Science fiction is a really interesting genre to me because I always sort of discounted it as not being "for me," but every Sci-Fi book I've read I've actually enjoyed. Maybe Sci-Fi is for me, I just didn't know it before. A few of the reading stepping stones I took in my readers' advisory course that made me realize I like Sci-Fi were John Scalzi's 2005 book Old Man's War and the 1979 classic, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams.
Old Man's War was the required reading for the course's Sci-Fi week, and while I initially approached it thinking, "Oh boy, a story about an old man in space ... I can hardly contain my excitement ..." I actually thought it was quite good! In particular, the humor of the book and the way it portrayed the humanity of the characters – even those who were not really "humans" – was impeccable. Overall, it was just a really well written novel with a neat concept, and one of my favorites that I've read for this class so far.
And for the Sci-Fi book of my choosing this week, I could not pass up one of the most canonical titles of the genre. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is hands down one of the funniest – if not the funniest – books I've ever read. Below is my review.
Old Man's War was the required reading for the course's Sci-Fi week, and while I initially approached it thinking, "Oh boy, a story about an old man in space ... I can hardly contain my excitement ..." I actually thought it was quite good! In particular, the humor of the book and the way it portrayed the humanity of the characters – even those who were not really "humans" – was impeccable. Overall, it was just a really well written novel with a neat concept, and one of my favorites that I've read for this class so far.
And for the Sci-Fi book of my choosing this week, I could not pass up one of the most canonical titles of the genre. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is hands down one of the funniest – if not the funniest – books I've ever read. Below is my review.
 I give this book: | When Arthur Dent discovers his house is about to be bulldozed to make room for a new bypass, he thinks his world is over. Within the hour, his world is over – or at least it’s been destroyed. Coincidentally, Earth also needed to be demolished to make room for a new bypass, albeit an intergalactic one. Luckily, Arthur is able to escapes Earth’s destruction thanks to his friend Ford Perfect who is, as it just so happens to turn out, actually from another planet entirely. Ford has not actually been living on Earth all these years he’s known Arthur, but rather has been temporarily trapped there as he travels from planet to planet writing new entries for the ultimate interstellar encyclopedia known as The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Hilarity ensues as the duo bounces from spaceship to spaceship and they meet a very strange variety of characters along the way. Perhaps one of the most classic and timeless works of humorous science fiction to ever be published, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy will have you laughing out loud and never wanting the madness to end. Luckily for you, there are four other books in the series. |
Another canonical and hilarious science fiction book is Kurt Vonnegut’s Cat’s Cradle. Similar to The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, this book is also a story of global destruction dripping with deadpan humor and irony, although it is a bit heavier in content. This book is another great example of a Sci-Fi “oldie, but goodie,” originally published in 1963.
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