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Ask YC: What's the most inspiring sci-fi book you've read? ↗

The books people recommended

2008-03-19 · 43 points · 79 comments · 66 books named by at least one person here and at least 3 people overall. The number on the left is how many people named it in this thread.

  1. 8The Last Question

    The Last Question

    Isaac Asimov

    8 here · 17 all-time · #383 overall

    Buy on Amazon3.8 out of 5, 25 ratings on Amazon
  2. 6

    Dune

    Frank Herbert

    6 here · 250 all-time · #3 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.7 out of 5, 104,032 ratings on Amazon
  3. 4

    Snow Crash

    Neal Stephenson

    4 here · 119 all-time · #16 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.3 out of 5, 20,720 ratings on Amazon
  4. 4

    Foundation

    Isaac Asimov

    4 here · 110 all-time · #20 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.4 out of 5, 36,591 ratings on Amazon
  5. 4

    Ender's Game

    Orson Scott Card

    4 here · 109 all-time · #21 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.6 out of 5, 45,794 ratings on Amazon
  6. 4

    Cryptonomicon

    Neal Stephenson

    4 here · 106 all-time · #23 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.5 out of 5, 8,425 ratings on Amazon
  7. 4

    1984

    George Orwell

    4 here · 94 all-time · #34 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.6 out of 5, 126,118 ratings on Amazon
  8. 3

    The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

    Douglas Adams

    3 here · 101 all-time · #28 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.3 out of 5, 30,738 ratings on Amazon
  9. 3Permutation City

    Permutation City

    Greg Egan

    3 here · 73 all-time · #45 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.2 out of 5, 2,604 ratings on Amazon
  10. 2

    Neuromancer

    William Gibson

    2 here · 117 all-time · #17 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.3 out of 5, 20,213 ratings on Amazon
  11. 2

    Brave New World

    Aldous Huxley

    2 here · 67 all-time · #55 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.4 out of 5, 48,055 ratings on Amazon
  12. 2

    Hyperion

    Dan Simmons

    2 here · 56 all-time · #69 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.5 out of 5, 30,786 ratings on Amazon
  13. 2

    Diaspora

    Greg Egan

    2 here · 45 all-time · #101 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.3 out of 5, 2,393 ratings on Amazon
  14. 2

    Cat's Cradle

    Kurt Vonnegut

    2 here · 22 all-time · #277 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.4 out of 5, 13,339 ratings on Amazon
  15. 2

    The Forever War

    Joe Haldeman

    2 here · 21 all-time · #294 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.4 out of 5, 18,724 ratings on Amazon
  16. 2

    The Stars My Destination

    Alfred Bester

    2 here · 20 all-time · #317 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.2 out of 5, 4,493 ratings on Amazon
  17. 2Frankenstein

    Frankenstein

    Mary Shelley

    2 here · 15 all-time · #429 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.4 out of 5, 30,870 ratings on Amazon
  18. 22001: A Space Odyssey

    2001: A Space Odyssey

    Arthur C. Clarke

    2 here · 11 all-time · #572 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.6 out of 5, 11,089 ratings on Amazon
  19. 2God Emperor of Dune

    God Emperor of Dune

    Frank Herbert

    2 here · 11 all-time · #610 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.4 out of 5, 13,901 ratings on Amazon
  20. 2City

    City

    Clifford D. Simak

    2 here · 8 all-time · #851 overall

  21. 2Heretics of Dune

    Heretics of Dune

    Frank Herbert

    2 here · 3 all-time · #2625 overall

  22. 1

    Atlas Shrugged

    Ayn Rand

    1 here · 173 all-time · #9 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.5 out of 5, 22,012 ratings on Amazon
  23. 1

    The Diamond Age

    Neal Stephenson

    1 here · 64 all-time · #58 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.4 out of 5, 5,358 ratings on Amazon
  24. 1

    Stranger in a Strange Land

    Robert A. Heinlein

    1 here · 55 all-time · #70 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.3 out of 5, 12,077 ratings on Amazon
  25. 1

    The Dispossessed

    Ursula K. Le Guin

    1 here · 42 all-time · #113 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.5 out of 5, 9,037 ratings on Amazon
  26. 1

    The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress

    Robert A. Heinlein

    1 here · 38 all-time · #127 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.6 out of 5, 9,404 ratings on Amazon
  27. 1

    The Left Hand of Darkness

    Ursula K. Le Guin

    1 here · 36 all-time · #140 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.4 out of 5, 15,332 ratings on Amazon
  28. 1

    The Glass Bead Game

    Hermann Hesse

    1 here · 33 all-time · #164 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.5 out of 5, 1,540 ratings on Amazon
  29. 1

    Player of Games

    Iain M. Banks

    1 here · 28 all-time · #202 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.5 out of 5, 11,218 ratings on Amazon
  30. 1

    A Canticle for Leibowitz

    Walter M. Miller Jr.

    1 here · 28 all-time · #205 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.4 out of 5, 5,243 ratings on Amazon
  31. 1

    Flatland

    Edwin A. Abbott

    1 here · 23 all-time · #261 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.2 out of 5, 5,255 ratings on Amazon
  32. 1Lord of Light

    Lord of Light

    Roger Zelazny

    1 here · 16 all-time · #405 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.5 out of 5, 1,960 ratings on Amazon
  33. 1Ender's Shadow

    Ender's Shadow

    Orson Scott Card

    1 here · 16 all-time · #407 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.7 out of 5, 5,741 ratings on Amazon
  34. 1The Handmaid's Tale

    The Handmaid's Tale

    Margaret Atwood

    1 here · 14 all-time · #451 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.3 out of 5, 180,443 ratings on Amazon
  35. 1The Lathe of Heaven

    The Lathe of Heaven

    Ursula K. Le Guin

    1 here · 14 all-time · #452 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.4 out of 5, 8,654 ratings on Amazon
  36. 1A Scanner Darkly

    A Scanner Darkly

    Philip K. Dick

    1 here · 14 all-time · #455 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.3 out of 5, 4,019 ratings on Amazon
  37. 1Childhood's End

    Childhood's End

    Arthur C. Clarke

    1 here · 13 all-time · #480 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.4 out of 5, 15,230 ratings on Amazon
  38. 1Pattern Recognition

    Pattern Recognition

    William Gibson

    1 here · 13 all-time · #494 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.4 out of 5, 3,192 ratings on Amazon
  39. 1The Mysterious Island

    The Mysterious Island

    Jules Verne

    1 here · 13 all-time · #495 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.7 out of 5, 932 ratings on Amazon
  40. 1The Mote in God's Eye

    The Mote in God's Eye

    Larry Niven, Jerry Pournelle

    1 here · 13 all-time · #496 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.1 out of 5, 22 ratings on Amazon
  41. 1Red Mars

    Red Mars

    Kim Stanley Robinson

    1 here · 10 all-time · #624 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.2 out of 5, 7,567 ratings on Amazon
  42. 1Stand on Zanzibar

    Stand on Zanzibar

    John Brunner

    1 here · 9 all-time · #750 overall

  43. 1Feersum Endjinn

    Feersum Endjinn

    Iain M. Banks

    1 here · 9 all-time · #778 overall

  44. 1Contact

    Contact

    Carl Sagan

    1 here · 8 all-time · #785 overall

  45. 1Oryx and Crake

    Oryx and Crake

    Margaret Atwood

    1 here · 8 all-time · #823 overall

  46. 1I, Robot

    I, Robot

    Isaac Asimov

    1 here · 7 all-time · #907 overall

  47. 1The Earth Abides

    The Earth Abides

    George R. Stewart

    1 here · 7 all-time · #952 overall

  48. 1The Shockwave Rider

    The Shockwave Rider

    John Brunner

    1 here · 7 all-time · #1000 overall

  49. 1The Sheep Look Up

    The Sheep Look Up

    John Brunner

    1 here · 7 all-time · #1001 overall

  50. 1Dhalgren

    Dhalgren

    Samuel R. Delany

    1 here · 6 all-time · #1126 overall

  51. 1Children of Dune

    Children of Dune

    Frank Herbert

    1 here · 6 all-time · #1147 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.6 out of 5, 22,093 ratings on Amazon
  52. 1More Than Human

    More Than Human

    Theodore Sturgeon

    1 here · 6 all-time · #1154 overall

  53. 1The Night's Dawn Trilogy

    The Night's Dawn Trilogy

    Peter F. Hamilton

    1 here · 5 all-time · #1273 overall

  54. 1Babel-17

    Babel-17

    Samuel R. Delany

    1 here · 5 all-time · #1277 overall

  55. 1Blood Music

    Blood Music

    Greg Bear

    1 here · 5 all-time · #1281 overall

  56. 1The Culture novels

    The Culture novels

    Iain M. Banks

    1 here · 5 all-time · #1361 overall

  57. 1Total Recall

    Total Recall

    Arnold Schwarzenegger

    1 here · 4 all-time · #1538 overall

  58. 1Day of the Triffids

    Day of the Triffids

    John Wyndham

    1 here · 4 all-time · #1661 overall

  59. 1Green Mars

    Green Mars

    Kim Stanley Robinson

    1 here · 4 all-time · #1674 overall

  60. 1Robots

    Robots

    Isaac Asimov

    1 here · 4 all-time · #1722 overall

  61. 1Slan

    Slan

    A.E. Van Vogt

    1 here · 4 all-time · #1848 overall

  62. 1Blue Mars

    Blue Mars

    Kim Stanley Robinson

    1 here · 3 all-time · #2229 overall

  63. 1Firestar

    Firestar

    Michael Flynn

    1 here · 3 all-time · #2304 overall

  64. 1To Your Scattered Bodies Go

    To Your Scattered Bodies Go

    Philip José Farmer

    1 here · 3 all-time · #2307 overall

  65. 1Steel Beach

    Steel Beach

    Michael Connelly

    1 here · 3 all-time · #2376 overall

  66. 1The Reality Dysfunction

    The Reality Dysfunction

    Peter F. Hamilton

    1 here · 3 all-time · #2389 overall