Foundation
Isaac Asimov The Galactic Empire is dying, and only Hari Seldon can see into the future, to a dark age of ignorance and warfare that will last eons. To preserve knowledge and save mankind, Seldon gathers the best minds in the Empire and brings them his sanctuary, the Foundation. But soon the Foundation finds itself at the mercy of corrupt warlords. They are faced with an agonizing choice: submit to the barbarians and be overrun, or fight them and be destroyed. (Sequels: Foundation and Empire and Second Foundation) |
The Martian Chronicles
Ray Bradbury Leaving the Earth on the brink of destruction, man came to the Red planet and found the Martians waiting. Seeking the promise of a new beginning, man brought with him his oldest fears and his deepest desires. Man conquered Mars, and in that instant, Mars conquered him. The strange new world with its ancient, dying race and vast, red-gold deserts cast a spell on him, settled into his dreams, and changed him forever. |
Fahrenheit 451
Ray Bradbury Guy Montag is a fireman. His job is to destroy the most illegal of commodities, the printed book, along with the houses in which they are hidden. Then he meets an eccentric young neighbor, Clarisse, who introduces him to a past where people didn’t live in fear and to a present where one sees the world through the ideas in books instead of the mindless chatter of television. When Clarisse suddenly disappears, Montag begins to question everything he has ever known. He starts hiding books in his home, and when his pilfering is discovered, the fireman has to run for his life. |
Childhood's End
Arthur C. Clarke The Overlords appeared suddenly in every city – intellectually, technologically, and militarily superior to humankind. Benevolent, they made few demands: unify earth, eliminate poverty, and end war. With little rebellion, humankind agreed, and a golden age began. But at what cost? With the advent of peace, man ceases to strive for creative greatness, and a malaise settles over the human race. To those who resist, it becomes evident that the Overlords have an agenda of their own. As civilization approaches the crossroads, will the Overlords spell the end for humankind, or the beginning? |
Brave New World
Aldous Huxley "Community, Identity, Stability" is the motto of the utopian World State. Everyone takes daily grams of soma to fight depression, babies are born in laboratories, and the most popular form of entertainment is a "Feelie," a movie that stimulates the senses of sight, hearing, and touch. There is no violence and everyone is provided for, but Bernard feels something is missing and senses he has the potential to be much more than World State's confines allow. |
The Rowan
Anne McCaffrey Rowan, a telepathic, telekinetic Prime, is responsible for telecommunications and shipping throughout the galaxy. She finds herself alienated from humanity and her coworkers due to her unique talents and tremendous responsibilities until she senses Jeff, a fellow talent, on the fringes of explored space. A bond develops between the two when they are thrown together to help defeat aliens bent on destroying the human race |
The Legacy of Heorot
Larry Niven, Jerry Pournelle, & Steven Barnes Colonists from Earth have journeyed to settle a planet in another solar system. Avalon seems perfect, a world still in its prehistoric age. The biologists and engineers who plant and build scoff at the warnings of soldier Cadmann until a large, fast, cunning predator begins stalking the colony. Stopping the beast is only the first step, for they must reevaluate their entire understanding of Avalon's ecology. |
1984
George Orwell Hidden away in the Record Department of the sprawling Ministry of Truth, Winston Smith rewrites the past to suit the needs of the Party. Yet he inwardly rebels against the totalitarian world he lives in, which demands absolute obedience and controls him through the all-seeing eye of Big Brother, symbolic head of the Party. In his longing for truth and liberty, Smith begins a secret love affair with a fellow worker, but soon discovers the true price of freedom. |
The Time Machine
H. G. Wells A Victorian scientist develops a time machine and travels to the year 802,171 AD. There he finds the meek, child-like Eloi who live in fear of the underground-dwelling Morlocks. When his time machine goes missing, the Traveler faces a fight to enter the Morlocks' domain and return to his own time. |
The War of the Worlds
H.G. Wells They came from outer space -- Mars, to be exact. With deadly heat-rays and giant fighting machines, they want to conquer Earth and keep humans as their slaves. Nothing seems to stop them as they spread terror and death across the planet. It is the start of the most important war in Earth's history. And Earth will never be the same. |