The Forever War

Caves of Steel, Forever War, Childhood’s End

- Project Hail Mary - Children of Time - Accelerando - The Forever War - Axiomatic

Wow, I can’t believe I just found this thread and not one mention of Jack Vance. His "Planet of Adventure" series, Alastor series or Demon Princes novels are classics. His command of language and dialogue is unparalleled. Every modern sci-fi author cites him as an influence. Gateway by Frederik Pohl is another underrated one from the 70s although the sequels are disappointing. The Forever War Joe Haldeman and Robert Heinlein’s Starship Troopers are also indispensable.

Day of the Triffids - John Wyndham - everyone goes blind and a bunch of sentient plants start eating people. one of the first science fiction books I ever read, and the one that introduced me to post apocalyptic fiction. Giant plants might sound silly, but its no more silly than walking corpses. And in fact the walking dead and 28 days later owe a lot to this book. Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell - Susanna Clarke - beautifully inventive fantasy novel about two magicians bringing magic back to Britain during the Napoleonic wars. Fab read. Gateway - Frederick Pohl - pulp sf at its best. Humans discover a hollowed out asteroid worth ftl ships preprogrammed with unknown destinations. Prospectors pack as much food as they can and hit 'launch' in the hopes that they'll discover something valuable and not land on a star or starve to death. The Forever War - Joe Haldeman - more great pulp sci-fi about the first interstellar war. Old man's war by John Scalzi is very similar and almost as good. Most things by Iain (m) banks. Crow Road, Wasp Factory, The Bridge, Consider Phlebas, Use of Weapons, Player of Games etc. Song of stone was awful though, they're not all winners

I'll second someone else's recommendation for The Martian, that was just a really fun read you can just burn through because it is so enjoyable. If you want another really fun read, Ready Player One was fantastic. I've also enjoyed the Old Man's War saga, there are 6 books but you can skip book 4 since it is a retelling of book 3 from the POV of another character. This is a space saga and I really like the universe he created. In the hard sci-fi genre, I really enjoyed The Forever War. And for just pure world building fantasy, the Game of Thrones books (The song of Ice and Fire series) are some of the best written books I've ever read.

I also give this book as a gift often. It started when I'd lend it out and never get it back, which, on reflection, I found I was actually fine with. So I found a UK 1st Edition, signed by both authors, which I'm never lending to anyone, and buy whatever copy is to hand for people as I feel moved to. I've also done this a couple times with Joe Haldeman's The Forever War.

Try The Forever War by Joe Haldeman. A great book about time dilation and Vietnam. The Water Knife by Paolo Bacigalupi. A book about water rights in the south west that I can think of.

Joe Haldeman, The Forever War. Michael Moorcock, An Alien Heat & Behold the Man.

Brave New World, Fahrenheit 451, Dune, Foundation series, Martian Chronicles & Illustrated Man, Ender's Game, Accelerando, Hyperion, The Forever War, Player of Games, Snow Crash

One great book that hasn't been mentioned so far is the Forever War by Joe Haldeman.

"The Forever War" by Joe Haldemann. Possibly the best science fiction I ever read! "The Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs" and its video lectures[1]. Highly recommended! [1]: http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/electrical-engineering-and-comput... (http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/electrical-engineering-and-computer-science/6-001-structure-and-interpretation-of-computer-programs-spring-2005/video-lectures/)

"The Forever War" by Joe Haldeman, among others. The book will put the timeline of your life into context, outline your limitations, and provide a grandiose example on the importance of communication. ("Ender's Game" and "Stranger in a Stranger Land" are among my top 5, but I thought the gem described above deserves attention.)

The Lathe of Heaven (also: The Forever War; The Einstein Intersection). Hmmm. My favs seem to all start with "The."