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r/printSF · u/BobbebusybuildingJul 31, 2026, 11:21 PM

Which to read next

Only read: Dune, The Martian, Hyperion, Fall of Hyperion and Do Androids dream of electric sheep? Really liked all of them.

These are what I have:

Space odyssey 2001 (seen movie recently and loved)

Dr Blood Money

Ubik

The city and the stars

Hitchhikers guide to the galaxy

I, Robot,

Parable of Sower

Rendezvous with Rama

The man in the high castle

A scanner darkly

Dune Messiah

A Strange in a Strange land

The Left Hand of Darkness

The Dispossessed

Solaris

Three Body Problem

Ringworld

Space Merchants

Snow Crash

Roadside Picnic

A fire upon the deep

War of the worlds

Children of time

Project Hail Mary (seen movie thought was decent but I didn't like the martian movie but liked the book alot)

115

Comments

u/ilikeperfumes2Jul 31, 2026, 11:39 PM
I love 2001 A Space Odyssey, but haven't seen the movie. I am currently reading Dune Messiah and really enjoying it! Feels a lot 'lighter' and easier to digest than Dune, imo. The Left Hand of Darkness is also great, I need to reread it soon. If you feel like short stories but also a novel, definitely I, Robot. Just short stories then Stories of Your Life definitely. It really depends on your mood, you have a good variety to choose from.
- u/Bobbebusybuilding1Aug 1, 2026, 1:50 PM
  That's interesting about Messiah. 2001 is 100% worth watching. I was fortunate to watch at the cinema a few weeks ago and it was an amazing experience
  - u/ilikeperfumes1Aug 1, 2026, 5:42 PM
u/knotmi1Jul 31, 2026, 11:51 PM
When you get to Solaris read the Bill Martin ebook translation. The polish->french->english attempt is shit (paraphrasing Lem and family.)
- u/Bobbebusybuilding1Aug 1, 2026, 1:50 PM
  Thanks I will do so. Any reason why that isn't the version in print?
u/gloopyneutrino1Jul 31, 2026, 11:53 PM
Hitchhiker's Guide is one of my favorite books, but if you don't like dry humor it probably won't work for you. People on this sub gush about Ubik. I thought it was blah, but I loved A Scanner Darkly. One of these if you want a narrative mind bender. Similarly, I thought Children of Time was fine. I liked the second and third books in the series more (this opinion seems uncommon). Space opera that explores sentience, intelligence, and their associated ethics. Snow Crash is often cited as Neal Stephenson's best book. He's great at exploring heady concepts and this book is no exception. Plot is blah and characters are cardboard, but again, that is common for this author. I've read 5 of his books and enjoyed 4 of them. Anathem is one of my favorite books. I haven't read all the books on your list, but a lot of the ones I have read are great. Have fun
- u/Bobbebusybuilding1Aug 1, 2026, 1:57 PM
  Somewhat mixed about comedic books but it is short so I will try it. Do you think Snow Crash is a good intro to Stephenson or would I be better trying something else first?
u/Equivalent_Fun_48251Aug 1, 2026, 12:17 AM
*Ubik* is a thrilling fast paced, reality collapsing mind trip of a novel. *A Scanner Darkly* (mental burn out) and *The Man in the High Castle* (alternative history) are also wonderful, but slower, so depends on what you're in the mood for. *Roadside Picnic* shows how insignificant we are in the universe. Fantastic, short, and bleak. *Snow Crash* is a great book, but I would recommend it more after reading some more cyberpunk since it's a deconstruction/satire of that genre. You could read it now after reading Electric Sheep if you wanted to though.
- u/Bobbebusybuilding1Aug 1, 2026, 1:55 PM
  What Cyberpunk would you recommend? Obviously I should get Neuromancer, any others?
  - u/Equivalent_Fun_48251Aug 1, 2026, 5:26 PM
u/Get_Bent_Madafakas3Aug 1, 2026, 12:21 AM
My friend, this is a great list. You've got a bunch of my favorites in there. If you liked Dune you should continue on, because even though Messiah and Children are slightly weaker (imo) they'll get you to God Emperor which is the best book of the series. I'm a huge fan of Ursula LeGuin, and Left Hand is one of her best. Neal Stephenson is quite possibly my favorite author of all time - Snow Crash is an early book and his style develops quite a bit after that but it is definitely action-packed. Fire Upon the Deep is brilliant and weird, and Children of Time is different in structure but has kinda the same vibe - read them both back-to-back and I think you'll understand what I mean
- u/Bobbebusybuilding1Aug 1, 2026, 1:48 PM
  Yeah I think Dune Messiah is a must. I started reading it a while ago but wasn't feeling it. Which Le Guin first?
  - u/Get_Bent_Madafakas1Aug 1, 2026, 4:20 PM
  - u/Wetness__Pensive1Aug 1, 2026, 4:57 PM
u/elreyadr0k1Aug 1, 2026, 12:22 AM
I would really recommend Neal Stephenson’s works. I think they would be right up your alley.
- u/Bobbebusybuilding1Aug 1, 2026, 1:55 PM
  I have Anathem but want to start with something abit lighter
  - u/elreyadr0k1Aug 1, 2026, 2:40 PM
u/OldFitDude751Aug 1, 2026, 1:09 AM
A scanner darkly, then snow crash, then cool down with ringworld and station 11
u/PermaDerpFace1Aug 1, 2026, 3:49 AM
Great list. If you liked PKD I'd read A Scanner Darkly, it's really interesting, I think it's his best book. Le Guin is another one of my favorites, Dispossessed and Left Hand are both great.
- u/Bobbebusybuilding1Aug 1, 2026, 1:54 PM
  Yeah I really liked the PKD I have read so I'm thinking that and Ubik are definite. Any other PKD you'd recommend?
  - u/PermaDerpFace1Aug 1, 2026, 4:10 PM
u/DixitRexCorvinus1Aug 1, 2026, 5:09 AM
I'd recommend trying some more Le Guin and Butler. The Telling and The Word for World is Forest, maybe, along with the Xenogenesis trilogy and Kindred. Besides that, you might also like Samuel Delany. Maybe start with Trouble on Triton, which was a response to The Dispossessed.
- u/Bobbebusybuilding1Aug 1, 2026, 1:53 PM
  I think I actually have The Word for World is Forest. Heard very good things about Kindred.
u/cymru_prole1Aug 1, 2026, 8:47 AM
Snowcrash or A fire upon the deep
- u/Bobbebusybuilding1Aug 1, 2026, 1:46 PM
  How difficult are they?
u/LordCouchCat1Aug 1, 2026, 1:40 PM
With this you could just pull books out of the pile at random to read next! Just a few comments: Stranger in a Strange Land is sometimes seen as the point at which Heinlein jumped the shark from highly proficient early work to weird pontificating. But it's very widely read. 2001: Kubrick and Clarke worked together, with Kubrick making the film and Clarke writing the novel version. So neither is the original. The book states a number of things left open in the film. There's a book The Lost Worlds of 2001 where Clarke collected earlier drafts, which is fascinating showing how their ideas developed. Solaris. There are a couple of film versions. The Soviet version 1972 is a great film. (Some complain it's not entirely faithful, but it's a great film anyway) it's one of those late Soviet films where things were done in oblique SF as a way of evading censorship.
- u/Bobbebusybuilding1Aug 1, 2026, 1:52 PM
  I did not know that about 2001. Yeah I've heard so very bad things about Stranger in a Strange land being extremely dated.
u/Book_Slut_901Aug 1, 2026, 2:34 PM
Dune Messiah for sure. Most people only understand the story in book 1 when they read book 2. In general that’s a great list, o you can’t really go wrong especially not having read enough to really have a sense of your taste yet.
u/azure_phoenix21Aug 1, 2026, 3:31 PM
since you loved 2001, rendezvous with rama should be next. same cold slow-burn of a giant mysterious object showing up and humans just poking at it trying to figure it out, and its a fast read.
u/Traveling-Techie1Aug 1, 2026, 5:05 PM
Read The Red Planet before Stranger in a Strange Land. They’re two parts of the same story.
u/Late-Command34911Aug 1, 2026, 5:39 PM
Of that list? Parable of the Sower. But you have a lot of great stuff there. Have fun!