I have three to recommend.

First, "Invisible Monsters," by Chuck Palahniuk. Linky. I love this guy's books, they're all really dark and leave an odd taste on the tongue after reading. This one is one of my favorites by him. I used to own it, but my bitch-ass sister stole it. It's that good, though. I totally don't blame her for taking it. Another one of his I highly recommend is "Lulluby." No one's managed to steal that one from me yet. :D

Second is "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," by Stieg Larsson. Linky. The whole trilogy is fantastic, the second book being my favorite of them, but you have to start at the beginning, right?

Third, and definitely the best, IMHO, is "Jitterbug Perfume," by Tom Robbins. Linky. My favorite book by my favorite author. I could go on about his books for days, they're so damn amazing, but this book takes the cake, by far. It stuck with me for weeks after reading it. It's not really all that dark, but in a way it is.

All of them are perfectly well under $8 if you get used paperbacks! And even if you don't buy any of these, at least get to the library and check them out that way. You won't regret it, especially the Tom Robbins. And if you ever want any more book recommendations, I'm here! I effin' love books, if you can't tell by the wall I just submitted here. :D

This is going to be fun. Across my multiple wishlists...

1.) Something that is grey.
Grey bedsheets.

2.) Something reminiscent of rain.
Pet water fountain.

3.) Something food related that is unusual.
Astronaut Ice Cream

4.) Something on your list that is for someone other than yourself. Tell me who it's for and why. (Yes, pets count!)
This Bruins banner is for my BFF Becky. She loves the Bruins more than anything. Hockey is her obsession. I put it on my list to remind myself to get it for her at some point. It would make her happy.

5.) A book I should read! I am an avid reader, so take your best shot and tell me why I need to read it!
The Name of the Wind. Of everything I've read in the past 6 months, this one I devoured and have been desperate for the second book in (it's on my list to pick up this week, actually, if my paycheck EVER comes in).

Look, I hate... HATE... first person perspective. I see it as a sign of sloppy writing. However, this book had me SOLD on it. Kvothe is possibly one of my new favorite characters OF ALL TIME.

Avid reader doesn't even begin to describe me. I have my own library. I need books like air. And if I had to make a list of 100 books that were all I was allowed to have for the rest of my life, THIS WOULD BE ON IT.

6.) An item that is less than a dollar, including shipping... that is not jewelry, nail polish, and or hair related!
This kindle book

7.) Something related to cats. I love cats! (keep this SFW, you know who you are...)
The most interesting cat toy in the world

8.) Something that is not useful, but so beautiful you must have it.
This choker. Enough said.

9.) A movie everyone should watch at least once in their life. Why?
The Breakfast Club Why? Because. It's a good movie. Whether you were the jock, the brain, the spoiled brat, the loser, or the troublemaker-- there's a character you can identify with, and it shows that whatever and whoever you are, you can get along with someone who isn't in your clique.

10.) Something that would be useful when the zombies attack. Explain.
A Seed Vault

Everyone worries about fighting zombies.

Dumb. You see, when the zombies come, I'm holing up. A few weeks and if they are undead, they'll have rotted themselves to death. If they are fast moving, viral sumbitches, then they'll have likely ended up offing themselves through dehydration or whatever.

In any event, I'll wait them out. But then, I will need to rebuilt and eat.

(Besides, I have my trusty zombie-killing baseball bat, and a bow. Quiet. Efficient.)

11.) Something that would have a profound impact on your life and help you to achieve your current goals.
This book on Aztec and Inca expansionism. I'm back in school, and my focus is Mesoamerican Studies. Eventual degrees, here I come!

12.) One of those pesky Add-On items.
Zucchini seeds.

13.) The most expensive thing on your list. Your dream item. Why?
A KitchenAid Mixer Why? I like to cook and bake. My mother has one that I used for years when I was a kid and still living with her. I'm 30 now. I remember she got it when I was like, 5. IT STILL WORKS. Over a dozen moves, being abused for holidays making bread and cookies and cakes, being used by my Dad (I swear, he looks at appliances and they break) and it STILL FUNCTIONS PERFECTLY.

I cannot think of a kitchen appliance that would be more useful.

14.) Something bigger than a bread box. EDIT A bread box is typically similar in size to a microwave.

This loft bed

15.) Something smaller than a golf ball.
How about 7 somethings? A set of dice.

16.) Something that smells wonderful.
Italian Herb Bread Mix It smells good when you open the box. When it's mixed. While it's rising. While it bakes. After it bakes. As you've slathered butter on it and begin to nom.

17.) A (SFW) toy.
Hawkeye is so SFW I would bring him in to put on my desk.

18.) Something that would be helpful for going back to school.
This book, of course.

19.) Something related to your current obsession, whatever that may be.
Funko Tyrion Lannister because even a small man can cast a great shadow.

20.) Something that is just so amazing and awe-inspiring that I simply must see it. Explain why it is so grand.
This.

No one will understand the magnificence of this plushie.

It is a rotund, cuddly, snuggly Cthulhu.

But Cthulhu does not cuddle. He does not care. When the stars are right, he will rise from the deeps and from his seat Ry'leh, devour his cultists-- and everyone else-- by the millions, and bring forth an end to all things.

But how can you deny his Elder God wrath? HOW?! Look at him, all squishy and warm and soft. Look at his little T-Rex arms, reaching out for your love and devotion. His eyes, his wiggly little face tentacles. YOU MUST SNUGGLE HIM.

fear cuts deeper than swords

What do we say to death? NOT TODAY.

So... I'm writing up another post in notepad with a lot of Reddit comment formatting code and whatnot as a starter for creating quality stickies. Here's what I'm working with currently. There will be more to come. Feedback is welcome:


***

Link to previous Q&A sticky: Sticky 1, Sticky 2

Unlike many other subreddits, we at /r/Satanism enjoy nearly complete freedom of speech. The tradeoff for that free speech is that sometimes you will be exposed to ideas or opinions that you don't agree with. Keep in mind that bad behavior and not bad ideas will get people banned from this subreddit. As Satanists most often believe in stratification, the voting buttons in /r/Satanism can be used to that end. Because of this, moderators like myself likely will not remove links to sites that you would expect to be removed from other subreddits.


***

FAQ:

Note: This FAQ is written by moderator of /r/Satanism and member of the Church of Satan, /u/modern_quill. I am trying to remain unbiased and fact-based in these Q&A responses, so if you feel that I have somehow misrepresented your organization or philosophy, please let me know and we can work together to make the appropriate corrections.





Q: What is Satanism?


A: This is a simple question, but it has a complex answer because it depends on who you ask. Satanism as a philosophy and religion was first codified by Anton Szandor LaVey in his 1969 publication of The Satanic Bible. Some people refer to this secular Satanism as "LaVeyan Satanism" as a nod to Anton LaVey. The Satanic Bible borrows from the works of Might is Right by Ragnar Redbeard, Ayn Rand's Objectivism, and Frederich Nietzche's Der Wille zur Macht. This is the most widely practiced form of Satanism and is championed by the Church of Satan (CoS) to this day. At its most basic definition, "LaVeyan Satanism" is about living the best life that you want to live, and bending the world around you to your will to achieve that goal. A Satanist sees themselves as their own God. There is, of course, much more to Satanism than that very basic definition, but we expect people to do their own research as well. Most LaVeyan Satanists will simply call it Satanism, as there is only one form of Satanism from the Church of Satan's perspective. Members of the recently formed secular organization called The Satanic Temple (TST), by comparison, see Satanism as political activism. The Satanic Temple often makes news headlines with their efforts to establish a separation of church and state and do not include The Satanic Bible as part of their organization's canon, but rather The Revolt of the Angels by Anatole France. There are also theistic Satanists, some believe in a literal Satan and some do not. Ask a theist like /u/Ave_Melchom what they believe and they'll likely share their thoughts with you, but you probably won't find very many theists that share the same philosophy. There are also more esoteric organizations such as the Temple of Set (ToS), which was formed by former Church of Satan member Michael Aquino after infighting within the organization in 1975 caused many theistic members to split away and become Setians. /u/Three_Scarabs and /u/CodeReaper moderate /r/Setianism subreddit and are a wealth of information on the subject. There are also organizations that fall into a more neo-nazi ideology such as the now defunct Order of Nine Angles (ONA or O9A) and self-stylized "Spiritual Satanists" of the Joy of Satan (JoS), which are often not tolerated by other members of this subreddit. The words, "Fuck off, Nazi!" have become somewhat of a meme on /r/Satanism.





Q: If Satanists don't believe in Satan, why call it Satanism at all? Why not Humanism?


LaVeyan A: Modern secular Satanists see humans as just another animal within the greater animal kingdom, no better than our avian, reptilian, or mammalian friends. Our technology and our intellectual advancements may have placed us at the top of the food chain, but it has merely encouraged humans to be the most vicious animals of all. To us, Satan is a metaphor that represents our strength, our pride, our intellect, our carnality, and all of the so-called sins as they lead to physical, mental, or emotional gratification. The Hebrew word Satan simply means adversary, and Satanists take that adversarial stance to a great many things in their lives; the way we approach an issue, the way we tackle a problem, the way we overcome an obstacle. While Humanists may try to live like Bill & Ted and be excellent to eachother, a Satanist recognizes that emotions like anger, even hate are natural to the human animal and we shouldn't feel guilty for such natural inclinations. While Christians may turn the other cheek when wronged, you can be sure that a Satanist will have their revenge, with interest.


*

Q: Do you sacrifice or molest children/animals? Do you drink blood?*

LaVeyan A: No. Sacrifice is a Christian concept that was projected on to innocent Satanists during the "Satanic Panic" of the 80's and early 90's by charlatan law enforcement "consultants" and Christian religious "experts". One trait common to Satanists is their love of life as Satanists view life as the greatest of indulgences; children and animals represent the purest forms of life and imagination that there are. In fact, the abuse of children and animals is forbidden by the Eleven Satanic Rules of the Earth. Also, why would we want to drink blood? Christians* are the ones that (symbolically) eat the flesh and drink the blood of their savior. I'd rather enjoy a nice scotch.

Eleven Satanic Rules of the Earth

1. Do not give opinions or advice unless you are asked.
   
   
2. Do not tell your troubles to others unless you are sure they want to hear them.
   
   
3. When in another’s lair, show him respect or else do not go there.
   
   
4. If a guest in your lair annoys you, treat him cruelly and without mercy.
   
   
5. Do not make sexual advances unless you are given the mating signal.
   
   
6. Do not take that which does not belong to you unless it is a burden to the other person and he cries out to be relieved.
   
   
7. Acknowledge the power of magic if you have employed it successfully to obtain your desires. If you deny the power of magic after having called upon it with success, you will lose all you have obtained.
   
   
8. Do not complain about anything to which you need not subject yourself.
   
   
9. Do not harm little children.
   
   
10. Do not kill non-human animals unless you are attacked or for your food.
    
    
11. When walking in open territory, bother no one. If someone bothers you, ask him to stop. If he does not stop, destroy him.
    
    
    ***
    
    

    More FAQ Below - (10,000 character maximum per post.)

Is there anything in particular you're leaning to?

Author Cherie Priest has a couple excellent books.

• Boneshaker, first book in her Clockwork Century series. It's a steampunk setting with zombies and all sorts of wonderful stuff. This book is actually on sale through the end of the month for $2.99.
  
• Bloodshot, first book in her Cheshire Red Reports series. It's about a vampire gal who is a thief-for-hire.
  
  The Dresden Files series, by Jim Butcher, is a wonderful series. It's about a wizard-for-hire in the modern world, and delves into the wonderful magic environment that Jim has created. Jim likes to put his characters through trouble and turmoil, and it's good for character development! The series starts off with Storm Front.
  
  The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins is another great series. It's a post-apocalyptic/oppressed setting, centering around something called 'The Hunger Games' - an annual battle that captivates the capitol and all twelve remaining districts. There is a movie releasing next year, as well.
  
  The Name of the Wind is a terrific book by Patrick Rothfuss, the first entry into his series The Kingkiller Chronicles. It's a fantasy setting, and is about a character named Kvothe recounting his life. The writing style has an absolutely artistic writing style that is captivating to read, and such interesting and progressing events that make you eagerly turn the page. I have not yet read the sequel, The Wise Man's Fear, but I'm told it's even better in every way.
  
  Terry Pratchett is an amazing and renowned author. He has been knighted, an event for which he created his own sword for by hand, battles against Alzheimer's in a most respectable and commendable way, and has created such an interesting and provoking world that provides a lot of laughs and curious perspectives on matters. Where you start is a more difficult choice. A couple choice options might be as follows (I haven't read others yet, so I can't attest to others, but there are many!).
  
  
• Guards! Guards! which is the first installment to the City Watch sequence.
  
• The Reaper Man trails after Death, after he has been fired from his job.
  
  I haven't started this book yet, nor looked into it, but I have heard terrific reviews. The Lies of Locke Lamora, by Scott Lynch, is his first book in his Gentleman Bastard Sequence series.
  
  And of course, if you haven't entered George RR Martin's world of Westeros, the series A Song of Ice and Fire could be a wonderful read. It's very complex and very long and not yet complete (five books so far). It starts off with Game of Thrones, which is what the recently-aired HBO series was based upon.
  
  In the science fiction sphere, I would recommend Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card. It's the first in his Ender's series, and there are quite a few books set in the world. I have only read the first one, and it was an excellent read, insightful and thought-provoking.
  
  ...anyway, that should be a few to peek at!

Myst- by Robyn and Rand Miller ( 3 books, or combined into 1 "Myst Reader" with "The Book of Ti'ana being my favorite, the most thrilling, and currently being made into a motion picture)

If you've played the popular PC puzzle game series, this book series provides the backstory which many didn't know existed. The series (3 books) follows the character Atrus as he discovers that his ancestors were part of the once great D'ni civilization, a people who held the power to create worlds simply by placing words to paper. Anything imaginable could be created and visited/linked to. However this once great civilization was destroyed by a terrible tragedy of death, betrayal, sadness, and greed to which Atrus discovers that his grandmother had been the one responsible. The book series documents how his grandmother (Anna/Ti'ana) found the civilization, unknowingly played a part in its destruction, and Atrus's efforts to rebuild the once great D'ni civilization without letting the power get to his head and fashioning himself as a god like his father.

This book was a huge inspiration in my life. Throughout the book Atrus's grandmother is constantly telling him to look at "the Whole" to see the big picture without thinking too rashly. This motif is the inspiration behind the puzzle aspect of the PC version of the books. With themes of love, loyalty, adventure, and discovery, the books have something exciting for everyone. Also the book (and PC game) does a wonderful job of providing details, sketches, and descriptions of the lost civilization and it's language, something which inspired my love for history, anthropology, and was a big motivator in helping me into my current career as an Archaeologist

I hope that wasn't too long-winded :)

Amazon link to the Myst Reader, containg all 3 books of the trilogy

Amazon link to my favorite book of the trilogy "The Book of Ti'ana", check out the rave reviews!


Other books include: Timeline, The Silmarillion (my favorite book ever), any of Tolkien's other works, and GRRM's A Song of Ice and Fire series

It's probably pretty telling that the character I relate to most in fiction is pretty damn unlikeable. That would be Victoria/Egg in Boy Proof: self-sufficient, cynical, and obsessively nerdy while pushing everyone away. It was so refreshing to read about a character who didn't have friends fawning over her and wasn't treated as a martyr because people weren't fawning over her. Narratively, the situation was a pretty clear-cut case of "You really brought that on yourself, you know" rather than "Poor MC!"

I will draw a distinction between characters who are meant to be unlikeable, characters who are inadvertently unlikeable, and characters I probably wouldn't want to be friends with in real life.

Whether your MC is a hero(ine) or antihero(ine), you're supposed to be rooting for them. Everyone thinks they're the hero of their own story, and they should have internal motivations and justifications to match. The bully isn't spreading a rumor about the girl she hates because she's a bully: she's doing it because she feels she deserves it. Show why she thinks the objective victim deserves it. Maybe she humiliated her at the science fair and she's been nursing a grudge. Maybe she gave her a nasty look on the bus. Maybe everyone thinks she's Little Miss Perfect and she's not. Maybe the evidence said she stole the money but she didn't really. Reading about these justifications and looking at situations from another perspective is why reading good fiction makes you more empathetic: you get to know characters who have entirely different thought processes.

Some more examples:

Meant to be unlikeable, but you're rooting for them because you understand them:

• Gilly in The Great Gilly Hopkins (MG about foster care) - angry, rude, thieving
  
• Elisa in The Girl of Fire and Thorns (YA fantasy about a fat, religious princess) - borderline case as I thought she was a very sympathetic character, but she does wallow quite a bit in self-pity before she develops a (seriously impressive) spine.
  
• Tris in the Circle of Magic books (MG-YA fantasy about mage school) - abrasive and prickly
  
• Daisy in How I Live Now (YA WWIII) - emotionally flat
  
• Eleanor in Eleanor & Park (YA contemporary set in the 80s) - pretty sure the reader is meant to understand that Eleanor is isolated by both personality and circumstance. She's not exactly reaching out to anyone.
  
• Claudia in Incarceron (YA steampunk/fantasy mashup) - imperious, demanding, self-centered
  
• Meggy in Alchemy and Meggy Swan (MG historical fiction) - cranky and resistant to change
  
• Matilda in Matilda Bone (MG historical fiction) - pious and judgmental
  
  Meant to be likeable and they're not:
  
  
• Ivy Rowe in Fair and Tender Ladies (adult historical fiction about Appalachia) - twit
  
• Eve in... Eve (YA dystopia) - self-centered twit
  
• Tris in Divergent (YA dystopia) - no discernible personality that I could find to base a judgment on
  
• Briar Wilkes in Boneshaker (YA steampunk + zombies) - Again with the lack of personality thing. Among all the characters, she came closest to having a personality, but was still a cardboard cutout.
  
  When characters are supposed to be likeable and they're just not, the fault usually seems to lie with the author for failing to tack on a complete, nuanced personality. Or, the personality is there and the decisions run entirely contrary to the informed traits and it's clearly not a case of "humans are occasionally inconsistent."
  
  I think what annoys me the most is when characters make dumb decisions that run contrary to what we know about that character. For example, in Eve, [when](#s "Caleb tells her that she should move on because all of the small children she supposedly loves and all of the men she's supposed to be deathly afraid of will certainly die when she is tracked, Eve throws a hissy fit because obviously he's a cruel man who doesn't want her love and is just trying to get rid of her.") Also, even though she's never seen a movie or really read about (what the reader knows as) modern times, "the crickets sound like cheerleaders!" :D :D :D This runs entirely contrary to what we're supposed to know about her (she's desperate to get to a different location, she's terrified of men, she protects people).
  
  In comparison, Nell from Into the Forest (adult dystopia) makes some [objectively terrible decisions](#s "like giving up a chance to return to society and fingering her sister"), but they make sense for the context and what we know about her character (scared of change, totally focused on the memories of her family). Daisy from How I Live Now is another unlikeable but sympathetic character making [bad decisions](#s "such as splitting up the group, obsessing about an incestuous relationship, etc"), but again they're presented in a way that makes sense for her mindset and circumstances.
  
  Likeable characters I probably wouldn't want to be friends with, but root for anyways:
  
  
• Aly in Trickster's Choice - keeps trying to score points off people with snark and humiliating come-uppances. Fun to read about, but annoying in real life.
  
• Gemma Doyle in A Great and Terrible Beauty - overly concerned with being in the popular crowd, which is not my thing.
  
• Tally from Uglies - again with popularity as a major motivation
  
• Anna in A Countess Below Stairs - so selfless she'd make me suspicious
  
  These girls have complete personalities and are sympathetic in text despite their flaws. However, I feel like I "know" them well enough that I can tell we probably wouldn't get along in real life.
  
  tl;dr: Readers are supposed to root for the MC even if they are objectively unlikeable. When the reader doesn't want to root for the MC, it's probably because the author didn't convey their personality clearly or consistently. I wouldn't want to be real-life friends with many of my favorite characters.

The aspects of Clarke's style that you seem to enjoy really shine in the short story format. You said you've read everything, does that include his short fiction? There's a great anthology which collects them all.

Asimov was also great at writing short fiction, and I like this collection of his works.

Many of the stories curated in those anthologies were published 50 or so years ago in weekly/monthly science fiction magazines, you might see if any one has created 'best of science fiction weekly' collections.

Tor publishes short fiction for free on its website regularly. It's fairly hit or miss, but it's a good way to window shop authors.

A novel you might enjoy is Leviathan Wakes. It's a hard sci-fi novel in which humanity has colonized Mars and the Asteroid Belt. At this point all have their own unique cultures because it takes so long to travel between them. Not a lot of character development, which you don't seem to be into anyway, just fun ride in a cool setting. First in a series, but I haven't read the sequels yet so I can't comment on those.


You also might like The Martian, by Andy Weir. An astronaut is stranded by himself on Mars and has to survive. Weir wrote a short story called "The Egg" which gets posted to reddit on a regular basis.

As a David Weber fan, your short story amuses me. :P

His Honor Harrington series has reached a truly absurd length. So thanks to you, I decided to figure out just how long it is. I got my page lengths from Amazon, and for consistency I used the mass market paperback edition.

Main (Honor Harrington) sequence
==========================

• On Basalisk station - 464 - https://www.amazon.com/Basilisk-Station-David-Weber/dp/0743435710
  
• Honor and the Queen - 464 - https://www.amazon.com/Honor-Queen-Harrington/dp/0743435729/ref=pd_cp_14_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0743435729&pd_rd_r=S2QAWK0A4G5J4B8HDBEE&pd_rd_w=kVHBv&pd_rd_wg=YCt5P&psc=1&refRID=S2QAWK0A4G5J4B8HDBEE
  
• The Short Vicotrious War - 416 - https://www.amazon.com/Short-Victorious-War-Honor-Harrington/dp/0743435737/ref=pd_cp_14_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0743435737&pd_rd_r=A37BQZ60GMQ582TC3ZF7&pd_rd_w=qQc4C&pd_rd_wg=Lm2GX&psc=1&refRID=A37BQZ60GMQ582TC3ZF7
  
• Field of Dishonor - 416 - https://www.amazon.com/Field-Dishonor-Honor-Harrington-4/dp/0743435745/ref=pd_cp_14_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0743435745&pd_rd_r=66N3DYDJW5WPFCEG5N78&pd_rd_w=lUkDC&pd_rd_wg=KY7jv&psc=1&refRID=66N3DYDJW5WPFCEG5N78
  
• Flag in Exile - 480 - https://www.amazon.com/Flag-Exile-Honor-Harrington-5/dp/0743435753/ref=pd_cp_14_1?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0743435753&pd_rd_r=7H48RYFZ8KTWEMB2EJ8K&pd_rd_w=5W2po&pd_rd_wg=w1RjM&psc=1&refRID=7H48RYFZ8KTWEMB2EJ8K
  
• Honor Among Enemies - 544 - https://www.amazon.com/Honor-Among-Enemies-Harrington/dp/0671877836/ref=pd_bxgy_14_3?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0671877836&pd_rd_r=QM9A5BSF0HVQP17NEJ3M&pd_rd_w=177cM&pd_rd_wg=p0eQi&psc=1&refRID=QM9A5BSF0HVQP17NEJ3M
  
• In ENemy Hands - 544 - https://www.amazon.com/Enemy-Hands-Honor-Harrington-Book/dp/0671577700/ref=pd_bxgy_14_3?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0671577700&pd_rd_r=0E2M7NGVSD99GG0K030Y&pd_rd_w=s9B6F&pd_rd_wg=qkrCY&psc=1&refRID=0E2M7NGVSD99GG0K030Y
  
• Echoes of Honor - 736 - https://www.amazon.com/Echoes-Honor-Harrington-Book/dp/0671578332/ref=pd_bxgy_14_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0671578332&pd_rd_r=XKFC19A9VNX6RKYJDM4Y&pd_rd_w=lIwO4&pd_rd_wg=ZYJ0H&psc=1&refRID=XKFC19A9VNX6RKYJDM4Y
  
• Ashes of Victory - 672 - https://www.amazon.com/Ashes-Victory-Honor-Harrington-Book/dp/0671319779/ref=pd_bxgy_14_3?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0671319779&pd_rd_r=VRZXVNYXXE0TNN566CQC&pd_rd_w=bRGBk&pd_rd_wg=Zw14A&psc=1&refRID=VRZXVNYXXE0TNN566CQC
  
• War of Honor - 976 - https://www.amazon.com/War-Honor-Harrington-novel/dp/0743471679/ref=pd_cp_14_3?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0743471679&pd_rd_r=8FBHZ9M7NZC64Z48840G&pd_rd_w=tvJsx&pd_rd_wg=PlxdZ&psc=1&refRID=8FBHZ9M7NZC64Z48840G
  
• At All Costs - 912 - https://www.amazon.com/At-All-Costs-Honor-Harrington/dp/1416544143/ref=pd_bxgy_14_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1416544143&pd_rd_r=ZCEQ2GZM6QPEBV0XF8M1&pd_rd_w=EPpFx&pd_rd_wg=Cg1PI&psc=1&refRID=ZCEQ2GZM6QPEBV0XF8M1
  
• Mission of Honor - 880 - https://www.amazon.com/Mission-Honor-Harrington-David-Weber/dp/1439134510/ref=pd_cp_14_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1439134510&pd_rd_r=VB53ZSPNYFN4MX4M8E01&pd_rd_w=iujp4&pd_rd_wg=oMg7H&psc=1&refRID=VB53ZSPNYFN4MX4M8E01
  
• A Rising Thunder - 656 - https://www.amazon.com/Rising-Thunder-Honor-Harrington/dp/147673612X/ref=pd_cp_14_1?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=147673612X&pd_rd_r=VB53ZSPNYFN4MX4M8E01&pd_rd_w=iujp4&pd_rd_wg=oMg7H&psc=1&refRID=VB53ZSPNYFN4MX4M8E01
  
  8160 pages so far. But we're just getting warmed up. There's four side sequences, plus short stories and anthologies. Two of those side sequences (Saganmi Island and Crown of Slaves) actually merge with the main sequences,so they're more-or-less required reading to follow the main storyline.
  
  Crown of Slaves sequence
  ============================
  
• Crown of Slaves - 720 - https://www.amazon.com/Crown-Slaves-Honor-Harrington-David/dp/0743498992
  
• Torch of Freedom - 880 - https://www.amazon.com/Torch-Freedom-Honorverse-David-Weber/dp/1439134081/ref=pd_bxgy_14_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1439134081&pd_rd_r=Q8A83KBSP8DZ95JEKBAN&pd_rd_w=EqLpn&pd_rd_wg=eth0p&psc=1&refRID=Q8A83KBSP8DZ95JEKBAN
  
• Cauldron of Ghosts - 848 - https://www.amazon.com/Cauldron-Ghosts-Crown-Slaves-David/dp/1476781001/ref=pd_bxgy_14_3?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1476781001&pd_rd_r=D7MB4VXNP6HQB1Z5W98H&pd_rd_w=AxyEN&pd_rd_wg=LPPzI&psc=1&refRID=D7MB4VXNP6HQB1Z5W98H
  
  Saganmi Island sequence
  ============================
  
• The Shadow of Saganmi - 960 - https://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Saganami-Island/dp/1416509291
  
• Storm from the Shadows - 1096 - https://www.amazon.com/Storm-Shadows-Honor-Harrington-David/dp/1439133549/ref=pd_cp_14_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1439133549&pd_rd_r=SAABTFXBSHQ6569X395E&pd_rd_w=xjWcD&pd_rd_wg=anHv6&psc=1&refRID=SAABTFXBSHQ6569X395E
  
• Shadow of Freedom - 608 - https://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Freedom-Honor-Harrington-David/dp/147678048X/ref=pd_cp_14_1?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=147678048X&pd_rd_r=8CP6SFVFNVGPN4TNCKPC&pd_rd_w=Se3If&pd_rd_wg=sOHyp&psc=1&refRID=8CP6SFVFNVGPN4TNCKPC
  
• Shadow of Victory - 768 - https://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Victory-Honor-Harrington-David/dp/1476781826/ref=pd_cp_14_1?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1476781826&pd_rd_r=0K6QMGPG3MF1MXS1WQXX&pd_rd_w=p7Bog&pd_rd_wg=m36z7&psc=1&refRID=0K6QMGPG3MF1MXS1WQXX
  
  Star Kingdom sequence
  ============================
  
• A Beautiful Friendship - 384 - https://www.amazon.com/Beautiful-Friendship-Star-Kingdom-Weber/dp/B01L98WUB8
  
• Fire Season - 304 - https://www.amazon.com/Fire-Season-Star-Kingdom-Weber/dp/145163921X/ref=pd_cp_14_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=145163921X&pd_rd_r=BP9AANT274VPQY6FHJQ7&pd_rd_w=912Ap&pd_rd_wg=R5KpO&psc=1&refRID=BP9AANT274VPQY6FHJQ7
  
• Treecat Wars - 400 - https://www.amazon.com/Treecat-Wars-Star-Kingdom-Weber/dp/1476736634/ref=pd_bxgy_14_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1476736634&pd_rd_r=RFXS1880BM3CYCFXT4MY&pd_rd_w=pHHyE&pd_rd_wg=HDbxS&psc=1&refRID=RFXS1880BM3CYCFXT4MY
  
  
  Manticore Ascendant sequence
  ============================
  
• A Call to Duty - 528 - https://www.amazon.com/Call-Duty-Manticore-Ascendant/dp/1476781680
  
• A Call to Arms - 496 - https://www.amazon.com/Call-Arms-Manticore-Ascendant/dp/1476781567/ref=pd_cp_14_1?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1476781567&pd_rd_r=HPKPQMGEMQCYVW1M3ZZA&pd_rd_w=GLD1s&pd_rd_wg=sJyn7&psc=1&refRID=HPKPQMGEMQCYVW1M3ZZA
  
• A Call to Vengeance - (TBD)
  
  So those side stories come out to 7992 pages, bringing us up to 16,152 pages so far. But wait, there's more! He's got a bunch of anthologies (most of which intersect with the main sequence too so they are also required reading):
  
  Anthologies
  ============================
  
• More Than Honor - 384 - https://www.amazon.com/More-Than-Honor-Worlds/dp/0671878573
  
• Worlds of Honor - 416 - https://www.amazon.com/Worlds-Honor-Honorverse-David-Weber/dp/0671578553/ref=pd_cp_14_1?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0671578553&pd_rd_r=WAKBMSWA6V587RDAAC3Q&pd_rd_w=gsi01&pd_rd_wg=5GgZc&psc=1&refRID=WAKBMSWA6V587RDAAC3Q
  
• Changer of Worlds - 480 - https://www.amazon.com/Changer-Worlds-Honor-Book/dp/0743435206/ref=pd_cp_14_1?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0743435206&pd_rd_r=8KZY9K78EAB1T8M20DWD&pd_rd_w=Cl1wo&pd_rd_wg=GqZil&psc=1&refRID=8KZY9K78EAB1T8M20DWD
  
• The Service of the Sword - 672 - https://www.amazon.com/Service-Sword-Honor-Harrington/dp/0743488369/ref=pd_cp_14_1?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0743488369&pd_rd_r=4NZSVEMPEPMSD5VZ5YH2&pd_rd_w=uxiGJ&pd_rd_wg=215zK&psc=1&refRID=4NZSVEMPEPMSD5VZ5YH2
  
• In Fire Forged (February 2011) - 496 - https://www.amazon.com/Fire-Forged-Worlds-Honor-Weber/dp/1451638035/ref=pd_bxgy_14_3?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1451638035&pd_rd_r=FT56VKAS8FC7H48V9MH7&pd_rd_w=NJghD&pd_rd_wg=5l2bs&psc=1&refRID=FT56VKAS8FC7H48V9MH7
  
• Beginnings - 544 - https://www.amazon.com/Beginnings-Worlds-Honor-Weber/dp/1476736596/ref=pd_cp_14_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1476736596&pd_rd_r=EG5651MK5RRPCJVVMTDP&pd_rd_w=v0Nxq&pd_rd_wg=h5O3B&psc=1&refRID=EG5651MK5RRPCJVVMTDP
  
  So the anthologies add another 2992 pages, bringing us to 19,144. And lastly, there's the companion book
  
  
• House of Steel - 784 - https://www.amazon.com/House-Steel-Honorverse-Companion-Harrington/dp/147673643X
  
  That brings us up to 19,928 pages. Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time is a short story by comparison ;P
  

Hmm....I'm going to interpret that question as '10 Books in No Particular Order that Weren't Massive Bestsellers that I Loved*'

• The Good Women of China An amazing book about the struggles of women in China from 1950s-1980s.
  
  
• Ode to Kirihito The book that got me hooked on Osamu Tezuka (Astro Boy)'s classic manga.
  
  
• Shades of Milk and Honey A Regency Romance with a touch of fantasy, and the writing is a pleasure.
  
  
• Ender's Game Hardly indie anymore, but I found this near the bottom of a pile of books in middle school, thus launching my love of SF/F
  
  
• A Man with No Talents An anonymous account of a man who dropped out of the Salaryman life and became free to live his life as he wanted.
  
  
• The Dancing girls of Lahore A brutal, honest account of the underworld of courtesans in Pakistan.
  
  
• The Legend of Eli Monpress Escapist fantasy with amazing characters and a plot that keeps the reader up well past bedtime.
  
  
• Off to Be the Wizard Probably the closest to 'indie' on here, hardly a deep book but a hilarious geeky romp.
  
  
• Live Free or Die This one surprised me a bit, but my Libertarian SF-loving self just fell head-over-heels for this series.
  
  
• Boneshaker Because dammit, this is the one that sent me down the Steampunk rabbit hole.
  
  /* Ebooksgirl reserves the right at any time to change, amend, add or delete this list.

I see Satan as a sort of amalgamation of the mythologies that are all about what is best in humanity.

Lucifer freed mankind from God's tyranny by "tricking" us into eating from the Tree of Knowledge. Truly, God must be the Lord of Ignorance to get his panties in a twist over something like that. I like to think of him the way he was portrayed in Heinlein's book Job: A Comedy of Justice; trying his best to mitigate God's incessant, terrible interference with humanity.

Additionally, when I think of Satan, I think of his likenesses in other mythologies:

Prometheus is the most obvious example to me; the guy literally stole fire from the gods to enrich mankind.

Then there's Loki, a textbook example of The Adversary, even though he helps his friends as often as he hinders them. He's even blamed for Ragnarok, even though the whole thing is fated to occur in a specific way, just like the Biblical Apocalypse, which by Christian definition must be God's fault; if God is all-powerful, he could just... not have an apocalypse.

There's also Hel, another Norse cutie, who runs the afterlife. That's one way that religious folks have an advantage over the rest of us; they get to have a smug sense of superiority about what happens after we die. The best that we atheists get is, "Well, at least there's no more... pain?" Hel is what I consider when I worry about that sort of thing. She's the aspect of my own personality that I let worry about what happens... after. Not only to whatever I am, but to those I care about. It's a comfort, which is... really the entire point of the theatricality of Satanism; to satisfy an itchy part of ourselves that traditionally non-religious folks just don't get to scratch.

And oh man, if you ever get into the Bhagavad Gita, there's a whole slew of characters who are portrayed as bad guys, but seem to actually have mankind's best interests at heart.

So... that's how I interpret Satanism. It's not exactly mainstream, but then, what part about fucking Satanism could one consider mainstream?

Mother of Learning is a web serial about a mage trapped in a time loop. The main character isn't a complete optimizer, but he's pretty solid, and it's a hard fantasy with coherent rules.

Brandon Sanderson writes some excellent hard fantasy as well. If you're not familiar with his work, I recommend Perfect State or The Emperor's Soul as good short-length introductions to his work.

Rokka no Yuusha is an excellent hard fantasy anime/light novel series. Each arc is basically a self-contained, solvable mystery.

Log Horizon is a solid "trapped in a MMO" style of anime/light novel series with a decent optimizer protagonist. Season 1 is much stronger than Season 2, imo, and he misses some clear game breakers, but I still consider it the pinnacle of the genre.

What are the rules on self-promotion in this thread? I'm asking for...science. ^_^

I have a recommendation that's a bit off the beaten path, and which may seem a bit odd, but before I read LotR or Tolkien's works, I was a big fan of the Myst books by Rand and Robyn Miller, starting in late elementary school.

Unlike a lot of novels that are derivative of video games (and many "extended universe" books based on popular media), these books are actually well-plotted and well-written, and aren't just a bunch of corporately-blessed fanfiction.

The books aren't dependent upon having played the games, and, in fact, I think I got the first before I played MYST. (Though, if he does enjoy the books, the games very cheap these days, and the first two or three, at least, will run on just about any computer. They're not violent or action-y, but very dependent on thinking and puzzle solving.)

The first book was the only one I had for quite a while, and it was one of the first long novels that I reread multiple times. You can find the three books in one volume or separately. The first book is the best by far, but the second is also very strong. The third is less well-liked by most, but it's been a while since I've read it, and I've only done so once. I enjoyed it, though.

The Emperor's Soul by Brandon Sanderson

It's a short novella. I read it in an afternoon on the beach in Mexico while on vacation. It's a perfect short fantasy fiction. Great world building, great action, great character development, good dialogue, well thought out, and a satisfying conclusion.

It has one of the greatest lines, that influenced my thinking at work, "You cannot manipulate someone by being genuine."

http://www.amazon.com/Emperors-Soul-Hugo-Award-Winner/dp/1616960922

Ok, this is going to sound silly and petty, but when I was in 5th or 6th grade, we had a gift exchange for Christmas. Each person had to bring a gift (girls for girls, boys for boys), and they would then be put in a bag and names drawn randomly out of a hat. First drawn got to pick first, etc.

My family was really poor, and I saved up every penny I had from my allowance and lunch money to buy the Christmas gift for the exchange. I bought a really pretty necklace. I don't remember how much I spent, but I was really excited about being able to get it for the exchange.

The day came and I put my wrapped present in the bag. My name ended up being last drawn, so I got the last gift in the girls bag. What did I get? I got a beat up, well-used alphabet board book. I was so embarrassed and kind of upset.

I'd like this book from my husband's list. He's been dying to read it. Thank you for the contest!

Here are a few to add to the VR reading list. The sidebar thread is closed, so this seems like an opportune time to add them here:

• Existence - David Brin - Has the Carmack seal of approval.
  
  
• The Atopia Chronicles - Matthew Mather - Fast-paced with a highly detailed and far-reaching vision of perfect VR.
  
  
• Trading Reality - Michael Ridpath - A dramatized account of the process of bringing the first VR product to market(the depiction of the tech scene is accurate but dated to before the emergence of GPUs).
  
  
• The Futurological Congress - Stanislaw Lem - A bleaker portrayal of the world in VR I have never read. And it's a comedy.
  
  
• Reality Threshold - Robert Hinch - Simpler, fun and gaming-focused.
  
  
• Ghosts of Arcadia - Ramsey Isler - A quick story of a near-future VR gaming network.
  
  
• Upload - Mark McClelland - The writing style is rough, but an honest treatment of the question of rights of uploaded personalities and their copies.
  
  
• Everywhere But No Place - Mark Foster - Less heavy on the tech side, but an enjoyable VR fantasy. Free with Amazon prime.
  

> Perhaps you'd care to disclose the particulars of the metaphysical pincicples that cash out capitalism, and what the rational/axiomatic justification is for accepting them, then?

This is a start - http://campus.aynrand.org/more/selected-full-essays/

I know I sound like a broken record but it really helps to read and grok before seeking out discussions or debates.

• Capitalism - the Unknown Ideal addresses this specifically
  
• The Virtue of Selfishness is a good collection of introductory essays
  
• OPAR is a good resource too. Although I have problems with some of Peikoff's original work, that book is, for the most part, a good one-stop-shop that outlines the philosophy
  
• PDF warning - This is a good reading list
  
  Finally, the ARI offers some decent academic courses on Objectivism.,

Further reading/research: (Not all of which I've gotten to read yet. Some of which may be quite tangentially relevant to the discussion at hand along with the books and sites I mentioned above. Consider this more a list of books pertaining to the history of technology, machining, metrology, some general science and good engineering texts.)

Dan Gelbart's Youtube Channel

Engineerguy's Youtube Channel

Nick Mueller's Youtube Channel

mrpete222/tubalcain's youtube channel

Tom Lipton (oxtools) Youtube Channel

Suburban Tool's Youtube Channel

NYCNC's Youtube Channel

Computer History Museum's Youtube Channel

History of Machine Tools, 1700-1910 by Steeds

Studies in the History of Machine Tools by Woodbury

A History of Machine Tools by Bradley

Tools for the Job: A History of Machine Tools to 1950 by The Science Museum

A History of Engineering Metrology by Hume

Tools and Machines by Barnard

The Testing of Machine Tools by Burley

Modern machine shop tools, their construction, operation and manipulation, including both hand and machine tools: a book of practical instruction by Humphrey & Dervoort

Machine-Shop Tools and Methods by Leonard

A Measure of All Things: The Story of Man and Measurement by Whitelaw

Handbook of Optical Metrology: Principles and Applications by Yoshizawa

Angle of Attack: Harrison Storms and the Race to the Moon by Gray

Machine Shop Training Course Vol 1 & 2 by Jones

A Century of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT, 1882-1982

Numerical Control: Making a New Technology by Reintjes

History of Strength of Materials by Timoshenko

Rust: The Longest War by Waldman

The Companion Reference Book on Dial and Test Indicators: Based on our popular website www.longislandindicator.com by Meyer

Optical Shop Testing by Malacara

Lost Moon: The Preilous Voyage of Apollo 13 by Lovell and Kruger

Kelly: More Than My Share of It All by Johnson & Smith

Skunk Works: A Personal Memoir of My Years at Lockheed by Rich & Janos

Unwritten Laws of Engineering by King

Advanced Machine Work by Smith

Accurate Tool Work by Goodrich

Optical Tooling, for Precise Manufacture and Alignment by Kissam

The Martian: A Novel by Weir

Roark's Formulas for Stress and Strain by Young Budynas & Sadegh

Materials Selection in Mechanical Design by Ashby

Slide Rule: The Autobiography of an Engineer by Shute

Cosmos by Sagan

Nuts, Bolts, Fasteners and Plumbing Handbook by Smith Carol Smith wrote a number of other great books such as Engineer to Win.

Tool & Cutter Sharpening by Hall

Handbook of Machine Tool Analysis by Marinescu, Ispas & Boboc

The Intel Trinity by Malone

Manufacturing Processes for Design Professionals by Thompson

A Handbook on Tool Room Grinding

Tolerance Design: A Handbook for Developing Optimal Specifications by Creveling

Inspection and Gaging by Kennedy

Precision Engineering by Evans

Procedures in Experimental Physics by Strong

Dick's Encyclopedia of Practical Receipts and Processes or How They Did it in the 1870's by Dick

Flextures: Elements of Elastic Mechanisms by Smith

Precision Engineering by Venkatesh & Izman

Metal Cutting Theory and Practice by Stephenson & Agapiou

American Lathe Builders, 1810-1910 by Cope As mentioned in the above post, Kennth Cope did a series of books on early machine tool builders. This is one of them.

Shop Theory by Henry Ford Trade Shop

Learning the lost Art of Hand Scraping: From Eight Classic Machine Shop Textbooks A small collection of articles combined in one small book. Lindsay Publications was a smallish company that would collect, reprint or combine public domain source material related to machining and sell them at reasonable prices. They retired a few years ago and sold what rights and materials they had to another company.

How Round Is Your Circle?: Where Engineering and Mathematics Meet by Bryant & Sangwin

Machining & CNC Technology by Fitzpatrick

CNC Programming Handbook by Smid

Machine Shop Practice Vol 1 & 2 by Moltrecht

The Elements of Computing Systems: Building a Modern Computer from First Principles A fantastic book with tons of free online material, labs, and courses built around it. This book could take a 6th grader interested in learning, and teach them the fundamentals from scratch to design a basic computer processor and programming a simple OS etc.

Bosch Automotive Handbook by Bosch

Trajectory Planning for Automatic Machines and Robots by Biagiotti & Melchiorri

The Finite Element Method: Its Basis and Fundamentals by Zhu, Zienkiewicz and Taylor

Practical Treatise on Milling and Milling Machines by Brown & Sharpe

Grinding Technology by Krar & Oswold

Principles of Precision Engineering by Nakazawa & Takeguchi

Foundations of Ultra-Precision Mechanism Design by Smith

I.C.S. Reference Library, Volume 50: Working Chilled Iron, Planer Work, Shaper and Slotter Work, Drilling and Boring, Milling-Machine Work, Gear Calculations, Gear Cutting

I. C. S. Reference Library, Volume 51: Grinding, Bench, Vise, and Floor Work, Erecting, Shop Hints, Toolmaking, Gauges and Gauge Making, Dies and Die Making, Jigs and Jig Making
and many more ICS books on various engineering, technical and non-technical topics.

American Machinists' Handbook and Dictionary of Shop Terms: A Reference Book of Machine-Shop and Drawing-Room Data, Methods and Definitions, Seventh Edition by Colvin & Stanley

Modern Metal Cutting: A Practical Handbook by Sandvik

Mechanical Behavior of Materials by Dowling

Engineering Design by Dieter and Schmidt

[Creative Design of Products and Systems by Saeed]()

English and American Tool Builders by Roe

Machine Design by Norton

Control Systems by Nise

That doesn't include some random books I've found when traveling and visiting used book stores. :)

I was just thinking of how much I liked books as a kid for helping me think of things I never had or would of before. I know from schooling that brains are incredibly plastic, so don't give up! I have a book to suggest if you'd like, it's a short novella and a pretty easy read—but it's also full of awesome concepts and ideas that are fun to just ponder as the author lays them out for you. It's called The Man Who Folded Himself by David Gerrold!

Here it is on Amazon if you're interested.

>It just feels like a very "Here's a planet you'll never walk on in your lifetime" thing.

True, given current technology. However, technology changes. Right now the limiting factor constraining colonizing other star systems is the travel time. There are two general ways to address this. One, decrease travel time, two, increase the effective human lifespan.

In my opinion, there's not much to do about the first. The speed of light is the limiting factor, and I pretty strongly expect that wormholes and hyperspace will remain purely SF.

On lifetimes, though, I see great potential in this area, particularly over the next couple centuries. If genuine "suspended animation", cryogenics, whatever you want to call it, or bodily rejuvenation resulting in de facto eternal life (and finding solutions to the associated memory/not getting bored to death aspects), can be perfected, then travel times of thousands of years cease to be an issue.

It's a matter of perspective. Compared to the 24-hour lifespan of a mayfly, the human lifespan is nearly eternal. We can accomplish so much more because we live so incredibly much longer (that, and opposable thumbs).

Imagine that the average person could live for ten million years. At a significant fraction of the speed of light what's a ten thousand year journey between stars? (Relatively to our current lifespans, about a month.)

We aren't going to go racing across the galaxy, but with life ultra-extension, we are quite capable of incrementally colonizing it over hundreds of millenia.

See "A Deepness in the Sky" for a Hugo winning novel set in just such a sub-lightspeed/suspended animation universe.

I highly recommend The Name Of The Wind by Patrick Rothfuss. Tiz a great book, and a fantastic story. Also Mass Effect 2. Also Jonathan Livingston Seagul. Also this album.

I've given you a few great stories with a few different mediums. Hope you enjoy one!

Looks like it came out on the 14th

I feel like I should give him a fair shot seeing as he is quoted as one of the greatest Sci-Fi authors.

I tend to work my way through the Hugo Awards if I'm looking for new Sci-Fi. I discovered Red Shirts which was brilliantly funny through that list.

• Only Forward by Michael Marshall Smith - very imaginative, sort of across between, say, the humor of Douglas Adams and the down to Earth noir of Raymond Chandler.
  
• Fire Upon the Deep and A Deepness in the Sky by Vernor Vinge. Everything SciFi should be.
  
• The Hainish Cycle (or if you're made of money) by Ursula K. Le Guin. Pretty much every single SciFi author you like has read these and been inspired by them, that should tell you a lot, iconic stories and concepts.
  
• Downbelow Station by CJ Cherryh. The core novel in the author's Alliance-Union Universe stories. Great ideas, great stories.

I haven't read anything good in years and the things I have read are usually due to finding new books for my kids or reading the books that have been adapted to tv/film.

One of my all time favorite series was from Robin Hobb. Starting with Assassin's Apprentice. This was a difficult read for me at the time, but I loved the story behind the characters.

I started reading less fantasy after reading Stieg Larsson's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo Millennial Series. I read these after watching the original films. It is fantastic. Just don't buy the fourth book, it wasn't even written by him as he has been dead for a while now.

A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin. I didn't start reading those until Game of Thrones premiered on HBO.

Now for some really old school, Dragonlance by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. The fourth book came out years later and was fantastic. I have read more than a few of the side stories, but the main books are the best in my opinion, probably would not hold up well today.

Currently, I have The Martian by Andy Weir and Promise of Blood by Brian McClellan waiting for me to read.

The Five People You meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom is a book that I consider a must read. I don't consider it a spiritual book, but it did change my perspective on how I view my life in this world.

This one isn't very well known but it's fun:

Fredrik Pohl - The Voices of Heaven

And Ted Chiang's short story collection Stories of Your Life and Others has a really cool story about angel visitations. Actually all the stories are excellent, and two others deal with ideas from religious mythologies.

In addition to his Stranger in a Strange Land already mentioned, Heinlein's Job: A Comedy of Justice is neat.

I definitely agree with this, Garak was one of my favorite characters and AJR put a ton of effort into developing him. I was thrilled when I finally got a copy of this book a few years back in an auction for cheap. I now have 2 copies and hope to someday have him sign one. Of all the Star Trek novels, this and The Good That Men Do (Star Trek Enterprise) are the two best Star Trek novels I have read.

1. The Name of the Wind - by Patrick Rothfuss
   
2. 10/10
   
3. Fantasy, Heroic Fiction
   
4. His debut novel, and what a fantastic debut! I liked it better than the Harry Potter series - it's darker and has more adult themes. I love the imagery his writing conveys.
   
5. Purchase on Amazon

I'm also a fan of this trope, though I didn't really realize it until now. If you're not adverse to fantasy as a genre, I've a couple of suggestions for you.

The Dresden Files has a couple of characters who are like this towards Harry Dresden, himself. It's not very prevalent in the first couple of books, but a theme starts to develop where Dresden starts to really doubt his own inherit goodness while his surrounding friends refuse to do the same. Two characters in particular (a priest and holy warrior of sorts) really strike that Myriel chord.

The other series may be a bit of stretch, but it was the first thing I though of: the Riyria Revelations by Michael Sullivan. It's a mostly light, entertaining fantasy series with a kind of buddy-cop relationship between the two main characters. One of those main characters, however, is a little morally grey and the other protagonist plays the role of believing in that he is actually a good man. Religion also plays a big part in the story, but neither protagonist is religious themselves (as far as I can remember.)

I don't think either of these are generally considered Young Adult, but they're both light, fast-paced reads like those in that genre tend to be.

love this contest! i have a list just for books! but these two are ones that i would particularly love but probably never buy myself.

these are my cheaper ones:

do androids dream of electric sheep?

brainiac

the october country

invisible monsters


thanks for contesting!

I went a good long while between reading fantasy books. On a friend's recommendation, I checked out The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss. Good stuff. It plays with a lot of fantasy tropes, but it makes 'em good. Pat's got a way with words. I don't know anyone who didn't like this book.

More recently, I just finished Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn Trilogy. Also good stuff. He knows how to build a world.

I'd highly recommend both of those authors. Sanderson has a few others, and I've been reading through them. I'm on Elantris right now. I really like his writing style.

I nominate "The Martian" by Andy Weir. It's a new book by a new author, so I don't know what to expect, but the reviews are all glowing (Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The Onion AV Club, Ernest Cline, and the astronaut Chris Hadfield all loved it, currently 4.7 out of 5 with over 2,000 reviews on Amazon), and it sounds pretty awesome.

Rand was a very polarizing figure, but if you divorce the philosophy from the individual, she actually did bring something to the table. At the risk of sounding like an ad, if anyone is truly interested, check out Objectivism in One Lesson by Andrew Bernstein. It's a lot easier to follow than The Virtue of Selfishness, which is the closest thing I could find to a manifesto by Rand herself.

Favorite stand alone: "The Man Who Folded himself" (Because it's damned good sci fi, (time travel), he does many things I would, and the masturbation orgies are hot)


Favorite Series: Ethshar (Damned good fiction, each book can work as a stand alone more or less, I first read "The Blood of A Dragon", didn't even know it was part of a series until years later. Such a good book I bought them all, turned out to be one of the worst in the series comparatively. He writes simply but well, the stories are pretty unique, the many types of magic interesting. )


Non Fiction: "The Mammoth Book of Dirty Jokes". (It's simply the biggest and best joke book I've ever read, still haven't finished, I read a few pages whenever really bored and while in between fiction books/series)


****
Also see this amazing post: Reddit's Favorite books


EDIT: Accidentally put the link to "The Mammoth book of jokes" instead of dirty jokes, corrected it.

Yep. They're written (mostly) by Rand Miller. I think Robyn helped with one of them, but Rand did the others. I may have that backwards, but it's one of those ways. ANYWAY.

There are three books. You can get all three in one novel now called the Myst Reader. The first book, Book of Atrus is/was out of print and is harder to find, so the Myst Reader is a great resource if you want all three.

The books are The Book of Atrus: about his childhood, his meeting of Catherine, and his relationship with his fucked up father, Gehn, and his grandmother, Ti'ana; The Book of Ti'Ana: goes back in the past to show what happened to the D'ni, the people who created and perfected the Art of Writing Books (they're all capitalized in the books as well for a reason); and The Book of the D'ni: takes place after the first two and falls sometime after Riven, but before Exile. It's about Atrus and Catherine trying to rebuild what is left of the D'ni people and culture.

If you like Myst, the books really do flesh out what happened in the games much much more. Things click better. And, it makes the games more haunting, I feel. The only thing that isn't mentioned is the full extent of what Sirrus and Achenar did. I don't even think it's mentioned at all, actually.

Also, there's supposed to be two new books coming out sometime, but there's no information on when that might occur.

If you like historical fiction The Saxon Tales is some pretty good reading. https://www.amazon.com/Last-Kingdom-Saxon-Tales-Book-ebook/dp/B000FC2RR2#navbar

bonus the bbc is doing a series on them coming out soon. I find them compelling because I have dutch/wasp ancestry.

I also like nonfiction that reads like fiction. I highly recommend literally anything by Eric Larson. I'd start with Devil in the White City. Great true story about a serial killer operating during the Chicago World's Fair in the 1890s. https://www.amazon.com/Devil-White-City-Madness-Changed/dp/0375725601/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1467895439&sr=8-1&keywords=the+white+city

You said no sci fi but The Expanse series is some of the best reading I've ever had.

https://www.amazon.com/Leviathan-Wakes-Expanse-Book-1-ebook/dp/B0047Y171G/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1467895699&sr=8-4&keywords=the+expanse#navbar

I have no idea what that book is, but I'm going to keep an eye on this thread in case someone comes up with an answer, because that sounds awesome. You might also want to try r/books, if you haven't already.

You also might enjoy Boneshaker. I just started it and so far it's good.

I don't know how GREAT they are but Dragon's Egg and Starquake by Robert L. Forward are decent. At least they have a basis in reality. Most of Forward's work is based on solid physics, as I remember. Good luck!

Your toes are so messed up... but the pictures are awesome and you seem like a totally cool person. Recommended read while recuperating:
http://www.amazon.com/Invisible-Monsters-Novel-Chuck-Palahniuk/dp/0393319296/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1382153316&sr=1-1&keywords=invisible+monsters

Lord of Snow and Shadows by Sarah Ash pretty good fantasy novel to start a series.
Boneshaker by Cherie Priest, Steampunk with zombies, good so far, only a third through it.

Home by Bill Byrson, on audiobook. Can't recommend his stuff enough. Great mental travels through the history of a number of different things.

Dr. Max Tegmark, cosmologist and physics professor at MIT

• Permutation City, by Greg Egan (Powells) (Amazon)
  
  Dr. Jane Goodall, Primatologist
  
  
• The Story of Doctor Dolittle, by Hugh Lofting (Powells) (Amazon)
  
• Tarzan of the Apes, by Edgar Rice Burroughs (Powells) (Amazon)
  
• The Miracle of Life (not listed)
  
  Dr. Sean Carroll, Theoretical physicist at the California Institute of Technology
  
  
• Dragon's Egg, by Robert Forward (Powells) (Amazon)
  
  Dr. Temple Grandin, Animal scientist
  
  
• "I’m a Star trek fan..."
  
  Dr. Seth Shostak, Senior astronomer and director at the Center for SETI Research
  
  
• Golem XIV, by Stanislaw Lem (Powells) (Amazon)
  
  Dr. Chris Stringer, Anthropologist at the Natural History Museum in London
  
  
• Brazil, the movie (YouTube)
  
  Dr. Jack Horner, Paleontologist at Montana State University
  
  
• Jurassic Park, the movie) (IMDB)
  
  Dr. Adam Riess, astrophysicist at Johns Hopkins University
  
  
• Contact, by Carl Sagan (Powells) (Amazon)
  
• The Fountains of Paradise, by Arthur C. Clarke (Powells) (Amazon)
  
• Childhood's End, by Arthur C. Clarke (Powells) (Amazon)
  
• The Songs of Distant Earth by Arthur C. Clarke (Powells) (Amazon)
  
• The Martian Chronicles, by Ray Bradbury (Powells) (Amazon)
  
• Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury (Powells) (Amazon)
  
• Foundation series, by Isaac Asimov (Powells) (Amazon)
  
• The Silo saga, by Hugh Howey (Powells) (Amazon)
  
• The Stand, by Stephen King (Powells) (Amazon)
  
• Watership Down, by Richard Adams (Powells) (Amazon)
  
• The Day of the Triffids, by John Wyndham (Powells) (Amazon)
  
  Dr. Steven Strogatz, professor of mathematics at Cornell University
  
  
• The Andromeda Strain, by Michael Chriton (Powells) (Amazon)
  
• Colossus: The Forbin Project, the movie (IMDB)
  
• 2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke (Powells) (Amazon)
  
  Dr. Ainissa Ramirez, materials scientist
  
  
• Parable of the Sower, by Octavia Butler (Powells) (Amazon)
  
  Dr. Mario Livio, astrophysicist at the Space Telescope Science Institute
  
  
• Around the World in Eighty Days, by Jules Verne (Powells) (Amazon)
  
• Journey to the Center of the Earth, by Jules Verne (Powells) (Amazon)
  
• Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, by Jules Verne (Powells) (Amazon)
  
• 2001: A Space Odyssey, the movie (IMDB)
  
• Dr. Strangelove, the movie (IMDB)
  
• Close Encounters of the Third Kind, the movie (IMDB)
  
  Olympia LePoint, rocket scientist
  
  
• Gravity, 2013 (IMDB)
  
• Back to The Future, 1985 (IMDB)
  
  Dr. Danielle Lee, biologist
  
  
• Dune, 1984 (IMDB)
  
  Dr. Michael Shermer, historian of science
  
  
• The Day the Earth Stood Still, 1951 (IMDB)
  
  Neil deGrasse Tyson, astrophysicist
  
  
• The Day the Earth Stood Still, 1951 (IMDB)
  
• 2001: A Space Odyssey, 1968 (IMDB)
  
• Planet of the Apes, 1968 (IMDB)
  
• The Terminator, 1984 (IMDB)
  
• The Quiet Earth, 1985 (IMDB)
  
• Contact, 1997 (IMDB)
  
• Deep Impact, 1998 (IMDB)
  
• The Matrix, 1999 (IMDB)
  
• The Island, 2005 (IMDB)
  
• Watchmen, 2009 (IMDB)
  

Children of Time and Children of Ruin by Adrian Tchaikovksy both have strong sociological themes. If you enjoy these books you might also want to check out Semiosis: A Novel by Susan Burke.

Foundation by Isaac Asimov is about the fall and rise of a galactic empire. It is a bit dated in terms of science fiction but a classic in the genre.

Exhalation and Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang are collections of short stories and some of them contain strong sociological themes around communication and intersubjective understanding.

A Fire Upon the Deep and A Deepness in the Sky by Vernor Vinge also have some interesting speculative sociology.

Hominids: Volume One of The Neanderthal Parallax by Robert J. Sawyer also contains interesting speculative anthropology and sociology (but not a very interesting plot IMO) and is also worth a read.

Not much is taken from the novels - particularly from the Destiny trilogy onwards - but some elements are used to fill in some blanks (the Andorians having four sexes for example). If some Enterprise-era stuff makes it ingame, I'd like to see the events of The Good That Men Do respected. I don't know enough about the other series' books to really judge whether or not I'd like to see them included (though I've heard good things about the DS9 relaunch).

Young Miles

I love the Vorkosaigan series. Miles is like a whirlwhind of chaos, dragging awesomeness and interesting events wherever he goes behind him.

I also love the Honor Harrington series.

Honor is a bit like a female Miles, but more awesome, because she has a telepathic tree cat, and can singlehandly kick your ass, and the army you brought with you.

The City That Fought.

This one is a bit older, and is harder to find, but worth it. The story revolves around a city run by a person who's basically the ship's computer, and his Brawn. (Girl who does all the manual type things because he's literally stuck in a tube monitoring things). Just about anything by Ann McCaffery is good, though. I was introduced to her via her "Dragonriders of Pern" series, which is the best damn sci fi disguised as Fantasy I've read.

I HIGHLY recommend the book "Dragon's Egg" by Robert L. Forward.

Best hard-sci-fi I have ever read. It tells the story of intelligent life evolving on the surface of a neutron star.

Don't try to read any fundamental physics/engineering textbooks, they'll just bore you and you won't learn anything without also doing stuff like you would in a lab or for homework.

Instead read some books that inspire or entertain you. You won't have time or energy to read what you want once school starts. Here's some options:

• Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future
  
  
• Creativity, Inc.: Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration
  
  
• The Martian

I hadn't read a book in the last 5+ years. Last week I picked up All You Need Is Kill because I liked the Edge of Tomorrow movie and loved it. It was a fast read at ~200 pages but it was great all the way through.

Now I picked up The Martian because I've heard a lot of good things about it. I think I actually might get back into reading now.

^(Note: these are all books I've read and can recommend from experience.)

David Brin's Sundiver is a detective mystery. Likewise his Existence is a mystery about a recently discovered artifact, though its presentation with multiple perspectives lacks the singular detective tone of Sundiver. It's not as much of a mystery/thriller more of a mystery/adventure. It is also one of the overall best science fiction novels I've ever read; the writing is top notch, the characters superbly lifelike, the tone excellent, and the overall reading experience enjoyable and filled with a realistic optimism.

Gregory Benford's Artifact is an investigative mystery about a strange artifact. His Timescape is about a strange phenomenon.

Jack McDevitt's The Engines of God is an investigative mystery about a strange artifact.

Asimov's The End of Eternity is a classic mystery/thriller.

Alastair Reynolds' The Prefect and Chasm City are both standalone detective mysteries. His Revelation Space is similar, but does not have the same classic mystery tone.

Greg Bear's Queen of Angels and Slant are both standalone detective mysteries.

I seem to recall the Second Foundation (Foundation's Fear, Foundation and Chaos, Foundation's Triumph) trilogy by Greg Bear, Gregory Benford, and David Brin having some mystery aspects. I think one of them at least is a detective mystery, but I can't remember which right now.

Dan Simmons' Ilium/Olympos is a sort of detective mystery, but its tone is much more action/adventure despite the protagonist's undertakings to determine what in the world is going on.

Joan D. Vinge's Cat Trilogy (Psion, Catspaw, and Dreamfall) are detective mysteries.

Julian May's Perseus Spur is a detective mystery. It's pretty light-hearted and a lot of fun to read. Something you would pick up at an airport bookstore and not be at all disappointed with. I can't speak for the other two books in the trilogy, haven't read them yet. Just ordered them off Amazon for $4 a piece.

I could go on, but I think that should keep you busy for a while.

 

^(Edited to clarify the tone of some suggestions. Some are more traditional mystery/thriller, while others are more adventure/mystery, more alike to Indiana Jones than a noir detective.)

Semi-space related, but I really loved The Martian by Andy Weir.

http://www.amazon.com/Martian-Andy-Weir/dp/0553418025/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1421979859&sr=8-1&keywords=The+Martian

Good, engaging story, and plenty of geeking out.

There is a REALLY great book I'm about to finish that poses a similar question...except instead of the moon, it's Mars. It's called "The Martian" by Andy Weir. An astronaut is left behind on Mars and has to survive until he can be rescued...if that's even possible at all. It's REALLY good - I'd recommend it!

Looks like you could use some direction in a comforting form. Some books to consider:

The Tao of Pooh

A great little book to get you to look at things differently at times. I wont go deep, but I think the reviews on amazon give you a good idea of what to expect. It's quite short as well, so it wont be some huge commitment.

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry Into Values

This is not a manual for repairing motorcycles. No, it's a work of fiction that helps you find a more "zen" approach to live. Have you seen "The Big Lebowski"? Yeah, it defends the values in finding peace in the world around you, even if things don't always go smoothly.

Invisible Monsters

Finally a book for embracing and confronting that anger and hurt you have built up. Palahniuk is just the author for the job. Don't read the synopsis and DON'T get the silly remixed version of the book. I've known people who have found this book life changing. It seems to really speak to women.

Lately I've been ruminating on the Dark Elf Trilogy. I read it years ago, but I liked it a lot. If I recall, I once saw u/mistborn at The Dragon's Keep, and he liked that trilogy too.

I hope sci-fi is okay. Most of the time it's fantasy set in a different era.

• The Martian
  
  
• Existence
  

I'd like two recommendations: First, I usually read classic science fiction, but I'd love to branch out to something recently published after reading Leviathan Wakes. Something about space travel, with horror elements.

Second, I like to read to my 2yr old, but I'd like to enjoy it too. I've read the Hobbit, Alice in Wonderland, The Phantom Tollbooth.

I would like to recommend, among the many great recommendations here, the Uplift books by David Brin. He's the guy that also wrote The Postman, a post apocalyptic survival sci fi book.

The uplift books is a series of six books in a futuristic setting where Earth is a newcomer in a huge interstellar community where alien races often "uplift" lesser intelligent alien species into sentience. This gives the uplifter status and political weight. Humans are one of very few races to have evolved into sentience and become a hot topic in intergalactic affairs when they've already "uplifted" dolphins and chimps into sentience.

The first 3 books follow separate characters and story lines all within the same universe that play different roles in the overall plot. the last 3 focus on a "single" story that sort of ties it all together.

These books have what you're looking for. Adventure, thrill, politics, a crapload of alien races(to which there is a nice and convenient illustrated guide created by the author), some mystery, war, lots of big space stuff, and a good underdog(humanity) story.

Maybe not the most mindblowing series but I found it very entertaining.
Start here. The first book is not my favorite or the strongest. The series peaks at the third book The Uplift War, if you only want to read that, which you can, but you miss a lot of good lore.

This question gets asked all the time on this sub. I did a search for the term books and compiled this list from the dozens of previous answers:

How to Read the Solar System: A Guide to the Stars and Planets by Christ North and Paul Abel.


A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson.


A Universe from Nothing: Why There is Something Rather than Nothing by Lawrence Krauss.


Cosmos by Carl Sagan.

Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space by Carl Sagan.


Foundations of Astrophysics by Barbara Ryden and Bradley Peterson.


Final Countdown: NASA and the End of the Space Shuttle Program by Pat Duggins.


An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth: What Going to Space Taught Me About Ingenuity, Determination, and Being Prepared for Anything by Chris Hadfield.


You Are Here: Around the World in 92 Minutes: Photographs from the International Space Station by Chris Hadfield.


Space Shuttle: The History of Developing the Space Transportation System by Dennis Jenkins.


Wings in Orbit: Scientific and Engineering Legacies of the Space Shuttle, 1971-2010 by Chapline, Hale, Lane, and Lula.


No Downlink: A Dramatic Narrative About the Challenger Accident and Our Time by Claus Jensen.


Voices from the Moon: Apollo Astronauts Describe Their Lunar Experiences by Andrew Chaikin.


A Man on the Moon: The Voyages of the Apollo Astronauts by Andrew Chaikin.


Breaking the Chains of Gravity: The Story of Spaceflight before NASA by Amy Teitel.


Moon Lander: How We Developed the Apollo Lunar Module by Thomas Kelly.


The Scientific Exploration of Venus by Fredric Taylor.


The Right Stuff by Tom Wolfe.


Into the Black: The Extraordinary Untold Story of the First Flight of the Space Shuttle Columbia and the Astronauts Who Flew Her by Rowland White and Richard Truly.


An Introduction to Modern Astrophysics by Bradley Carroll and Dale Ostlie.


Rockets, Missiles, and Men in Space by Willy Ley.


Ignition!: An Informal History of Liquid Rocket Propellants by John Clark.


A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking.


Russia in Space by Anatoly Zak.


Rain Of Iron And Ice: The Very Real Threat Of Comet And Asteroid Bombardment by John Lewis.


Mining the Sky: Untold Riches From The Asteroids, Comets, And Planets by John Lewis.


Asteroid Mining: Wealth for the New Space Economy by John Lewis.


Coming of Age in the Milky Way by Timothy Ferris.


The Whole Shebang: A State of the Universe Report by Timothy Ferris.


Death by Black Hole: And Other Cosmic Quandries by Neil deGrasse Tyson.


Origins: Fourteen Billion Years of Cosmic Evolution by Neil deGrasse Tyson.


Rocket Men: The Epic Story of the First Men on the Moon by Craig Nelson.


The Martian by Andy Weir.


Packing for Mars:The Curious Science of Life in the Void by Mary Roach.


The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution by Frank White.


Gravitation by Misner, Thorne, and Wheeler.


The Science of Interstellar by Kip Thorne.


Entering Space: An Astronaut’s Oddyssey by Joseph Allen.


International Reference Guide to Space Launch Systems by Hopkins, Hopkins, and Isakowitz.


The Fabric of the Cosmos: Space, Time, and the Texture of Reality by Brian Greene.


How the Universe Got Its Spots: Diary of a Finite Time in a Finite Space by Janna Levin.


This New Ocean: The Story of the First Space Age by William Burrows.


The Last Man on the Moon by Eugene Cernan.


Failure is Not an Option: Mission Control from Mercury to Apollo 13 and Beyond by Gene Kranz.


Apollo 13 by Jim Lovell and Jeffrey Kluger.


The end

PS - /u/DDE93 this list has all the links.

No book as ever made me laugh more than Apathy and Other Small Victories. I am hoping that it has gained enough popularity for you to have already read it, to be honest.

A couple books that come to mind that do this are 2312 By Kim Stanley Robinson. And to a lesser degree Deepness in the Sky by Vernor Vinge. 2312 is kinda boring since Robinson does world building at the expense of story line and character development ... but it is IMO one of the most robust and coherent pictures of the future I've ever read in SciFi. Vinge's book is more balanced and thus entertaining. Both of them are mostly hard science books, that is they don't break the laws of physics per se. Great reads.

The books that got me hooked on fantasy were Jim Butcher's Dresden Files series, starting with Storm Front. The main character is a badass wizard who works as a private eye. They're funny and really well plotted, definitely a good place to start if you're trying to get back into reading.

One I have not read, but have heard is good is The Dog Stars by Peter Heller but he's stranded on Earth.

Other ones that are not really about solo survival in a distant planet but are really enjoyable are -

14, by Peter Clines - It's not about a solitary person, but the scenario takes place in modern day Los Angeles and has a relatable cast of characters. It's been compared to the show LOST

Or Redshirts, by John Scalzi was also very enjoyable for a bit of humor and if you've ever heard about the omen of 'red shirts' on sci-fi shows.

My favorite book is On Basilisk Station by David Webber. It is based on the Horatio Hornblower series and is a really great adaptation. Can be either a once and done or the start of a great series.

This version of "god" is just a s big a prick as the old testament YWHW, unless the "chaff" are "punished" with non-existence, while the "wheat" get to experience the super cool shit. Why? Because indoctrination is really hard to overcome.

But as a fantasy? If you fleshed it out, it might make a cool novel. Similar to Heinlein's Job: A Comedy of Justice. A pretty good read...

A total and self-contained trilogy about the world(s) of Myst was written. It is a fully fleshed out story and you do not have to have played the games to enjoy it. Its a pretty simple read and will not take much brain power, but i enjoy it, and if you're here, you may as well.

https://www.amazon.com/Myst-Reader-Rand-Miller/dp/1401307817/ref=pd_sbs_14_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1401307817&pd_rd_r=95P02ADYDYPVJ5HVMEMD&pd_rd_w=bEAlr&pd_rd_wg=sOZ5d&psc=1&refRID=95P02ADYDYPVJ5HVMEMD

I know you said no Gone Girl or Fight Club, but honestly anything by either of those two authors (Chuck Palahniuk and Gillian Flynn) is amazing. I personally recommend Invisible Monsters.

Boneshaker by Cherie Priest. Strong, badass female lead, no bullshit-tacked-on love story. Steampunky goodness that reads real.

Oh oh! I'm currently reading The Martian by Andy Weir.

It's really good. Near-future sci fi, definitely adventure, and quite funny.

I consider them among the standing masterworks of Science Fiction.

Each book can be read on its own (I started in the middle with "Startide Rising"), but you will get more out of it if you start with "Sundiver". The basic idea is that all intelligent lifeforms in the universe have a "father race" that raised them to the level of intelligent beings using genetic and technological modifications. According to established galactic conventions, those child races are bound for 100.000 years in servitude to their upliftors, and every single intelligent race knows about its upliftors.

That is, except for the human race - and this is the main plot device. Shortly after developing intergalactic spaceflight and uplifting some of the species from Earth, the humans emerges into a hostile universe at a critical point in a millenia-old conflict, and they quickly get caught up in intrigues older than human civilization itself.

... aaand that's enough teasing for now. The books are greatly written, and they introduced some very interesting new technological concepts and the corresponding ethical, social and philosophical problems.

The books are FAR better. The show was alright, quite good for SyFy, but it was a watered down version of the amazing source material. If you liked the show even a little bit I highly recommend reading the series.

I finally got around to reading Greg Bear's Eon and Eternity this week, and they were wonderful. I don't know how I missed them before, but I'd recommend them (and looking at the Amazon page, apparently now I've got to get Legacy this week as well).

I'd also recommend David Brin's Uplift series.

This isn't fanfiction, but I can highly recommend David Gerrold's The Man Who Folded Himself. It's great science fiction, and among many other things, it involves a man who has sex with himself (knowingly), just a version of himself at a different point in his timeline.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Emperors-Soul-Brandon-Sanderson/dp/1616960922

Should be good for her.

http://www.amazon.com/Brightly-Woven-Alexandra-Bracken/dp/1606842102

Little more romancy. Surprisingly not awful.

http://www.amazon.com/Amulet-Samarkand-Bartimaeus-Trilogy-Book/dp/0786852550/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1377613887&sr=1-5&keywords=jonathan+stroud

While she is not exactly the main character, the female lead in the Bartimaeus books is definitely the strongest character.

Drinking beer with felons!?!?

I'd imagine the ideal is to stay in school. You can always cook. Most people never make it back to school after taking a "break". You'll have more wisdom and stories. The only risk here in not staying in school. This will have a profound effect on your lifetime income...which means arguing with your spouse over money down the road and a lot of extra stress (lack of freedom).

It's a good way to end up at a bar after shift for rest of your life too. Watch that.

There a reason people fail as restaurateurs after retirement. They would have failed anyway, but now they're not homeless.

In the end don't believe the hype. Call and ask for advice in person from three chefs in the middle. You can say it's for a paper. Get the straight dope. Spend enough time to ask about what home life is like and what they would do differently.

Statistically you won't be on T.V. You'll be in the middle fighting with a small business owner (maybe their first) for budget and creativity. High stress long hours hopefully with battle buddies you like. There are no sick days (or insurance) and no one cares if your wife left you or how much your body hurts. You will show up and perform a miracle in multitasking while micromanaging the kids that are your age now. All to be hyper criticized by some douchey pseudo-foodie on the internet. The after glow from a busy shift is pretty sweet. I'd rather drink a beer with kitchen felons than bankers and lawyers any day.

Plus you might get to shag the hostess.

Read Job by Heinlein. If you can work a kitchen you will always have busy hands and stay fed.

When you talk to people keep bias in mind. We are built to never regret things we are stuck doing. We are built to survive...not think about what might have been. Food preparers chime in at a whopping 24% job satisfaction.

With school even if you lose, you win.

Working restaurants in my 20's=Priceless.

The Martian by Andy Weir. You'd think a diary from a man stranded on Mars could get boring, but it's great sci-fi and awfully funny at times.

Edit: link not working

Not exactly what you're talking about, but there is a pretty cool book by Robert Forward titled "Dragon's Egg." The story involves life that has evolved on the surface of a neutron star. Rather than chemical reactions driving their physiology, nuclear reactions do. Nuclear reactions take place on the order of a million times faster than chemical reactions (not sure about the figures or total accuracy of that). So the life forms evolve a million times faster than on Earth.

http://www.amazon.com/Redshirts-Novel-Three-John-Scalzi/dp/0765334798/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1463095581&sr=8-1&keywords=redshirts


Pretty much, the crew of a spaceship discovers that they are actually fictional characters, and manipulate the plot in order to escape into the real world. It's... pretty amusing.

Willful Child is another book in similar literary style (sorta absurdity sci-fi)

https://www.amazon.com/Willful-Child-Steven-Erikson-ebook/dp/B00ILY5BY2/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1463095828&sr=1-1&keywords=willful+child

The stuff I like that are similar free web creations are:

• Heretical Edge
  
  Basically harry potter but if it were internally consistent and with realistic and good characters, does a lot of subverting expectations and tropes.
  
  
• The martian
  
  Astronaut munchkins Science! to survive on mars
  
  
• RWBY
  
  Cute girl with giant scythe that also is a sniper rifle, everyone in this one has superpowers.
  
  
• Toothless
  
  Realistic medieval setting wherein templar knights fight against undead horde which is almost the only divergence from our normal nonmagic world.

The philosophy you are critiquing is not Objectivism. Here is what Rand actually wrote:

>The standard of value of the Objectivist ethics -- the standard by which one judges what is good or evil -- is man's life, or: that which is required for man's survival qua man.
>
>Since reason is man's basic means of survival, that which is proper to the life of a rational being is the good; that which negates, opposes, or destroys it is the evil.
>
>Since everything man needs has to be discovered by his own mind and produced by his own effort, the two essentials of the method proper to a rational being are: thinking and productive work.
>
>If some men do not choose to think... their survival is made possible only by those who did choose to think...
>
>If some men attempt to survive by brute force or fraud, by looting, robbing, cheating, or enslaving the men who produce... their survival is made possible only by... the men who choose to think and to produce the goods..."

...

>The Objectivist ethics holds man's life as the standard of value -- and his own life as the ethical purpose of every individual man...
>
>The difference between 'standard' and 'purpose' in this context is as follows: a 'standard' is an abstract principle that serves as a measurement or gauge to guide a man's choices in the achievement of a concrete, specific purpose. 'That which is required for the survival of man qua man' is an abstract principle that applies to every individual man. The task of applying this principle to a concrete, specific purpose -- the purpose of living a life proper to a rational being -- belongs to every individual man, and the life he has to live is his own.
>
>Man must choose his actions, values, and goals by the standard of that which is proper to man -- in order to achieve, maintain, fulfill, and enjoy that ultimate value, that end in itself, which is his own life.

-- Ayn Rand, The Virtue of Selfishness. Read the whole thing.

p.s. an even better quote follows:

> The moral cannibalism of all hedonist and altruist doctrines lies in the premise that the happiness of one man necessitates the injury of another.
>
> Today, most people hold this premise as an absolute not to be questioned. And when one speaks of man's right to exist for his own sake, for his own rational self-interest, most people assume automatically that this means his right to sacrifice others. Such an assumption is a confession of their own belief that to injure, enslave, rob, or murder others is in man's self-interest -- which he must selflessly renounce. The idea that man's self-interest can be served only by a non-sacrificial relationship with others has never occurred to those humanitarian apostles of unselfishness, who proclaim their desire to achieve the brotherhood of men. And it will not occur to them, or to anyone, so long as the concept 'rational' is omitted from the context of 'values,' 'desires,' 'self-interest,' and ethics.
>
>The Objectivist ethics proudly advocates and upholds rational selfishness -- which means: the values required for man's survival qua man -- which means: the values required for human survival -- not the values produced by the desires, the emotions, the 'aspirations,' the feelings, the whims, or the needs of irrational brutes, who have never outgrown the primordial practice of human sacrifices, have never discovered an industrial society, and can conceive of no self-interest but that of grabbing the loot of the moment.
>
>The Objectivist ethics holds that human good does not require human sacrifices and cannot be achieved by the sacrifice of anyone to anyone. It holds that the rational interests of men do not clash -- that there is no conflict of interests among men who do not desire the unearned, who do not make sacrifices nor accept them, who deal with one another as traders, giving value for value.

That was Cambodia.
http://i.imgur.com/LmfiYRj.jpg

Again, theory is not reality. Humans are greedy. Humans are out for their own self interests. Given absolute power some can be absolute tyrants. Read some Ayn Rand. The total opposite of what you've been reading. The Virtue of Selfishness is a pretty easy read. Rather idealistic but a good place to start. Always look at both side of an issue. I have a MyYahoo page with a dozen news feeds RSS'd to it, including Peoples World.

I love the painted style of the cover of The Emperor's Soul.

https://www.amazon.com/Emperors-Soul-Hugo-Award-Winner/dp/1616960922

• Red Rising
  
• Hyperion
  
• The Left Hand of God

I'm reading The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss (Link - it's to Amazon mind). It's good, he does the whole 'this guy is epic' well and quite subtly. Well worth reading so far.

Amazon links for books mentioned in this thread:

\/u/thetrueonion (OP)

• Digital Apollo, David A. Mindell    -    Other books by this author
  
  
• Eagles of Mitsubishi, Jiro Horikoshi
  
  
• Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!, Richard P. Feynman    -    Other books by this author
  
  
• A Brief History of Time, Stephen Hawking    -    Other books by this author
  
  
• Ignition!: An informal history of liquid rocket propellants, John D. Clark
  
  \/u/llothar:
  
  
• Amazon.com's list of books authored by Richard Feynman
  
  
• The Martian, Andy Weir
  
  \/u/DallasGreen:
  
  
• Closest I could find was Engineering and the Mind's Eye, Eugene S. Ferguson
  
  \/u/gearnut:
  
  
• Slide Rule, Nevil Shute    -    Other books by this author
  
  \/u/frothysasquatch:
  
  
• Waterpower in Lowell: Engineering and Industry in Nineteenth-Century America, Patrick M. Malone
  
  \/u/Beefstyles:
  
  
• Skunk Works: A Personal Memoir of My Years at Lockheed, Ben R. Rich
  
  \/u/CalledCaptainHook:
  
  
• One Second After, William R. Forstchen    -    Other books by this author
  
  \/u/75footubi:
  
  
• The Great Bridge: The Epic Story of the Building of the Brooklyn Bridge, David McCullough
  
  \/u/Bradm77:
  
  
• The Soul of A New Machine, Tracy Kidder

Christopher Moore,
Douglas Coupland,
Max Barry,
Some books that I have, but only the singular novel...
Apathy And Other Small Victories,
The Futurist

hope that helps

Bachelors of Science in Aerospace Engineering (ABET search, input "Aerospace Engineering" for program name). Also consider joining AIAA, especially if you are in school or work in the industry. These both assume you are in the USA.

You can also follow the /r/aerospace and /r/engineering reddits.

As for books, The Martian was a much better book than movie. Jeb can learn a thing or two from Watney. If you really want to learn orbital mechanics, the /r/aerospace folks highly recommend SMAD.

EDIT: Saw someone mention watching live launches. Good idea: NASA TV and SpaceFlightNow.

Redshirts, by John Scalzi. It's got a bit where a man has no pants. And then, later on, another bit where a different man has no pants. Many funny things happen in both of these bits, and in all of the other bits, and even some more bits besides those.

It's also got an immensely satisfying plot, there were several parts where I had to put it down and just marvel at how clever it was. Quality book. You should read it. Seriously, read it. Like right now. Go on.

I just finished (and would highly recommend) Patrick Rothfuss' The Name of the Wind (Amazon) - really great characters and an excellent bit of storytelling.

Here's a small list of easily accessible sci-fi that had me hooked to the genre. They are, in my humble opinion, some of the greatest books/authors of the genre.

Stranger in a Strange Land (Robert Heinlein)

A Deepness in the Sky

Rainbows End (both by Vernor Vinge)

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (Philip K. Dick)

They also all appear to be available for your Kindle.

No, the first one that introduces everything and is essentially the first one of the three part series is called, "The Good That Men Do" and is the back story to the Klingon mutagenic virus and takes place where Enterprise ended. I didn't read it, but a lot of it is mentioned in "Kobyashi Maru" so you get a sense of what it was about, Trips involvement with the Romulans and how the Klingons were nearly whiped out because of the mutagenic virus (which explains why the Klingons look different in TOS).

Here's a link if you're interested:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0743440013/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_3?pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=1416554807&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1JB1RMDAKY60VYYQ53G4

I highly recommend "Kobayashi Maru" though.

Dragon's Egg, Robert L Forward. Absolutely top-tier science fiction. If you like sci-fi I'd be very surprised if you didn't love this book. Though one should be warned that it's probably never going to be a popular pick as great literature.

I just finished The Man that Folded Himself.

It's considered a classic and it's pretty trippy. If the likes time travel stories he'll like this.

I highly recommend the book Apathy to everyone. The protagonist makes a living out of sleeping on the can at work and other WTF stuff. It's awesome.

It hits this topic pretty hard... not to mention its the only book that's ever actually made me laugh out loud continuously. For the record. I don't read, ever. Read this book though. You'll thank me.

> Imzadi, Q-Squared and the New Frontier series by Peter David

Peter David is my all-time favorite Star Trek author, and his New Frontier series quickly became my favorite book series. I think I've read through it three times, in it's entirety.

Though I know we're talking about Star Trek books specifically, Redshirts by John Scalzi isn't set in the Star Trek universe, but a pretty close interpretation of the TOS universe serves as the setting.

Hey no worries, the more of us can help, the more we've got covered. :)

bindsaybindsay, you may also enjoy The Man Who Folded Himself — it's a smaller, tighter read but very fun.

The Emperor's Soul - it won the Hugo novella award for a reason.

Check out The Emperor's Soul by Brandon Sanderson. It just won the Hugo award and is only 170 pages long.

Edit: Oh wait, what do you mean by "pre-established?"

Yes, the books (by James S.A. Corey) are much easier to get in to and help when watching the show. Here is the first book: Leviathan Wakes (The Expanse Book 1).

Pretty much anything by Robert L. Forward, but the best has to be Dragon's Egg. Wall to wall physics, propulsion, down to theoretical diagrams, in the back of the book, of the ships used. The worldbuilding is ridiculously detailed.

The Martian by Andy Weir. I can't recommend it enough, it's fantastic, and if you haven't already read it it sounds like you'd like it.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0804139024/ref=cm_sw_r_an_am_at_ws_us?ie=UTF8

On Basilisk Station - David Weber
goodreadswikiamazon

Honor Harrington has been exiled to Basilisk station and given an antique ship to police the system. The vindictive superior who sent her there wants her to fail. But he made one mistake; he's made her mad. . . .

taken from Amazon review:
This is a really clever story with wonderful and believable characters, brilliantly described space battles, and a well crafted set of explanations of how the tactical situations which the characters find themselves in relate both to the technology their ships use and the political dynamics which set up the conflicts they find themselves in. Because this is the first book of the series Dave Weber has to devote a fair amount of time to explaining the how faster than light travel and space weapons work in the series, but the explanations are reasonably interesting, internally consistent, and not too hard to follow.

tl;dr - military fiction + space opera

Be forewarned, there are 10+ books in the series, which I got hooked into. willingly.

Preach it, I'm still right there with you too. Season 4 of Enterprise was so freaking good.

If you didn't like Trip's stupid demise, (I mean who did?) they did try and ret-con it with a book a few years later, going off the idea that what Riker was just a in an historical re-enactment and it's not exactly what happened.

The Good That Men Do. 19-year-old me was very happy with it, I don't know how it's aged though.

Apathy and Other Small Victories: A Novel

It is dark and weird. I barely remember the plot, but I know it had me laughing out loud.

Apathy and Other Small Victories: A Novel https://www.amazon.com/dp/0312352190/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_oQZ3DbAN6BANT


Also, Steve Martin's The Pleasure of My Own Company. And Frank Portman's King Dork.

The Myst series, in chronological setting order (not release order), are:

• Myst: The Book of Ti'ana novel
  
• Myst: The Book of Atrus novel
  
• Myst / Myst Masterpiece Edition / realMyst / realMyst Masterpiece Edition / etc.
  
• Riven: The Sequel to Myst
  
• Myst: The Book of D'ni novel
  
• Myst III: Exile
  
• Myst IV: Revelation
  
• Uru: Ages Beyond Myst
  
• Uru: To D'ni DLC
  
• Uru: Path of the Shell DLC
  
• (Uru:ABM and its DLC are packaged as Uru: Complete Chronicles)
  
• Myst V: End of Ages (more of a sequel to Uru than to Myst IV)
  
• Myst Online: Uru Live (mostly the same content as Uru:CC, but online; setting takes place after Myst V)
  
  The three Myst novels are also collected into a single volume called the Myst Reader, although they're still available individually.
  
  Myst, Riven, Myst V, and Uru are all available online in various forms, such as via GOG or Steam. Myst III and Myst IV are currently only available as a hardcopy purchase and may not work on modern systems.

I would recommend:

Patrick Rothfuss's Name of the Wind


Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn series, or his newest series The Way of Kings (The Stormlight Archive).

If you made it all the way through Sword of Truth series, you probably will enjoy Jordan's Wheel of Time.

Scott Lynch's Lies of Locke Lamora is also very enjoyable.

If you are looking for another big one, enjoy the gritty and dark elements from Martin, Stephen Erikson's Malazan series might be up your alley. The first book is a little difficult to get through, but it picks up after that.

The Good That Men Do is a great first start.

Well thanks! (I'm Andy Weir, by the way). For those who are interested, "The Martian" will be available on February 11: http://www.amazon.com/The-Martian-Novel-Andy-Weir/dp/0804139024/ref=tmm_hrd_title_0

Cherie Priest
She writes a great steampunk series (starting with Boneshaker Steampunk airships AND zombies! What not to like.
She also writes a good series involving an OCD vampire.

Actually, they've got the Leviathan Wakes series in the pipe.

This is the single best production/executive decision SyFy has made in 15 years. If they don't fuck this up, it could catapult the channel into a new, top level of prominence.

For Ayn Rand, I would start with her novel Atlas Shrugged and then follow that with her nonfiction work on objectivism, The Virtue of Selfishness.

For Max Sterner, his main work is called the Ego and his Own, but you probably will want the updated translation called the Unique and its Property which is a much easier read.

Existence by David Brin.

If you like interstellar sociology, first contact, etc, you'll love this book.

Here's a few recent books, all good or very good:

Last Plane to Heaven, Jay Lake (short story collection)


The Adjacent
, Chris Priest

On the Steel Breeze, Alistair Reynolds (Book2 in series)


The Causal Angel, Hannu Rajaniemi (Book3 in series)


Strange Bodies, Marcel Theroux


The Martian, Andy Weir (recommended!)


ShipStar, Benford-Niven (Book2 in series)


Ancillary Justice, Ann Leckie


A Darkling Sea, James Cambias


The Disestablishment of Paradise, by Phillip Mann {I've just started this one, so can't say yet if good or great or crappy, but it's started off very good).


...And if you have not yet discovered The Southern Reach Trilogy by Jeff VanDerMeer, you should probably check it out.

Apathy and Other Small Victories by Paul Neilan. It's a dark comedy that doesn't end in a "happy" way. Short and sweet. Plus it's only like $2 on Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/Apathy-Other-Small-Victories-Neilan/dp/0312352190

This fits a portion of your request, but I don't know if I would describe it as "dirty and lived in." I believe you will love it's approach to space travel and the book definitely meets your political requirements... This book is my favourite modern sci-fi book.

Existence by David Brin

https://www.amazon.ca/Existence-David-Brin/dp/0765342626

What's your favorite manga/anime?

I'm not sure what genres they are, but my current favorites are The Martian by Andy Weir, The Monster Hunters Series by Larry Correia, and Little Brother and Homeland by Cory Doctorow.

A little off-topic, but anyone who likes Steampunk probably would like the novel Boneshaker.

It also has zombies!

Actually the steampunk and zombie elements are kind of background...well, not really. It's kind of hard to explain. But.

You never know! Have you read his blog? I like him on fb so see a lot of his entries.

Jim Butcher writes The Dresden Files. They are urban fiction. Really good stuff. Here's the first one: [Storm Front] (http://www.amazon.com/Storm-Front-Dresden-Files-Butcher-ebook/dp/B000WH7PLS/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1398526941&sr=8-2&keywords=storm+front)

A lot of good zombie books in here already. I also enjoyed Boneshaker by Cherie Priest. Steampunk and zombies.

Read the books. Start with "The Good That Men Do"

http://www.amazon.com/The-Good-That-Star-Trek/dp/0743440013

You'll enjoy it immensely.

Pretty good story with space garbage collection leading to first contact - Existence by David Brin

Invisible Monsters by Chuck Palahniuk - A fashion model gets her jaw shot off in a terrible situation, and so the silent protagonist must reclaim her life. (Highly recommend reading the first chapter in the preview on Amazon. Also highly recommend Haunted by Palahniuk as well.)

The Language Instinct by Steven Pinker. Wonderful book that delves into the psychology behind language. Incredibly informative while maintaining entertainment.

Some of the coolest science fiction deals with this problem.

Vernor Vinge's A Deepness in the Sky had a career called Programmer Archeologist. If you were a galactic trader, and if you reached a planet and their civilization was still around, you'd snatch and grab their entire internet and then spend the time traveling between planets trying to figure out if somebody came up with a solution for something that was more clever than the stuff you were using.

Quick follow up:

If you want to also read like 20K pages of awesome, then go get yourself a copy of "On Basilisk Station." It's the first book in the series, and if this chapter doesn't already hook you, that book certainly will. (The excerpt in from "The Shadow of Saganami," but you're going to want more context than just starting with this book.) I haven't listened to the audio book, they're not really my thing, but the paperback can be had for $7.

Paperback on amazon

Audio book on Audible

​

I know it's not quite a children's book, but "Apathy and Other Small Victories" by Paul Neilan is by far the funniest book I've ever read.

I see you have your answer. Let me recommend another series for you; The Uplift Saga by David Brin. Humanity has joined a galactic civilization where every race was 'uplifted' or genetically modified into sentience by an earlier race. Except us. We're weird. We've also started uplifiting Earth species like monkeys and dolphins. It's big, it's complex, and it's packed with creativity.

Edit: Nearly forgot a link. Book 1.

I'm also not much of a sci-fi reader, so I may not be the most qualified person to make a recommendation. However, I recently read The Martian by Andy Wier and I couldn't put it down. Most of it is first-person journal entries, which I'm not usually a fan of, but it Weir makes it work beautifully.

It's just post-contact but I really enjoyed Sundiver (The Uplift Saga, Book 1) by David Brin.

I haven't read it personally, but my friend won't stop raving about Apathy and Other Small Victories

Ok, sure, but Rand was definitely talking about the former. She literally wrote a book about it: https://www.amazon.com/Virtue-Selfishness-Fiftieth-Anniversary/dp/0451163931

Boneshaker by Cherie Priest. Western zombie mystery action!

Maybe the [Uglies trilogy by Scott Westerfeld](Uglies trilogy by Scott Westerfeld.) - scifi with good action and the main character has a highly curious streak.

Philosophy: Who Needs It is a better introduction. If that makes sense then move on to The Virtue of Selfishness

The Myst books. I never played the games at the time, I only knew about the game from Computer Chronicles TV show. I saw the book in a store and wanted it because it was something I knew about.

The Book of Atrus was the first one I read as a teenager. I read it about 2-3 times (I hardly ever read on my own). I also read the other two. I purchased all three books and then I bought the Myst Reader which contains all books in one. Book of T'iana was a bit boring the first few chapters, lots of digging underground.

You don't need to know anything about the games to enjoy it. Its about a ancient civilization that writes books that create worlds to step into. And if you don't have a book to return, you can get trapped forever. Some poeple are sent to worlds as punishment. There are many types of worlds and societies in them. But its easy to read and not complicated. Family issues, etc. There is chasing and running away from people and jumping into books over fire so the book burns and no one can follow. That part had been really sucked into reading.

It is one of the few books I have actually completed and enjoyed on my own. I enjoyed Girl With A Dragon Tatoo, but it was pretty complicated with too many characters to keep track of sometimes.

It can be had in paperback ($8) or ereader ($10) on Amazon.
http://www.amazon.com/The-Myst-Reader-Rand-Miller/dp/1401307817

THIS.

Also, the Sword of Truth series.

Edit: Links :)

Dresden

Sword of Truth

Chuck Palahniuk is the Kurt Vonnegut of my generation. He writes in such a twisted and yet profound manner. I get lost every time I open the pages to one of his books. Fight Club has become to me, what Catcher in the Rye was to my father. I will always adore his style and twisted view of the world.

Here is one of my favorite books by good ol' Chuck : [Amazing] (http://www.amazon.com/Invisible-Monsters-Novel-Chuck-Palahniuk/dp/0393319296/ref=la_B000APV8ME_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1370575577&sr=1-4)

It's also my summer vacation, and I just started rereading my favorite trilogy, Myst.

http://www.amazon.com/Myst-Reader-Books-1-3-Three/dp/1401307817/ref=pd_bbs_sr_5?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1212908945&sr=8-5

It's a quick read (not anywhere near difficult 900ish pages), but I enjoy it.

David Gerrold's novel 'The Man Who Folded Himself' still stands out to me as one of the better explorations of the concept.

Redshirts is good if you want a comedy-scifi. Basically "What if the crew on Star Trek knew they were expendable extras".

It's lighthearted, fairly fast paced, and has a decently interesting plot. While also not being so complicated and convoluted that you can get lost if you forget a section.

ok, read Job: A Comedy of Justice asap and you will feel better.

I enjoyed the second half, but i totally understand your point.

If you haven't read David Gerrolds' The Man Who Folded Himself, you should. Seminal time-travel fic. It was originally written in the 70s, and it had gotten a bit out of date. He updated it in 2005 with contemporary cultural references. EXCELLENT stuff, and a fairly quick read.

Maybe when the On/Off star turned on and vaporized the volatiles on the diamond asteroids? This is a better cover than the Boris Vallejo cover on my copy

Looks like StormFront also has a nice price at $2.99 for Kindle.

https://www.amazon.com/Storm-Front-Dresden-Files-Book-ebook/dp/B000WH7PLS/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

Please replace the amzn.to link (under John Scalzi's Redshirts) with the full original URL (minus the referral tag). URL-shortened links aren't necessary on reddit, and they'll always get spamfiltered - especially if they contain an Amazon referral tag.

Well, Andy published a book recently that you might enjoy.

Cherie Priests excellent Boneshaker !!

Patrick Rothfuss' "The Name of the Wind"

Love that book.

Definitely check out Vernor Vinge's two masterpieces, A Fire Upon the Deep and A Deepness in the Sky.

I think Boneshaker would make a great movie.

I'd suggest any Bret Easton Ellis books, especially American Psycho. I would describe it exactly as a psychological thriller. And if you haven't read them, the Kingkiller Chronicles is a fantastic fantasy trilogy. The first book is The Name of the Wind

You can read the first 30 pages of Leviathan Wakes on Amazon for free. That's what I did before buying it. http://www.amazon.com/Leviathan-Wakes-Expanse-Book-1-ebook/dp/B0047Y171G


Click on the cover thumbnail to "Look Inside"

Read the books after the finale. They aren't canon, but it's as close as you'll get because newer Star Trek books are almost all linear, with the various authors working together to make sure their storylines mesh with each other.

These books are considered the "Relaunch" books, and pick up the story after the series ended. IMO, they do a very good job of continuing the story:

Last Full Measure

The Good That Men Do

Kobayashi Maru

The Romulan War: Beneath the Raptor's Wing

The Romulan War: To Brave the Storm

Rise of the Federation: A Choice of Future

Coming March 25th:

Rise of the Federation: Tower of Babel

I loved reading "A Deepness In The Sky" and seeing the presence of software archaeologists in humanity's future.

It's so going to happen.

This gets posted whenever the ending comes up, but go read The Good that Men Do

Nevermind, but thanks. It is he Name of the Wind

I don't blame them. It's my favorite sci fi book (so far)

Read it!

Based on your writing style (which is hilarious), I have a feeling you might enjoy this book: Apathy...

> You can judge people, but you're judging them by your standards (or your group's standards), not an absolute standard.

Such a judgement, absent a reference to reality as you insist it must be, is just irrelevant personal preference. George Washington = Stalin in this paradigm.

>In fact, the only places I've ever seen the idea of an absolute standard being defined is in religious texts.

May I suggest you look into Objectivism then.

Objectivism: The Philosophy of Ayn Rand

and

The Virtue of Selfishness

are probably the most relevant.

Here's an excellent book by David Gerrold

The Man Who Folded Himself

Get it used for 2 bucks

https://www.amazon.com/Dragons-Egg-Del-Rey-Impact-ebook/dp/B004G8PJDA/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

If anyone is looking for it. I'm going to be on a plane later this week, this sounds like a perfect read.

Boneshaker
Zombies, airships, steampunk - hooray!

Boneshaker was pretty entertaining, particularly if you enjoy steampunk settings. A sequel, Dreadnought, was released recently but I haven't had the opportunity to pick it up yet.

I'd start with Weber's "On Basilisk Station."

He doesn't get everything perfect, but he does far better than most.

David Weber's Honorverse. go read this, it's a really fucking good book. http://www.amazon.com/On-Basilisk-Station-Honor-Harrington/dp/0743435710/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1333411021&sr=1-1

I enjoyed David Brin's Existence but it's probably not the War of the Worlds style invasion that you're looking for.

In YA, there's the Leviathan trilogy by Scott Westerfeld that's a reimagined WWI with steampunk vs genetic engineering. I really liked this series.

Or Boneshaker, which is steampunk + west coast frontier + zombies + incredibly flat characters going from Point A to Point B.

Have you read The Martian by Andy Weir portraying an ingenious astronaut and savvy mechanical engineer stranded on Mars? If so, what did you think of the book, or what was your favorite part?

For some steampunk/alt history fun, try the Clockwork Century books by Cherie Priest.


Start with Boneshaker

Edit: formatting

I am showing a sample for Leviathan Wakes. What country are you in, maybe there's a region thing that has been overlooked by someone.

https://www.amazon.com/Leviathan-Wakes-Expanse-Book-1-ebook/dp/B0047Y171G/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

Click on the cover, where it says 'Look Inside'. Make sure you are on the 'Kindle' tab and on the left you'll see the control to send a sample to your device.

You can switch to the Print Book tab and read the sample in your browser as well.

I have a sister who read that series and she recommended a bunch of authors using similar themes (Gene Wolfe, Jo Walton, Robert Charles Wilson, and Kim Stanley Robinson) and then the book Leviathan Wakes (The Expanse #1).

I'm sorry to say that I haven't that book or very much by the authors she mentioned, so I can't really say whether I agree with her or not. The only reason that I could remember the authors she mentioned was because I was looking up the book to refresh my memory and found Ada Palmer's website that talked about the same thing.

Have you read Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey? It's the first book of the Expanse series - good stuff.

The Myst Series is all about an underground city called D'ni. It fills in the backstory for the games and is overall pretty decent (Book of Ti'Ana is my favorite).

Amazon
Wikipedia

I think you would enjoy Palahniuk's Invisible Monsters.