January 2 is national science fiction day, and I want to use it as an excuse to get people into one of my favorite genres! Whether you’ve never read a sci-fi book before, you’ve dabbled but not really explored the genre, or you’re an expert who is looking for your next favorite read, I have a recommendation for you.
Beginner: All of these are fairly short (two are just novellas!) and there’s nothing too mind-bending in them.
- The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi: Jamie Gray, a food delivery driver, signs on for a gig at a mysterious “animal rights organization,” but is surprised to learn that they are massive dinosaur-like creatures in an alternate dimension.
- To Be Taught, If Fortunate by Becky Chambers: A team of astronaut explorers are hard at work to ecologically survey four habitable worlds fifteen light years from Earth.
- Binti by Nnedi Okorafor: Binti is the first of the Himba people ever to be offered a place at Oomza University, the finest institution of higher learning in the galaxy. But to accept the offer will mean giving up her place in her family to travel between the stars among strangers who do not share her ways or respect her customs.
Intermediate: If you feel like you’ve gotten your feet under you, try one of these books that are a bit more complicated.
- The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson: Multiverse travel is finally possible, but no one can visit a world where their counterpart is still alive. Enter Cara, whose parallel selves happen to be exceptionally good at dying–from disease, turf wars, or vendettas they couldn’t outrun. Cara’s life has been cut short on 372 worlds in total. But trouble finds Cara when one of her eight remaining doppelgängers dies under mysterious circumstances, plunging her into a new world with an old secret.
- Dawn by Octavia E. Butler: When Lilith lyapo wakes from a centuries-long sleep, she finds herself aboard the vast spaceship of the Oankal, a seemingly benevolent alien race that intervened in the fate of humanity. After learning all they could about Earth and its beings, the Oankali healed the planet, cured cancer, increased human strength, and they now want Lilith to lead her people back to Earth–but salvation comes at a price.
- The Martian by Andy Weir: After a dust storm on Mars nearly kills astronaut Mark Watney and forces his crew to evacuate while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded and completely alone with no way to even signal Earth that he’s alive–and even if he could get word out, his supplies would be gone long before a rescue could arrive.But Mark isn’t ready to give up yet. Drawing on his ingenuity, his engineering skills–and a relentless, dogged refusal to quit–he steadfastly confronts one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after the next.
Expert: Ready for a challenge? Try one of these books, where things get more advanced.
- The Three Body Problem by Cixin Liu, translated by Ken Liu: Set against the backdrop of China’s Cultural Revolution, a secret military project sends signals into space to establish contact with aliens. An alien civilization on the brink of destruction captures the signal and plans to invade Earth. Meanwhile, on Earth, different camps start forming, planning to either welcome the superior beings and help them take over a world seen as corrupt, or to fight against the invasion.
- Ninefox Gambit by Yoon Ha Lee: When Captain Kel Cheris of the hexarchate is disgraced for her unconventional tactics, Kel Command gives her a chance to redeem herself, by retaking the Fortress of Scattered Needles from the heretics. Cheris’s career isn’t the only thing at stake: if the fortress falls, the hexarchate itself might be next. Cheris’s best hope is to ally with the undead tactician Shuos Jedao. The good news is that Jedao has never lost a battle, and he may be the only one who can figure out how to successfully besiege the fortress. The bad news is that Jedao went mad in his first life and massacred two armies, one of them his own.
- Riot Baby by Tochi Onyebuchi: Ella has a Thing. She sees a classmate grow up to become a caring nurse. A neighbor’s son murdered in a drive-by shooting. Things that haven’t happened yet. Kev, born while Los Angeles burned around them, wants to protect his sister from a power that could destroy her. But when Kev is incarcerated, Ella must decide what it means to watch her brother suffer while holding the ability to wreck cities in her hands.
Ellen Whitfield is senior publicist at Books Forward, an author publicity and book marketing firm committed to promoting voices from a diverse variety of communities. From book reviews and author events, to social media and digital marketing, we help authors find success and connect with readers.
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