I know this is a non-book source, but the TV series" Supercar" got my interests in the Merely Possible going. Hugh Walters' "Terror by Satellite" is the first SF book that grabbed me in the 4th grade. Heinlein's "Rocketship Galileo" firmly cemented my fannish interests.
Our small elementary school, one of those brick box 50s-Awful bits of architecture replete with a "Cafetorium" had a pretty good library. I remember a Boys Life issue with a cover story "Sunjammer" about a solar-sail space race. Good times, great genre, and belated thanks for linking to my blog. I am honored and shall return the favor.
The Illearth War by Stephen R. Donaldson caught my eye and my heart when I was a pre-teen back in the public libary of Mexico, Missouri, which has one of those grand old stone columns astride the stairs out front sort of facades that all libraries should have. Wandering in the science fiction section tucked back in a vault in the rear of the high vaulted room made me feel like an adventurer in an off-limits area, sneaking around looking at sexy Edgar Rice Burroughs covers and wondering if we'd have privateering space ships in my time or if I was going to be too old whenever it finally happened. I found Donaldson in the second book of the series, but corrected that later and discovered the F side of F & SF.
At the risk of sounding trite & cliche (but it's not if what I'm saying is absolutely true, right?), it was the paperback set (now very well-worn and taped, but still possessed and treasured) of The Hobbit & Lord of the Rings given to me at the tender age of (I think) 8 by my paternal grandmother, who passed away before I hit high school.
On the other side (the SF of F&SF), and only a couple of years later it was Starship Troopers, followed by Piers Anthony's Bio of a Space Tyrant (the "Mercenary" one) - I was certainly too young for some of that subject matter but I was gifted with enough freedom that my folks didn't read the covers of the books I was reading.
"The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe."
At age six or so, my mother taught me to read with that book... about half way through, I couldn't wait for her to read the next section and I had to read on by myself.
I was bitten! I read through the entire series and was off to Tolkein by third grade.
JT
Oh yeah - the Hobbit got me too.
I was about 8 or 9 when I got hold of A Wrinkle in Time. Moved on to 2001:A Space Odyssey. Life is good.
Like snowdog, the earliest "fantastical" fiction I remember reading was A Wrinkle in Time. I was nine at the time. A year later, I read my first authentic science fiction novel, Farmer in the Sky by Heinlein. I think I still have that copy of Farmer in the Sky tucked away in the library somewhere.
To Our Scattered Bodies Go - Philip Jose Farmer
It's been more than 20 years since I read that book and I can still remember the image that snapped into my head when Burton describes the bodies, some only partially reconstructed, some not even human, revolving in stacks all around him.
Add to that the fact that ...Bodies... led me into an almost obsessive quest for all things Richard Francis Burton that remains to this day and has resulted in him (RFB) becoming one of my boyhood heroes and absentee mentors and it's an easy pick.
I don't remember which first book. But I remember moving to CA and never able to find the Pellucider series by Burroughs. (I had read them in Canada from the library.) I used to have dreams about finding a book store that sold them and felt cheated upon waking and realizing I still couldn't reread the ones I had.
Then one day my great hunt bore fruit. I once again read the awesome underground adventures of Pellucidor.
I probably checked out of the kid's library "Star Conquerors" by Ben Bova more than any other novel. Loved it!
I actually have to mention two.
My father was Air Force, and we moved around a lot. I had three high schools on two continents. Partway through first grade, my father was transferred from Vietnam to Taiwan, and he brought us along--without permission. We lived off base, without permission to use the stores or school on base, and I basically had an 18 month summer vacation...where I taught myself to read, on comic books, Peanuts comic strips, and one book that kept popping up in my life.
My first day of kindergarten, I walked in to find the teacher reading this book aloud.
Partway through first grade--in a different state--the teacher read us the same book. And I somehow found a copy of it partway through the Taiwan adventure, too.
That book was Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
After Taiwan, I discovered libraries. My father had no clue that I was reading as well as I was; he tried to offer me Dr. Seuss when I was wading through Hardy Boys.
Around the time I was 8, I caught my mom reading Dune, and...borrowed...it. That was that. Probably took me a month to get through it. I moved from Dune to Heinlein, and L'Engle, and Tolkien, and Burroughs, and never looked back.
-=ad=-
I don't know if it's the best possible choice for a first science fiction book, but my 5yo asked me to read Jules Verne's From the Earth to the Moon. So we are. The language is a little too tough for him to read for himself, and we have to stop every now and then to translate the Latin phrases--he hasn't had Latin yet. So far he likes it.
Thanks for the reminder, BoysMom. As I work at stretching my memory, I suddenly remember a dusty old hardcover of Twenty-Thousand Leagues Under the Sea that I found up in the attic of my parent's house, one hot summer day nearly a half-century ago. The blue cloth binding was faded along the spine from years of being on the bookshelf, intermittently exposed to direct sunlight, and the pages were lightly tanned and dry and crisp with age. My father must have bought the book when he was in his twenties or thirties; he was always buying books like that with the intention of reading them "later," when he had a little more time, and my grandfather, who we'd inherited the house from, never read anything longer or more complicated than the label on a whiskey bottle.
Is that where this whole thing began: with Captain Nemo and Professor Aronnax, on board the Nautilus?
I'm not the reader that you all are. I do remember my teacher gave me a book in the 5th grade. I don't remember the name, but it was about an alien named Loki. I read that one about 10 times.
I also read a book called Magic Kingdom For Sale that I loved, but by time I found out sequels had been written, I had moved on to other things in my life. I'll have to go back and revisit them.
The biggest SF influence for me was Star Wars. There was a point I was reading everything I could get my hands on, most of it crap, but some awesome stuff as well. Leading up to Phantom Menace coming out I was near obsessive about it. Then in two short hours it was completely crushed. Other than the movies I haven't touched the literary side even though there is a Timothy Zahn two parter that I have yet to finish. (How is his other stuff if there is any. He was the best Star Wars writer)
I loved most of the Dune series. I remember I read almost the entire series one week. It was an awesome week although I almost forgot what the outside looked like.
Part of my problem was the stuff geared to my age was too kiddy, but I wasn't advanced enough for the older stuff. I remember starting Sword of Shanarra several times in the third or fourth grade and just couldn't do it.
Just curious though, how many guys here would draw battle scenes involving various charachters from different universes? I remember in grade school spending time drawing epic battles between Star Wars, BattleStar Galactica, GI Joe, and He-Man.
War of the Worlds, which I must have read when I was 9 or 10. I drew tons of pictures of Martian tripods fighting it out with human armies or battleships.
Although now that you've unlocked that memory, I suddenly remember, God help me, the Mars Attacks! trading card series, and all the Crayolas and manila paper I used up redrawing those battle scenes when I was around 7 years old.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mar...ki/
Mars_Attacks
Sheesh. No wonder my teachers thought I was warped. Thank God they didn't have Ritalin back then.
Suddenly I understand why I always loved it when Calvin and Hobbes went off into "Spaceman Spiff".
Sean, you asked about Timothy Zahn's work outside of Star Wars, I hope I can provide an answer.
I've read most of Zahn's books and have enjoyed them all to varying degrees. Some books are definitely better than others, but I've found all of them to be worth the time I spent reading. One thing about Zahn is that he isn't afraid to try strange and interesting things, as you'll see if you read any of his non-series books.
Currently, I'm reading one of Zahn's young adult books to my boys. It's the fifth book in his six book Dragonback series. My son, in particular, is really enjoying the series (my foster son seems to enjoy it, but not so much that he always listens). Prior to reading the books to the boys, I was already reading the series for my own enjoyment. The first book is titled Dragon and Thief and all but the just released sixth book are available in paperback. This is a series I highly recommend when people ask about books for children.
I'd be happy to pass along some recommendations for his other books, too. If you'd be interested, just contact me by email.
Technically speaking it started with TV (and if you're guessing the obvious, you're correct-Star Trek), but one summer my cousin took me down to the library and had me get a library card. At first I jost got the movie monster books. For a brief period I was Michigans foremost expert on the old-time monster movies.
But then I saw a book with a spaceship and wondered, is this like Star Trek? So I picked it up. It was The Zero Stone by Andre Norton.
It was so much better than Star Trek, (no offence to Trekkies, but it's true) it blew my mind. After that I was hooked.
Alistair MacLean.
Guns of Navarone
Where Eagles Dare
HMS Ulysses is one of my favorites and one I should re-read as it has been awhile.
I'm not a voracious reader. And I'm in the busy working, family raising, working on my art, time of my life but to add to the conversation....
I was 7 when I saw Star Wars and I would watch Star Trek when I could and Dr. Who ocassionally. So I knew I liked Science Fiction but I had no one to guide me. Around 9 or 10, Mom picked up for me The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe and I eventually read all those and loved them. Then around 11 I found out about C.S. Lewis' Space Trilogy so my first SF book was probably Out of the Silent Planet which is still one of my favorite all time books. When I see something the same color as the green on the cover of the paperback version I have, it brings back all those vibey feelings. I've never had the opportunity to read nor have I heard of many of the books or authors you guys mention. I'm reading Journey to the Centre of the Earth right now with my son and also halfway through Ender's Game both of which I'm really enjoying.
Actually, I would love it if there were any suggestions for books appropriate for a somewhat better than average 10yr old reader that gets slightly intimidated at really thick books.
Phantastes by George MacDonald. As a kid I'd go back and re-read it over and over again, mainly to try to understand what he was saying. Lilith was also good.
Childhood's End and Rendezvous with Rama were also memorable.
My second grade teacher read James and the Giant Peach to the entire class. She read a chapter a day until she had read it through. I was captivated. It was the first time I remember someone reading something really interesting to me. You know, something more exciting than See Jane Run.
Gosh, what magical moments when we first discovered the power of story.
And in my opinion, there's nothing like the experience of being read to.
Bruce, when you drew it was on a slate that you carried home in your lunchpail right?
What wonderful memories all these books are bringing back. I remember James and the Giant Peach... and Rendervous with Rama... and particularly 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. I'm obsessed with that one, in particular. The strange power of Captain Nemo. Talk about a compelling and enthralling figure.
War of the Worlds totlaly blew my mind as a kid. As did the Island of Dr. Moreau. That one scared the devil out of me. As did Dracula.
And yes, I drew lots of pictures. I still do. I'm gravely tempted to paint a giant squid on the wall in the dining room. As it is, there's an astronaut in my hallway and mosaics across the porch.
My cousin and I also recorded a horrendous "Continuing Adventures of Star Wars" audio series, starting when we were 11 or 12 and going along on it for years. I should post the final installment we made a couple of years ago. Amazingly bad.
brb,
Oh my goodness. I just realized who you received that piece of fan mail from.
CHRISTOPHER HITCHENS!!!
Don't tell Vox!
Bruce, when you drew it was on a slate that you carried home in your lunchpail right?
No, it was on the wall of the cave. Mom was furious.
You mean, those were just imaginary spacemen? You never really saw any ancient astronauts?
Look... don't tell anyone, okay? This'll just be our little secret.
Where to start...? As a kid I read omnivorously, far more titles and authors than I can ever remember. But science fiction always had a special attraction.
I'm racking my brain to remember the first scifi story that truly ignited my imagination. I think, as I mentioned before, it was a one-two combo of "The Stars, Like Dust", and "Farmer in the Sky". The first one was classic space opera (and fortunately not too bogged down by Asimov's ponderous political theory), and the second one was just an awesome coming-of-age story. It is still a mystery to me why both of these were not made into movies.
But I'm not absolutely sure these were the first. Somewhere between the ages of 7-9 I recall coming across C.S. Lewis, Tolkien, Jules Verne (add Robur The Conqueror to the list), Asimov, Heinlein, Ursula K. LeGuin, H.G. Wells, Arthur C. Clarke, as well as many others.
Thanks for bringing back memories (Lucky Starr, Space Ranger). I still sigh about the many stories I recall where I can't remember the author. Someday I will have to see if I can track down some of these.
KTown... what kinds of interests does your son have? (I'm assuming it's your son)
[OT]
http://io9.com/5024631/does-scie...ific-
innovation
Ignoring the Sci vs. SciFI thing, can anyone recommend any of the books in this list. Look To Windward and The Scar look good . . .
KTown, I have all sorts of recommendations as my son is just a couple of years older than yours. The following are books I've read to my son and foster son that I know they've enjoyed:
The Dragonback series by Timothy Zahn. It's a six book series, recently completed, and all but the last book are out in paperback. Excellent science fiction adventure that my son is really enjoying. The first book is titled Dragon and Thief. The books run about 250 to 300 pages each.
The Ranger's Apprentice series by John Flanagan, an Australian author. There are four books out in the U.S. out of eight in Australia. The first book is titled The Ruins of Gorlan. The boys enjoyed these so much I ended up ordering books four through eight from Australia so we could read the entire series before they got too old for it.
Grease Monkey by Tim Eldred. This is a collection of the comic book by the same title. It's science fiction and also a coming of age story. The biggest problem with it is that the collection doesn't include an ending (more are being produced). After reading it myself on a business trip, I offered it to my son who raced through it, loving every bit of it (that was two years ago, when he was the same age as your son).
Bone by Jeff Smith. Another comic book collection and an excellent fantasy story (complete, I might add). If you get this, get the One Volume Edition because it's much less expensive than buying all the Scholastic collections. The one volume edition runs 1300 pages, though, so it might scare off your son based on length. Again, this is something my son read all the way through, despite the length (and he's not what I'd call an avid reader).
Two more books I read to the boys that I highly recommend are Airborn and Skybreaker by Kenneth Oppel. Their length will probably intimidate him, 400+ pages each, so you might want to consider reading them to him. The best way I could describe these books is that they're what Jules Verne would be writing if he were alive today. They're set in a more or less Victorian world in which lighter than air ships rule the sky. Just in Airborn you have undiscovered creatures, unexplored islands and air pirates. What more could you ask for in a story? Yet again, these are books I read for my own enjoyment before reading them to the boys.
I hope some of these help, KTown. If I were at home, I could check my library and probably suggest a dozen more books. But these have been the most popular with my son and foster son.
In the non-scifi categories, I was on the *edge of my seat* all the way through spy thrillers like "Circus" and "The Way to Dusty Death" by Alistair Maclean, or "Shadow in the Sea", by Owen John. Those were relevant books to me as a kid in the 70s, with the twin spectres of Communism and European intrigue.
Can anyone recommend authors who would be writing thrillers of this caliber relevant to the world of 2008? Just curious.
I read every book Alistair McLean wrote while growing up, so understand your desire for some good, current thriller writers. Unfortunately, I don't remember the last thriller I read that really grabbed my imagination like those old McLean books you, Giraffe and I used to read. Anyone else have suggestions?
Heller With a Gun, by Louis L'amour
That book got me hooked on westerns for many years.
"Wow! I want to read more stuff like this!"
Hobbit/Lord of the Rings
Unfortunately I have never found any more like it.
My aunt set me on the path of reading fantasy. It started with Tolkien then the Majipoor Chronicles, McCaffery's Dragon books, and Shannara.
I went on to Dune, Dragonlance series, Barbara Hambly's stuff(which never struck me as Vampire porn). Lately it's all been old school Sci Fi. I never saw it as a kid but between goodwill stores and half price books I get more than I can read.
brb: What's the first book you remember reading that made you think, "Wow! I want to read more stuff like this!""
The first book to captivate my imagination was Stuart Little, in elementary school. It opened my young eyes to the possibilities of alternate realities. As others have also mentioned, James and the Giant Peach soon followed.
But the first "sci-fi" I ever read was Andre Norton's Dark Piper, which introduced me to the genre, and Asimov's Foundation trilogy that later solidified it.
I know I'm blabbing now, but here are a few other genres of stories that really occupied my juvenile reading time:
- Classic sports stories, everything from the fiction of D.S. Halacy, Jr. (wow, I remembered a name!) and William Gault to biographies of Babe Ruth, Knute Rockne and other sports heroes.
- American historical novels and biographies about the Revolution, the pioneer times, and the old West. I loved reading the stories of Wild Bill Hickock, Rifleman Dan Morgan (who I later found was in my family line), Daniel Boone, Davy Crockett, etc... These stories should NOT be lost to this generation of boys.
- War stories, of course. No need to get started on that long list, but I would guess that in grade school I read at least 100 novels and short stories about various wars from the ancient times on up to WWII, and some from the Korean War. (This being the mid-70s, Vietnam had not yet had time to filter into popular literature).
- Stories of famous Christian missionaries, from Hudson Taylor to Jim Elliot and Don Richardson. Being a missionary kid myself, these stories had particular interest, but if you have never read some of the stories about these people, you will be amazed that such bravery and dedication is possible. Even if you are not a Christian, and perhaps find the whole concept of missionaries a little odious and... embarrassing, I guarantee you will still be shocked at how gripping and adventurous these stories are.
OK, done.
As a kid, I loved "Time of the Great Freeze" and "Conquerors from Darkness" by Silverberg.
Conquerors from Darkness was the best!
Henry, Mark in OC, thanks for the suggestions.
I just picked up Princess and the Goblin because I want to read it, too.
Rycamor,
To answer your question, he's enjoying The Narnia stories. He's enjoyed the Hardy Boys. He seems to be enjoying Jules Verne, although it moves a bit slow for him and Verne uses a lot of words that just aren't in our current American vocabulary. A lot of stuff that he has shown interest in, I've had a tendency to say "that's too grown up for you" but maybe I'm not giving him the benefit of the doubt.
He read the tale of Desperaux and liked it alot. He loves robots but I don't know if Asimov is okay for a kid. I have the book Robota that I haven't gotten around to reading with him yet as it seemed a bit mature...I don't know. I'm very suspect of books written in the last 20 years or so, given the cultural trends.
Ktown, if he's into robots, I'd put in a vote for the aforementioned Lucky Starr series. It's a set of five or six juvenile-level novels set in Asimov's universe--the whole "three laws of robotics" and such. Each book is set on a different planet, plotlines are fun and exciting, and it's Asimov...*grin*
-=ad=-
It's funny, thinking back, I can't remember that many classic sci-fi authors who do robots well (a little help, guys...). The only two that come to mind immediately are Asimov and Philip K. Dick. I would suggest any of the older Asimov robot stories except for "The Bicentennial Man" (just a little too weepy for a 10-year-old, I think). And "Caves of Steel" and the other Lije Baily/Daneel Olivaw stories are fun. I wouldn't recommend "Robots of Dawn", though.
It's been too long since I read "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep", so I can't comment on appropriateness for a 10-year-old.
I would also say he's a perfect age to read "The Hobbit", but it might be better to wait a couple or 3 years before having him tackle the LOTR trilogy.
Cool, thanks. Good suggestions.
Don't forget "I, Robot." That's the definitive collection of all of Asimov's early robot-related short stories, and as I remember there's nothing sexually explicit or violent in the lot.
I definitely wouldn't try Phil Dick on a 10-year-old. Not unless you want him to grow up to be a serial killer or drug addict or something.
Edgar Rice Burroughs, - Tarzan of the Apes, at the age of 12 they were great. Mom got 8 or 9 old beat-up Dunlapp & Gossett reprints (looked like hard covers) and I was hooked. 25 years later she gave the very same books and a dozen Zane Gray to my boys, they read the them and got hooked, although the younger one went more for Zane Gray.
They are all pretty tatterred from being read and re-read but all the pages are there so we'll see if we can get another generation out of a pile of 20 or so books mom got at a yard sale for a nickle each in 1968.
PS - brb the student questions for Cyberpunk this year were identical for last years so after we were done with the book I just re-read your answers again. Thanks again for letting me use CP in my chemistry class.
"Have Spacesuit, Will Travel."
Still have it. Still love it. It's one of the dozen books I kept when I downsized my library (and made Uncle Hugos inventory swell).
.
As a kid (pre-SF) I loved the "Freddy the Pig" stories (go ahead and laugh), and the "I Was There at..." historic fiction series. Andre Norton was the first science fiction author I sought out. It's too bad that so much of her stuff is out of print now.
Just slightly later I read every WWII air war book I could find. I still have copies of "Samurai" and "Thunderbolt" as well as many of Martin Caidin's books.
Papapete, Freddy the Pig rocked! I read all of those when I was in grade school. So, at least one of us out here isn't laughing at you.
KTown, if you're looking for robots, let me suggest a couple of older books that feature robots. I read both as a child and read both to my child.
Alexander Key, who wrote a lot of good children's science fiction, wrote several books about robots. The one I read was Rivets and Sprockets, but there's also one just about Sprockets and one about a robot dog named Bolt. I happen to have two copies of the (alas) out of print Rivets and Sprockets and will be happy to send one to a good home. Contact me by email (henry.vogel@gmail.com) if you're interested.
The other is The Runaway Robot by Lester Del Rey. The story follows a robot whose owner (a boy) moves to earth. The boy's parents sell the robot rather than transport him to earth. The story follows the robot's adventures as he tries to get to earth and rejoin his owner. Amazon shows lots of cheap used copies.
I think Bradbury's robots were fantastic.
Mystical, rather than technological.
Actually, I would love it if there were any suggestions for books appropriate for a somewhat better than average 10yr old reader that gets slightly intimidated at really thick books.
KTown | 07.14.08 - 4:35 pm | #
Might I recommend My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George, 177 pages long. I started reading it to The Kid, but I was not going fast enough for him, so he picked it up and devoured it. He's read it several times now.
Stephen R. Donaldson as an adult, Tolkien of course, though it took me forever to get through the first few chapters of The Hobbit.
As a kid, I bought stacks of Andre Norton (I thought she was a man for the longest time) every Zelazny I could find, Louis L'Amour, each and every one...a stack about four feet high. Everything by Frank Herbert until he went nuts. John Norman. All of Ian Fleming's Bond books. Everything by Mickey Spillane (My Gun Is Quick being my favorite).
Fritz Leiber. Harlan Ellison (even though he's a sawed of runt of a little prick).
I always thought that Bradbury sucked, except for 'Something Wicked...' I read everything Heinlein wrote until he went into his 'Incest Period'.
I concur with the choice of Alistair McLean. Read all his books. Ditto Phillip Jose Farmer, though his later books got uncomfortably sexual, and if it creeps ME out, well, that's saying something.
Manly Wade Wellman. Asimov just bores me to tears, and AC Clark sounds like someones droning, senile grandfather, or worse, that boor Carl Sagan.
Mrs. ~brb... THANKS! You just reminded me of one of my absolute favorite books as a kid. I can't believe I forgot about this one. Every boy should read it before the age of 12. I'm a libertarian, but I would still make it a law.
Damn, I can't believe I forgot Laumer and Saberhagen. Devoured them.
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