dimanche 31 août 2014

The Best Sci Fi Novels Ever

By Mattie MacDonald


Aldous Huxley's Brave New World is considered a literary classic and one of the fist science fiction novels. The book is one of best sci fi novels ever written is set in a near future dystopia and human beings are manipulated and controlled using psychological techniques to serve the powers that be.

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury is also set in a near-future dystopia. The title refers to the temperature at which paper spontaneously ignites and the firemen in the novel burn books. The plot revolves around fireman Guy Montag who lives a lonely and desolate existence where people never read, enjoy nature or think independently. Montag slowly begins to question the meaning of his life and finally discovers the value of literature and moves boldly to save the books and his own life.

Another classic science fiction novel is Dune by Frank Herbert. Set in a far away planet called Arrakis, the story revolves around a feuding family and their control over a drug called mellange that gives those who take it immortality. The protagonist, Duke Paul Atreide fights the families for his rightful place on the throne.

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? This classic novel by Phillip K Dick is a post apocalyptic tale set in 1992, where many plant and animal species are extinct and most of the surviving humans have abandoned the dying Earth to live on Mars. On Mars they are allowed to own androids, which serve as slaves, but many of these robots became discontented and fled to Earth. However, back on Earth, bounty hunters search for the androids and "retire" them. The bounty hunter Rick Deckard finds himself on a quest to find eight androids that recently arrived in San Francisco after they killed their human masters on Mars. Sound familiar? It is because the classic movie Bladerunner is based on the novel.

Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson is another great sci fi read. The story is set in the near future when humans begin to colonise Mars. Arguments erupt back on Earth as to whether the planet should be terraformed or left as it was.

The famous astro-physicist, Carl Sagan's novel Contact is set in the near future. The protagonist, Ellie Arroway works for SET and discovers radio signals from a planet 25 light years away, indicating that the planet contains intelligent life. The novel explores how humans may react when they make first contact with extra-terrestrial intelligence.

The Foundation trilogy by Issac Asimov is considered classic literature. Set in the far future, humans have spread throughout the galaxy and established an empire that is about to collapse due to corruption, bureaucracy and political infighting. The historian Hari Seldon sets out to preserve all knowledge in a vast encyclopedia. He brings many eminent scientists and scholars together on a planet to bring a new era of humanity.

No list of science fiction novels is complete without HG Wells War of the Worlds. The plot is well known; Earth is invaded by Martians that operate huge tripod like vehicles. They use total war to subdue humans because they want to get hold of the Earth's resources. In 1938, Orson Wells read the first chapter of story on the radio, which sent many listeners into a panic because they thought the story was a news flash!




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