50 Book Meme

[rolanni]

From andpuff...

This is a list of the 50 most significant science fiction/fantasy novels, 1953-2002, according to the Science Fiction Book Club.

Bold the ones you've read, strike-out the ones you hated, italicize those you started but never finished and put an asterisk* beside the ones you loved.

List

The Lord of the Rings, J.R.R. Tolkien
The Foundation Trilogy, Isaac Asimov
Dune, Frank Herbert
Stranger in a Strange Land, Robert A. Heinlein*
A Wizard of Earthsea, Ursula K. Le Guin*
Neuromancer, William Gibson
Childhood's End, Arthur C. Clarke
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Philip K. Dick
The Mists of Avalon, Marion Zimmer Bradley
Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury*
The Book of the New Sun, Gene Wolfe
A Canticle for Leibowitz, Walter M. Miller, Jr.
The Caves of Steel, Isaac Asimov
Children of the Atom, Wilmar Shiras
Cities in Flight, James Blish
The Colour of Magic, Terry Pratchett
Dangerous Visions, edited by Harlan Ellison
Deathbird Stories, Harlan Ellison
The Demolished Man, Alfred Bester
Dhalgren, Samuel R. Delany
Dragonflight, Anne McCaffrey*
Ender's Game, Orson Scott Card
The First Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever, Stephen R. Donaldson May I cross this one out multiple times?
The Forever War, Joe Haldeman
Gateway, Frederik Pohl
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, J.K. Rowling
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams
I Am Legend, Richard Matheson
Interview with the Vampire, Anne Rice
The Left Hand of Darkness, Ursula K. Le Guin
Little, Big, John Crowley
Lord of Light, Roger Zelazny*****
The Man in the High Castle, Philip K. Dick
Mission of Gravity, Hal Clement
More Than Human, Theodore Sturgeon
The Rediscovery of Man, Cordwainer Smith*
On the Beach, Nevil Shute
Rendezvous with Rama, Arthur C. Clarke
Rogue Moon, Algis Budrys
The Silmarillion, J.R.R. Tolkien
Slaughterhouse-5, Kurt Vonnegut
Snow Crash, Neal Stephenson*
Stand on Zanzibar, John Brunner
The Stars My Destination, Alfred Bester
Starship Troopers, Robert A. Heinlein
Stormbringer, Michael Moorcock
The Sword of Shannara, Terry Brooks
Timescape, Gregory Benford
To Your Scattered Bodies Go, Philip Jose Farmer

Comments

[kalimeg.livejournal.com]

Last time I saw this it was just a list asking how many you'd read. I've read 46 -- many of them multi-volume works, of course. I only quit about 3 of them.

[rolanni.livejournal.com]

I only quit about 3 of them.

If I'd've had the sense ghod gave a green bean, I would have thrown the Covenant books into the recycling bin the moment I understood that Lord Foul's Bane was not, as the title strongly suggests, a send-up.

I did quit Dhalgren at least twice, but a kinzel who shall remain nameless assured me that it Got Better. Reader, I married him.

And I must confess, though I hate Dhalgren with the passion of a hundred suns, words cannot begin to express my loathing for the Covenant books.

Of the others I quit, I kept trying to read Dick, but Just. Couldn't. and finally gave up. Ditto, Brunner.

[od-mind.livejournal.com]

(I posted my responses at my LJ, with slightly different marking conventions.)

Interesting -- I've met people who were bored by Little, Big and never finished it, but never anyone who outright hated it. I loved it, but it was definitely harder work than most fiction I love.

So far, I've seen 5 responses to this meme, and the Donaldson has been struck out on all 5. (Not on mine, because I managed to avoid ever reading any of it.)

[rolanni.livejournal.com]

I've met people who were bored by Little, Big and never finished it, but never anyone who outright hated it.

It's been many years since I read it, but I recall being Outraged! by what I considered to be Blatant Character Abuse in the service of a not-very-interesting story. I felt that the author had Toyed With My Affections, and promptly gave the book to my friend Meg. Who adored it.

[serge-lj.livejournal.com]

I read only 27 of those books. Yes, that includes The Sword of Shannara, for some reason I can't remember, but which probably can be blamed upon my uncritical youth. As for Dhalgren, how many pages did you go thru before you gave up? I think I got to a bit less than one hundred.

How, O Great Sage?

[tharkun860.livejournal.com]

"Bold the ones you've read, strike-out the ones you hated, italicize those you started but never finished and put an asterisk* beside the ones you loved."

Uhh, the comment box doesn't have Bold, Italics, or Underlining

The Lord of the Rings, J.R.R. Tolkien, read, loved
The Foundation Trilogy, Isaac Asimov, read, enjoyed
Dune, Frank Herbert, read
Stranger in a Strange Land, Robert A. Heinlein, read
A Wizard of Earthsea, Ursula K. Le Guin, read, loved
Neuromancer, William Gibson, unread
Childhood's End, Arthur C. Clarke, read, but consider other stories more worthy, including his short stories
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Philip K. Dick, unread
The Mists of Avalon, Marion Zimmer Bradley, unread (I think)
Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury, read
The Book of the New Sun, Gene Wolfe, unread (but I read his "Shadow of the Torturer" books, which I thought weren't bad)
A Canticle for Leibowitz, Walter M. Miller, Jr., unread
The Caves of Steel, Isaac Asimov, read
Children of the Atom, Wilmar Shiras, unread (never heard of, in fact)
Cities in Flight, James Blish, unread
The Colour of Magic, Terry Pratchett, unread (I think, but I've read other Discworld books by Pratchett)
Dangerous Visions, edited by Harlan Ellison, read a loooong time ago
Deathbird Stories, Harlan Ellison, unread
The Demolished Man, Alfred Bester, unread
Dhalgren, Samuel R. Delany, unread
Dragonflight, Anne McCaffrey, read & enjoyed
Ender's Game, Orson Scott Card, read, loved
The First Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever, Stephen R. Donaldson, read all of the first 6 books - enjoyed but perhaps not loved
The Forever War, Joe Haldeman, unread
Gateway, Frederik Pohl, read
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, J.K. Rowling (does seeing the movie count?)
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams, unread
I Am Legend, Richard Matheson, unread
Interview with the Vampire, Anne Rice, read, plus several sequels, all good books
The Left Hand of Darkness, Ursula K. Le Guin, unread
Little, Big, John Crowley, unread, never heard of
Lord of Light, Roger Zelazny, read
The Man in the High Castle, Philip K. Dick, unread
Mission of Gravity, Hal Clement, read & loved
More Than Human, Theodore Sturgeon, read
The Rediscovery of Man, Cordwainer Smith, unread
On the Beach, Nevil Shute, read (I think)
Rendezvous with Rama, Arthur C. Clarke, read
Rogue Moon, Algis Budrys, unread
The Silmarillion, J.R.R. Tolkien, read & loved
Slaughterhouse-5, Kurt Vonnegut, read
Snow Crash, Neal Stephenson, unread
Stand on Zanzibar, John Brunner, unread
The Stars My Destination, Alfred Bester, unread
Starship Troopers, Robert A. Heinlein, read & loved
Stormbringer, Michael Moorcock, unread
The Sword of Shannara, Terry Brooks, read & hated
Timescape, Gregory Benford, unread
To Your Scattered Bodies Go, Philip Jose Farmer, unread, but I've read other stuff by him

Re: How, O Great Sage?

[rolanni.livejournal.com]

Uhh, the comment box doesn't have Bold, Italics, or Underlining

Well... you could always code them in by hand. That's what I do.

[barsukthom.livejournal.com]

How should we comment on books we thought were truly dunglike w/o opening them?
The Lord of the Rings, J.R.R. Tolkien, read, loved
The Foundation Trilogy, Isaac Asimov, read
Dune, Frank Herbert, read
Stranger in a Strange Land, Robert A. Heinlein, read
A Wizard of Earthsea, Ursula K. Le Guin, read
Neuromancer, William Gibson, read,
Childhood's End, Arthur C. Clarke, read, too depressing
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Philip K. Dick, unread
The Mists of Avalon, Marion Zimmer Bradley, unread
Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury, unread
The Book of the New Sun, Gene Wolfe, unread
A Canticle for Leibowitz, Walter M. Miller, Jr., read
The Caves of Steel, Isaac Asimov, read
Children of the Atom, Wilmar Shiras, unread
Cities in Flight, James Blish, unread
The Colour of Magic, Terry Pratchett, read, loved his later books more
Dangerous Visions, edited by Harlan Ellison, read, "Hated it!"
Deathbird Stories, Harlan Ellison, unread (Hate w/o reading)
The Demolished Man, Alfred Bester, unread
Dhalgren, Samuel R. Delany, unread
Dragonflight, Anne McCaffrey, read
Ender's Game, Orson Scott Card, read
The First Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever, Stephen R. Donaldson, read
The Forever War, Joe Haldeman, unread
Gateway, Frederik Pohl, unread
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, J.K. Rowling read,liked
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams, read, liked the radio show much more.
I Am Legend, Richard Matheson, read
Interview with the Vampire, Anne Rice, read
The Left Hand of Darkness, Ursula K. Le Guin, unread
Little, Big, John Crowley, unread, Hw/oOpening
Lord of Light, Roger Zelazny, read
The Man in the High Castle, Philip K. Dick, unread
Mission of Gravity, Hal Clement, unread
More Than Human, Theodore Sturgeon, unread
The Rediscovery of Man, Cordwainer Smith, unread
On the Beach, Nevil Shute, read (I think)
Rendezvous with Rama, Arthur C. Clarke, read
Rogue Moon, Algis Budrys, unread
The Silmarillion, J.R.R. Tolkien, read & loved
Slaughterhouse-5, Kurt Vonnegut, read, hated
Snow Crash, Neal Stephenson, unread
Stand on Zanzibar, John Brunner, unread
The Stars My Destination, Alfred Bester, unread
Starship Troopers, Robert A. Heinlein, read
Stormbringer, Michael Moorcock, unread
The Sword of Shannara, Terry Brooks, read & hated
Timescape, Gregory Benford, unread
To Your Scattered Bodies Go, Philip Jose Farmer,

Jeez, I feel illiterate in classic SF.

[deb-krol.livejournal.com]

Bold the ones you've read, strike-out the ones you hated, italicize those you started but never finished and put an asterisk* beside the ones you loved.

List

The Lord of the Rings, J.R.R. Tolkien -bold-*
The Foundation Trilogy, Isaac Asimov -bold-*
Dune, Frank Herbert -bold-
Stranger in a Strange Land, Robert A. Heinlein -bold-*
A Wizard of Earthsea, Ursula K. Le Guin [italics]
Neuromancer, William Gibson [italics]
Childhood's End, Arthur C. Clarke -bold- *
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Philip K. Dick -bold-
The Mists of Avalon, Marion Zimmer Bradley -bold-
Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury -bold-*
The Book of the New Sun, Gene Wolfe
A Canticle for Leibowitz, Walter M. Miller, Jr. -bold-
The Caves of Steel, Isaac Asimov -bold- *
Children of the Atom, Wilmar Shiras
Cities in Flight, James Blish -bold-
The Colour of Magic, Terry Pratchett
Dangerous Visions, edited by Harlan Ellison -bold-*
Deathbird Stories, Harlan Ellison
The Demolished Man, Alfred Bester [italics]
Dhalgren, Samuel R. Delany [italics]
Dragonflight, Anne McCaffrey -bold- ****
Ender's Game, Orson Scott Card -bold- *
The First Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever, Stephen R. Donaldson ---crossout
The Forever War, Joe Haldeman -bold-
Gateway, Frederik Pohl -bold-
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, J.K. Rowling [italics--way long]
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams -bold- *
I Am Legend, Richard Matheson [italics]
Interview with the Vampire, Anne Rice ....strikeout....
The Left Hand of Darkness, Ursula K. Le Guin
Little, Big, John Crowley [italics]
Lord of Light, Roger Zelazny
The Man in the High Castle, Philip K. Dick
Mission of Gravity, Hal Clement
More Than Human, Theodore Sturgeon
The Rediscovery of Man, Cordwainer Smith*
On the Beach, Nevil Shute *
Rendezvous with Rama, Arthur C. Clarke *
Rogue Moon, Algis Budrys
The Silmarillion, J.R.R. Tolkien ***
Slaughterhouse-5, Kurt Vonnegut bold
Snow Crash, Neal Stephenson
Stand on Zanzibar, John Brunner bold
The Stars My Destination, Alfred Bester *
Starship Troopers, Robert A. Heinlein *** [first full-length book I ever read--at age 9]
Stormbringer, Michael Moorcock
The Sword of Shannara, Terry Brooks bold
Timescape, Gregory Benford bold *
To Your Scattered Bodies Go, Philip Jose Farmer [italics]

I tend to read the ones I love over and over again...but WTFrak happened to Liaden Universe in this list? IMHO, these are major books in their own right. They evoke the pageturners of old--like Edmond Hamilton the ol' world wrecking' writer.