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Ever since humans looked to space as the “final frontier,” we have been creating stories about what might be out there — alien worlds, powerful spaceships and neverending galaxies dominate the science fiction genre.
Science fiction, like most other genres, contains multitudes. Any story that incorporates futuristic science or technology can fall under this umbrella, so there’s plenty for any reader to enjoy.
If you’re looking to get scientific in your reading journey, check out these science fiction recommendations.
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Brigid Lawrence, owner, Friendly Alien Books
Book: “Freezing Point”
Author: Anders Bodelsen
The story, originally written in 1969, follows a young magazine editor named Bruno who is leading a perfectly ordinary life in 1973 when he is diagnosed with cancer. His doctors offer him the chance to be “frozen down” for 20 years until there is a cure for his illness. He awakens in the year 1995 as the same age he was when he went down. He wakes to a world supposedly without war, death or appetizing food.
We follow Bruno as he grapples with this new reality, and through the novel, Bodelsen examines what kind of world we might create in the race against our biological clocks. He examines what class division looks like when almost everyone can live forever, and whether that life is even worth living. It’s all told with a deadpan humor that is a trademark of mid-century science fiction.
Brigid Lawrence recommends “Freezing Point”
Listen • 1:00
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Mary Scinto, avid sci-fi reader (and Sarah Scinto’s mom)
Science fiction is one of my favorite categories, and one I’ve been reading for over 50 years. There are many masters in this genre, but someone just recently introduced me to a series that has been the most straightforward science fiction book I’ve read in a long time, meaning no fantasy or magical elements.
That series is “The Expanse” by James S.A. Corey. The first book, “Leviathan Wakes,” has everything you want in a science fiction book: space travel, alien artifacts, shipmates, space war, politics and possible human destruction. It reads very fast and easy and pulls you in immediately.
All the books center around James Holden and his crew of four unlikely heroes and how they navigate each obstacle, through space and over many years. A bit of a warning — there are nine books in the entire series. But don’t be put off by this fact. Each book has multiple story lines and characters that are intertwined throughout the books. Every time I finished one, I could not wait to pick up the next. It’s good science fiction, fun like it should be, and I highly recommend them all.
Other books to consider: Murderbot (“The Murderbot Diaries”) a current day “I, Robot,” but much more fun. Who wouldn’t like a robot who watches soap operas for downtime? “Project Hail Mary,” by the same author of who wrote “The Martian.” It’s hard to find a better book, period. As always anything by Isaac Asimov, the science fiction master, should be read as true literature. That’s it. Happy reading.
Mary Scinto recommends “Leviathan Wakes”
Listen • 1:33
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Stephanie Pizano, “Artoo DeckU” of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Roller Derby
Book: “The Tainted Cup”
Author: Robert Jackson Bennett
This book was by far my favorite book of 2024. (Editor’s note: Yes, 2024.) I happened upon this book by chance at my local library when the cover caught my eye and I’m so happy it did.
A perfect blend of whodunit, mystery, espionage and adventure, this book will have you on the edge of your seat through the entire story. Sherlock Holmes fans like myself will find a similar dynamic between the story’s protagonists, Ana Dolabra and her assistant Dinios Kol, who race to solve an impossible murder.
This book was so good I actually recommended it to my work’s book club just so I can read it again this year before moving on to the next book in the series. I can’t recommend this book enough and it should be on every Sci-fi/Fantasy/Mystery reader’s “TBR!”
Sarah Scinto, WVIA Morning Edition Host and Reporter
Book: “A Psalm for the Wild-Built”
Author: Becky Chambers
I’m not a science fiction purist like my mom, but I will admit that recently I’ve been drawn in by stories of robots trying to understand creatures as strange as humans.
“A Psalm for the Wild-Built” by Becky Chambers gets the credit for sending me down this reading path. This quick, sweet novella takes place in the world of Panga, where hundreds of years ago the world’s robots gained self-awareness and wandered into the wilderness to start their own society separate from the humans who originally built them.
Centuries later, no human has seen a robot since they left. Until a traveling tea monk named Sibling Dex meets Splendid Speckled Mosscap, a wild-built bot honoring an old promise to check in on the humans. The bot can’t go back home until they answer a question: “What do people need?”
I couldn’t help smiling as I followed the wanderings of Dex and Mosscap through the solarpunk world of Panga. Their adventures and interactions with people across their world feel as warm and nourishing as a cup of Dex’s tea. If you’re looking for a short read that will still stick with you, I definitely recommend this book.
Sarah Scinto recommends “A Psalm for the Wild-Built”
Listen • 1:14
That’s all for this edition of Bookmarks! Join us again on Dec. 20. We’ll be getting festive with some holiday reading recommendations.
