Signal reader, to come up with a list of top SF books, as voted on by you. That means that you, Mr(s). RSS Feed reader, need to click on through and enter your list too. The rules:
1. Post your top 5 SF books. Order is unimportant, you can vote for a series by voting for any book in the series, just vote by saying BookName (Series).
2. Post them here in the comment section, please don't email them.
3. We'll tally up the votes, and generate a list of books, ordered by number of votes, in, say, about a week.
To get started, here are my top 5 (favorite) SF books:
1. Startide Rising
2. Use Of Weapons
3. Hyperion
4. Sten (Sten)
5. Starship Troopers
Vote away!
Update #1: There has been much, err, discussion on why only 5 books? That's easy. I'm lazy. And as this is all about me tabulating the votes, you get to list 5 to be counted. Joshua, you were right about John being the complete bastard. Me? I'm just the lazy bastard! Anyway, there is a lot of good stuff here. Some books that would be on my list if it were longer than 5. But I listed the first 5 I could think of, therefore they are my 'top 5'. Keep posting. Especially you SFS peeps reading the RSS Feed. Click on over and post a comment or risk being called lazy, like Tim!
Comments (40)
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Posted by JP Frantz at Friday March 10, 2006 at 3:51 PM
© 2006 SF Signal
Hmm, top five
tough one
how about
1: Sten (In the drakh, clot!)
2: Starship Troopers
3: Hammers Slammers (I'm noticing a theme)
4: The Mote in God's Eye
5: Spin (probably due to it's relative freshness in my brain)
close calls - Lucifers Hammer, Hyperion
Posted by Doug on Friday March 10, 2006 at 4:35 PM
Only 5?
5?
Well, I've been posting my favorite fiction (more than just SF) at my site (yes, it is all about me). So, you don't need to go with just five.
But...being very restrictive...
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress (Robert A. Heinlein)
2001: A Space Odyssey (Arthur C. Clarke)
The Enemy Stars (Poul Anderson)
Voyage (Stephen Baxter)
Rocket to Limbo (Alan E. Nourse) (hey, it was the first SF book I ever read, how can I **not** include it?)
(Man that was hard.)
Posted by Fred Kiesche on Friday March 10, 2006 at 4:42 PM
Neuromancer - William Gibson
The Left Hand of Darkness - Ursula K. LeGuin
Slow River - Nicola Griffith
We - Yevgeny Zamyatin
Only Forward - Michael Marshall Smith
Now I have this strange, dirty feeling from not being able to get a PKD novel onto that list somehow.
Posted by Cavan on Friday March 10, 2006 at 4:46 PM
5 Top SF Books, eh?
1. The Mote in God's Eye (Niven and Pournelle)
2. The Vor Game (Miles Vorkosigan Series), Lois M Bujold
3. Shadow of the Torturer (Book of the New Sun), Gene Wolfe
4. The Dirdir (Planet of Adventure), Jack Vance
5. The Golden Torc (Pliocene Exile), Julian May
Posted by Paul on Friday March 10, 2006 at 4:51 PM
Only five, hmm...
1. Dawn - Octavia Butler
2. Snow Crash - Neil Stephenson
3. Forever War - Joe Haldeman
4. 1984 - George Orwell
5. The Missing Persons League - Frank Bonham (the book that hooked my childhood self on sci-fi)
Posted by ThursdayHaiku on Friday March 10, 2006 at 6:25 PM
I would be remiss if I didn't mention that I already listed mine last year. I also feel I must resist the temptation to add excellent I books I recently read - the perspective of time hasn't normalized my reading experiences - so I'll self-impose a "no books in the last 2 years" rule. (Otherwise, I'd want to include all the cool reads from last year like When Gravity Fails by George Alec Effinger and Old Man's War by John Scalzi.) That pretty much means the list that I cited 12 months ago stays the same:
- More than Human by Theodore Sturgeon
- The Day of the Triffids by John Wyndham
- Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clarke
- The Man Who Fell to Earth by Walter Tevis
- Millenium by John Varley
Posted by John on Friday March 10, 2006 at 9:31 PM
1. Use of Weapons
2. Neuromancer
3. A Scanner Darkly
4. Permutation City
5. Dispossessed
and Starship Troopers, Left hand of darkness, a clockwork orange, Brave new world, Forever peace, the Hitchhickers guide to the galaxy, the cyberiad, Ender's Game, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep and Barrington jay baley's collection of short stories The Knights of the Limits all tied for 6th...and john you are a complete bastard for making me choose only 5.
Posted by joshua corning on Friday March 10, 2006 at 10:41 PM
1)Foundation series
2) Dune
3) Moon is a Harsh Mistress
4) Known Space series
5) Left hand of darkness
Posted by Allan Rosewarne on Friday March 10, 2006 at 10:46 PM
If it makes you feel any better, Joshua (as it does me), it was JP's 5-limit rule. 
Posted by John on Friday March 10, 2006 at 11:01 PM
In my humble opinion, it's not wise to put any book younger than 10 years in the list. Only time will prove if the book stays in your head and heart or if it just fades out. That's why my list consists only of the so called "classics".
1. 2001: A Space Odyssey (Clarke)
2. Dune (Herbert)
3. Hyperion (Simmons)
4. The Space Merchants (Pohl, Kornbluth)
5. A Fire Upon the Deep (Vinge)
And in 10 years I think Perdido Street Station (Mieville), Passage (Willis), Deepness in the Sky (Vinge), The Diamond Age (Stephenson) and Revelation Space (Reynolds) are definitely going to stay with me.
Posted by Aiax on Saturday March 11, 2006 at 1:28 AM
1. Startide Rising (and The Uplift War, I assume this is a series?)
2. Snow Crash
3. Hyperion
4. Ender's Game (series)
5. Use of Weapons (and many other Culture novels)
Tought to choose 5, and really, there are 10 or maybe 15 total that I can't really rank one above the other.
Posted by Scott on Saturday March 11, 2006 at 1:30 AM
If it makes you feel any better, Joshua (as it does me), it was JP's 5-limit rule.
yeah i know caught that after I posted. Sorry
JP you complete bastard!
Posted by joshua corning on Saturday March 11, 2006 at 2:00 AM
1) Neuromancer
2) Rendevous With Rama (Rama)
3) Snow Crash
4) Flow My Tears, The Policeman Said
5) The Fortunate Fall
This was tough.
Posted by Anonymous on Saturday March 11, 2006 at 11:25 AM
The Left Hand of Darkness
Timescape
More than human
Childhood's End
Hyperion
Posted by zaxl on Saturday March 11, 2006 at 12:48 PM
Radix - A.A. Attanasio
Nightwings - Robert Silverberg
Aristoi - Walter Jon Williams
Instrumentality of Mankind - Cordwainer Smith
Golden Age Trilogy - John C. Wright
Posted by Jeff Patterson on Saturday March 11, 2006 at 1:20 PM
In no particular order:
Asimov's Foundation/Robot series.
Eon/Eternity by Greg Bear
Ben Bova's Grand Tour series.
Anne Mcaffrey's Pern series.
David Weber's Honor Harrington series.
Posted by Kev on Saturday March 11, 2006 at 5:05 PM
1. Stars in my Pocket Like Grains of Sand by Delany
2. Schismatrix by Sterling
3. The Stars my Destination by Bester
4. The Ophiuchi Hotline by Varley
5. The Void Captain's Tale by Spinrad
Posted by Anonymous on Saturday March 11, 2006 at 8:23 PM
Stranger in a Strange Land (Heinlein)
Ender's Game series (Card)
Childhood's End (Clarke)
Slowyear (Pohl)
I Sing the Body Electric (Bradbury)
Posted by Richard Novak on Saturday March 11, 2006 at 9:50 PM
Faded Sun Trilogy, CJ Cherryh
Gateway/Heechee, Pohl
Babel-17, Delany
Hyperion, Simmons
The Postman, Brin
Posted by baconfats on Sunday March 12, 2006 at 7:03 AM
"In my humble opinion, it's not wise to put any book younger than 10 years in the list."
That is kind of what guided me, as well. For example, I could have easily put KSR's "Mars" books on the list as a series. However, it clearly derives, in part, from the books of Arthur C. Clarke. So I put a Clarke book up there first. Ditto with any military SF. I could have put many titles up, but Heinlein did it first, in many ways. So I combined a military SF book and a political SF book in "Moon is a Harsh Mistress".
Are we going to do this again with fantasy?
Posted by FredKiesche on Sunday March 12, 2006 at 7:52 AM
Stranger in a Strange Land
Dune
Integral Trees (for simply the coolest setting I've seen in SF)
World Out of Time (for sentimental reasons, this book hooked me on SF)
Childhood's End
There's nothing recent up there but that might change as I'm just getting into British SF and finding it truly excellent stuff.
Posted by Jose on Sunday March 12, 2006 at 11:56 AM
"What is this 'fantasy' of which you speak?"
You know, chicks in chainmail swimming tops...
Tolkien. Lewis. Eddison. Dunsany. Eich-Pee-Ell. Klarkashton Smith, "Two Gun" Bob. And a bunch of guys and gals that came later.
Posted by FredKiesche on Sunday March 12, 2006 at 3:40 PM
Hyperion(Hyperion Cantos),Simmons
The Reality Dysfunction(Night's Dawn Trilogy),Hamilton
Ender's Game(The Ender Saga),Card
Startide Rising(Uplift and Second Uplift Trilogies),Brin
The Mote in God's Eye,Niven and Pournelle
Posted by warpgee on Sunday March 12, 2006 at 5:00 PM
There's also the "The Internet Top 100 SF/Fantasy List":
http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Cavern/6113/top100.html
Posted by David Magda on Sunday March 12, 2006 at 5:21 PM
Thanks, David. See also our roundup of "Best of" lists.
Posted by John on Sunday March 12, 2006 at 5:39 PM
1.Dune (Herbert)
2.Neuromancer (Gibson)
3.The Many-Colored Land (May)
4.Startide Rising (Brin)
5.Destination Void (Herbert)
I know we can't have six, but if we could:
6.The Forever War (Haldeman)
Posted by Matthew Sanborn Smith on Sunday March 12, 2006 at 11:35 PM
My five best loved Science Fiction novels:
1. PLAYERS OF NULL-A by AE van Vogt (partly for sentimental reasons)
2. COURTSHIP RITE by Donald Kingsbury (Undeservedly obscure!)
3. EMPHYRIO by Jack Vance
4. HARVEST OF STARS by Poul Anderson
5. SKYLARK DUQUESNE by EE 'Doc' Smith. (You young whippersnappers with your Death Stars and your Ringworlds don't know what real power means until you have seen Blackie DuQuesne blow up fifteen thousand worlds in the first minute of combat with an enemy galaxy.)
honorable mention goes to LAST AND FIRST MEN by Olaf Stabledon. Almost unreadable, but the ideas are breathtaking.
I really would have liked to put something by Heinlein or Asimov in my top five, but, as I grow in girth and wisdom in my old age, Heinlein's condemnation of marriage rubs me more and more the wrong way, and Asimov's cool and intellectual style leaves me unable to remember any of his characters.
Do I also get to list my five best-beloved fantasies?
1. THE LORD OF THE RINGS by Tolkein (if I am allowed to consider all three books as one)
2. SHADOW OF THE TORTURER by Gene Wolfe (if I am allowed to consider all four books as one)
3. THE WORM OROBOROUS by E.R. Eddison
4. A WIZARD OF EARTHSEA by Ursula K. LeGuin (partly for sentimental reasons)
5. THE DREAM-QUEST OF UNKNOWN KADATH by HPL (Entirely for sentimental reasons.)
honorable mention goes to THE NIGHT LANDS by William Hope Hodgson. Unreadable, but the mood, atmosphere and setting is breathtaking.
(This list is also a confession: Anyone who has read any of my books will recognize the themes and ideas stolen respectfully from these great masters of the craft.)
Posted by John C. Wright on Monday March 13, 2006 at 10:14 AM
Dune by Frank Herbert
Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
Caves of Steel by Issac Asimov
Use of Weapons by Ian Banks
The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell
Posted by Michael on Monday March 13, 2006 at 3:01 PM
I'm going to have to read this John Wright fella. It looks like he and I have the same books on our shelves.
"Dream-Quest" but no Dunsany?
Posted by Fred Kiesche on Monday March 13, 2006 at 5:01 PM
Riverworld Farmer
Rama Series Clark
The Peace War Vinge
Hobbit Tokien
Book of Swords Saberhagen
Posted by Anonymous on Monday March 13, 2006 at 7:39 PM
Starship Troopers
The Forever Peace (and I do mean The Forever Peace)
Barrayar / Memory / A Civil Campaign (The best books in the Vorkosigan series.)
Alas, Babylon
The Demolished Man
Five is actually a stretch for me because while I read a lot of great SF, I really, really love Starship Troopers and the good books in the Vorkosigan series. I can read them over and over again and not a lot of books get that kind of devotion from me. The rereadablity is low in some otherwise great books.
Posted by Kristen on Wednesday March 15, 2006 at 2:56 AM
Top five is tough...
Because there's so many that could go on a best of list - I decided to go with the top five that I just seem to find myself picking up and rereading over and over again ...
Dune - Herbert
Succession - Scott Westerfield (both Risen Empire & Killing of Worlds)
Revelation Space - Alastair Renyolds (series - except last book..)
Cities in Flight - Blish (Omnibus Edition)
The Hyperion Cantos - Dan Simmons
-jess
Posted by chani on Wednesday March 15, 2006 at 4:00 PM
Mr. Kiesche asks: "I'm going to have to read this John Wright fella. It looks like he and I have the same books on our shelves. "Dream-Quest" but no Dunsany?"
This is because we are listing best loved novels. I like Dunsany in his short stories, particularly those taking place in the Third Hemisphere: in my humble opinion, CHARWOMAN'S SHADOW is not his best work, and it is not among my top five.
If we are picking our top five short story favorites, the choices are harder. Few short stories stick with me for life.
1. Scanners Live in Vain by Cordwainer Smith.
2. By His Bootstraps by Heinlein.
3. The New Prime by Jack Vance.
4. The Rull by A.E. van Vogt
5. Neutron Star by Niven. (perhaps the best science fiction story, qua science fiction, ever written).
Posted by John C. Wright on Thursday March 16, 2006 at 10:12 AM
Not to get off-topic, but I also liked "The New Prime". (Shameless plug for recent review. )
Also, for my favorite short stories of all-time, see my Design Your Own Dream Anthology post.
Posted by John on Thursday March 16, 2006 at 10:18 AM
Book of the New Sun (a novel in four books)
Use of Weapons
Left Hand of Darkness
Einstein Intersection
Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldrich
Posted by Eric Schaller on Friday March 17, 2006 at 10:47 AM
Dunsany: The King of Elfland's Daughter. A short novel, and one of my favorites.
Does that mean we're officially doing five favorite fantasy works as well?
Posted by Fred Kiesche on Friday March 17, 2006 at 3:18 PM
Also, for my favorite short stories of all-time, see my Design Your Own Dream Anthology post.
wow that is one sad post...you got one comment for it.
Anyway now that it seems that everyone one is posting about anything...i was wonder ing if anyone saw the season end of Battlestar Galactica and felt that maybe the show had "jumped the shark"
Posted by joshua corning on Friday March 17, 2006 at 6:36 PM
Yeah, that was sad. Oh well, that's how it goes. 
About BG: Yes! I was telling the local SF Signal clowns about that earlier this week. It somehow just hasn't beent he same since before the 2nd season hiatus. But that is a topic for another post. And a poll! Soon...
Posted by John on Friday March 17, 2006 at 9:50 PM