Science Fiction: The 100 Best Novels : An English-Language Selection, 1949-1984

Five stars as this books is one of the single biggest influences on my reading in my early adult life. 100 SF novels 1949-1984. A subjective selection but most of the genre classics from period are here, with perhaps a lean toward New Wave and progressive but representation from the hard field too. Yes, it is very white and male, but the second half of the list is more diverse, with the inclusion of work from Angela Carter, Suzy McKee Charnas, Joanna Russ, Octavia Butler etc. indicative of changing times.

This largely excellent selected-novels list contains 100 short essays on the 100 best novels published for the first time between 1949 and 1984 (beginning with '1984' and ending with 'Neuromancer'), 1 longer essay on the list itself and SF in general, plus a nice foreword by Michael Moorcock which mentions a few notable omissions. In between are 98 of the author's favourite books, along with a few which he admits to feeling duty bound to include due to their popularity alone (Asimov) and others in which he is quick to point out the faults ('Dune', which he says "makes certain intellectual demands of the reader but is at times crudely written.")

It is this honesty, along with the unusual choice of books on offer, which make for such a show more fascinating and useful list. Whether or not you will agree that these are truly the 100 'best' that SF has to offer will be a matter of taste but that title certainly grabs the attention. Some of the titles you will have a hard time tracking down these days, though the internet will be your friend, of course.

In and of itself, 'Science Fiction: The 100 Best Novels' is an entertaining read, though watch out for the odd minor spoiler in some of the plot summaries. It is thoughtfully laid out and easy to read and is a good starting point for anyone new to SF or keen to learn more about the genre. show less

This is an excellent overview of some classic science fiction novels. I appreciated the author's recommendation of some less well known authors and their work; for example, The Paradox Men by Charles Harness, which he compares favorably with comparable works by A. E. Van Vogt (one of my personal favorite science fiction authors). For every lesser known work their are several renowned classics listed. The result is a great source for recommendations of novels to read (or reread) and an excellent place for neophytes to begin to discover the genre.