Here's just a quick post before I head off to bar trivia on a rare night off... this post about the 21 best science fiction and fantasy series is bound to get the fans upset. A perusal of the comments reveals that many of the readers are upset about how 'PC' the selections are, and there are plenty of commenters who don't seem to have read the prerequisites for selection, and name standalone books or unfinished series.
My one personal beef is that there are no Jack Vance titles in the list. I'm also amazed that genre pioneer Edgar Rice Burroughs didn't get a nod, and I would have included works by Fritz Leiber and C.J. Cherryh. I'm surprised that Frank Herbert's 'Dune' series and Asimov's 'Foundation' series didn't make the cut. The one genuine shocker is that Gene Wolfe's The Book of the New Sun and it's related 'Long Sun' and 'Short Sun' books didn't make the list- Wolfe was perhaps the most 'literary' of Science Fiction and Fantasy writers, writing books which are intricate puzzles for readers. Oh, and J.K. Rowling's 'wizard kids' series didn't make the cut.
The list skews toward newer books, and does mention more women and people of color than the 'Sad/Rabid Puppies' could tolerate. For that reason, it's a useful list, one to use as a guide when hitting the library or bookstore.
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3 comments:
I haven't kept up with SF literature in recent decades, but if your taste extends to urban fantasy, I can recommend Ben Aaronovich's "Rivers of London" series. It's ongoing so ineligible for this award. But PC as all git-out, as the first person hero, a young London cop, is the son of an English jazz trumpeter dad and a powerhouse West African mom, and many of the important characters are women, black, or both. It's very well-written and imaginative, and funny too.
Thanks for the recommendation, LI!
Um, actually the Foundation series did make the cut. Having just finished rereading The Book of the New Sun I'd have to agree with you on that one.
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