this list comes from the March 1998 issue of InQuest magazine, in an article
titled, "Judgment Day: 100 Books Thou Shalt Read Before You Die"
The Lord of the Rings. J.R.R. Tolkien. The granddaddy of all fantasy literature, of
course, notches our top spot. Besides reinventing the entire fantasy genre and
influencing generations of writers, Tolkien's tale tells one helluva story.
The Chronicles of Amber. Roger Zelazny. Amber is the one, true world. All others,
including Earth, are merely shadows. Prince Corwin, rightful successor to the throne
of Amber, must master these alternate realities, fight demonic forces, and survive
the ruthless schemes of his own family to gain the crown.
Ender's Game. Orson Scott Card. By age 8, Ender Wiggins becomes Earth's greatest
military genius. Confronted with the realities of war, Ender chooses to abandon the
military and become a "speaker for the dead," a councilor, truthseeker, and
arbitrator between families in need of guidance. Unfortunately, the universe has
other plans for him.
Neuromancer. William Gibson. A down-on-his-luck hacker and a sleep razor-nailed
mercenary discover the secrets of a newborn AI. Cyberpunk's first defining work and
the first of Gibson's Sprawl books.
The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever. Stephen R. Donaldson. A real-world
leper, Thomas Covenant gets transported to a fantasy world besieged by a corrupt and
malevolent force. Only Covenant can save the world with the "wild magic" he's
brought with him, but he doesn't believe this fantasy world exists.
Foundation. Issac Asimov. Monumental tale of a galactic empire spiraling into
decline and the secret society of scientists manuvering to control the damage.
Dune. Frank Herbert. The first book in the Dune series tracks one of the most
powerful psychics in the universe, Paul Atreides, as he learns to deal with the
political machinations and environmental savagery of the desert planet Arrakis while
balancing his growing powers.
Elric. Michael Moorcock. An albino warrior/sorcerer from a dying race seeks out a
soul-sucking sword and gets caught up in the ultimate batter between Order and Chaos
The Man in the High Castle. Philip K. Dick. Full of paranoia and sophisticated
reality games, this "what if Nazi Germany had won" storyline is the best alternative
history ever written.
1984. George Orwell. The Ministry of Truth says you will enjoy this book. It's the
only book you can read; there are no others available. You will spend two hours
after dinner every day reading this book; the telescreens insure this. Big Brother
is your friend.
Hyperion. Dan Simmons. The Shrike: the ultimate killing machine that can stop time
with a thought. The Hegemony/AI Consortium alliance: an empire that dominates an
entire galaxy. The Ousters: eon-long mutated humanoids bent on overthrowing the
Hegemony. Add them up and you've got Armageddon.
The Stars My Destination. Alfred Bester. When Gully Foyle gets screwed over and vows
revenge, he transforms himself into an all-powerful quasi-Superman with the power to
change the universe.
Tigana. Guy Gavriel Kay. In an act of revenge, a powerful sorcerer erases the
kingdom of Tigana from existance. But a small band of heros clings to the memory of
their homeland and quests to restore Tigana once again to its rightful place.
Frankenstein. Mary Shelly. The classic tale of a mad scientist's creation, a monster
pieced together from graveyard body parts, and the monster's struggle to have the
world recognize his humanity.
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?. Philip K. Dick. A Bladerunner policeman is
assigned to hunt down andriods posing as human and questions the definition
of "humanity" in the process.
The Sword of Shannara. Terry Brooks. The first book in the "Shannara" series pits
Shea Ohmsford against the evil Warlock Lord and his Skull Bearer minions. This book
was pivotal in popularizing modern fantasy.
The Anubis Gates. Tim Powers. A modern scholar gets caught up in time travel, body-
swapping, swashbuckling, and sorcery in London, circa 1810. Thing Charles Dickens
meets Indiana Jones.
Lightning. Dean Koontz. A time traveler from the past seeks to avert Nazi Germany's
alterations to the present.
The Uplift Trilogy. David Brin. All the other races across the galaxy - including
sentient dolphins and chimps - gained intelligence by genetic modification
or "uplift" and can trace their heritage to their benefactors. Mankind cannot,
leaving them at the bottom of the universal totem pole against technologically
superior and often hostile races.
Ringworld. Larry Niven. A space expedition crashes onto an artificial planet shaped
like a giant hula hoop 190 million miles in diameter. The survivors must fight the
barbarian descendants of the original builders as they adventure across the ring in
search of answers.
The Time Machine. H.G. Wells. A time-traveler explores a conflict in the year
802,701 A.D. between the meek and beautiful Eloi and the underground-dwelling,
ruthless Morlocks.
Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. Fritz Leiber. A barbarian and master thief band together
and bungle their way through encounters with assassin guilds, deadly sorcerers and
scheming gods.
A Princess of Mars. Edgar Rice Burroughs. In the first book of the "John Carter"
series, a Confederate soldier finds himself transported to Mars where he wins
acclaim as a warrior.
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Douglas Adams. The book that kicked off the
five-book trilogy. Arthur Dent is rescued just before the Earth is demolished for a
galactic freeway. He and his companion Ford Prefect encounter a depressed robot,
visit the world where sofas come from and brave the dangers of Vogon poetry.
The Stand. Stephen King. A virus wipes out most of the world's population. While
pockets of people fight to restore civilization, a demonic power threatens to the
remnants of America.
Le Morte d'Arthur. Sir Thomas Malory. The definitive collection of Arthurian tales -
from Lancelot's betrayal to the birth of Mordred to invisible knights.
I, Robot. Issac Asimov. Short stories that set the standard for intelligent robots
in science fiction. Most famous for setting down the Three Laws of Robotics now
taken for granted.
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress. Robert Heinlein. The moon is a penal colony ruled by
an iron-fisted administration. The citizens want freedom and turn to a self-aware
computer for rebellion plans.
Watership Down. Richard Adams. The search for a new home and struggle for survival,
all from a rabbit's point of view. A unique take on the biblical story of Exodus.
Fahrenheit 451. Ray Bradbury. Firemen in the world of Guy Montag don't read books;
they burn them. And Guy enjoys his job. Ten years as a fireman, he never questions
the reasons behind book-burning or the pleasure it gives him...until a 17 year-old
girl shares a past with him where people were not afraid to read.
The Hobbit.. J.R.R. Tolkien. The hobbit Bilbo Baggins, the wizard Gandalf and 13
dwarves embark on a quest to retake the dwarven treasure in the Lonely Mountain.
Trolls, goblins, giant spiders, and the infamous dragon, Smaug, stand in their way.
Helliconia. Brian Aldiss. Civilizations rise and fall on a planet where their year
equals 3,000 of our years and winter's like an ice age.
The Book of the New Sun. Gene Wolfe. How many series have a torturer as the main
character? Follow along as a young apprentice torturer graduates to mass
executioner, moves on to ruler of the world, savior of humanity, and, finally, a
ghost.
Gulliver's Travels. Jonathan Swift. A shipwreck survivor encounters miniature
people, giants and superintelligent, talking horses among other things in a series
of political satires.
Mindkiller. Spider Robinson. What do you do when you find someone can erase minds?
Mindkiller (the first novella in Deathkiller) traces the paths of two men as
mysteries in their lives irrevocably draw them to converge on one enigmatic
organization - a corporation that is responsible for creating technology that lets
people die from pure pleasure. It also has the first permanent means of brainwashing
a person. The protagonists decide to try to shut down this cartel, even though they
know it will certainly mean their doom. The book reads like a mystery-thriller the
first time through, offers rich characterization on a second reading, and underneath
asks: What makes life worth living?
Blood Music. Greg Bear. A nerdy researcher develops biochips - intelligent cells -
and injects them into himself. They spread like a disease, with apocalyptic results.
The Green Mile. Stephen King. The eerie struggle of death row inmates as they fact
the electric chair.
Interview with the Vampire. Anne Rice. The novel that took the gothic mystique of
the vampire into the nights of modern San Francisco.
Starship Troopers. Robert Heinlein. A recruit of the future goes through the
toughest boot camp in the universe - and into battle against humanity's deadliest
enemy. Forget the movie, read the book.
The Chronicles of Narnia. C.S. Lewis. This series contains The Lion, The Witch and
the Wardrobe, the most famous book of the series, wherein four children step inside
a wardrobe in England and emerge into the magical land of Narnia, a land complete
with fauns and talking beavers, a land under the rule and spell of eternal winter by
the White Witch.
The Illuminatus! Trilogy. Robert Shea and Robert Anton Wilson. The three books of
the Illuminatus are only partly works of the imagination. They tackle all the cover-
ups of our time, from who really shot the Kennedys to why there's a pyramid on a one-
dollar bill.
Watchers. Dean Koontz. A genetic experiment creates two super-intelligent beasts.
One, a twisted creature of evil, escapes and the only one that can stop him is
his "brother" - a domesticated dog named Einstein.
The Demolished Man. Alfred Bester. A thrilling murder/suspense story which answers
the question, "How do you commit murder in a 23rd-Century telepathic society?"
Emphyrio. Jack Vance. On the planet Halma, the ruling Lords have made mechanization
and mass production illegal to keep workers poor by limiting their output. Ghyl
Tarvoke, the son of a master woodcarver, works to overthrow the traditional system
and earn fair treatment for the working class.
The Wizard of Oz. L. Frank Baum. Dorothy seeks to return home while exploring a
fantasy world with her companions. This is the first in a series of Oz books,
containing much more material than the classic film such as an encounter with the
monstrous Hammerheads and the origin of the Tin Man. Alas, no winged monkeys though.
War of the Worlds. H.G. Wells. The classic alien invasion tale of technologically
advanced Martian conquerors with an enormous Achilles' Heel.
Mythago Wood. Robert Holdstock. Celtic and Old English myths come alive in a stretch
of primeval woodland that generates living "ghosts" from people's unconcious minds.
Animal Farm. George Orwell. Mutinous farm animals run off their oppressor to
establish a livestock utopia.
The Princess Bride. William Goldman. A swashbucking tale of romance and
adventure...plus Rodents Of Unusual Size.
Wheel of Time. Robert Jordan. One age dies, another age unfolds, and the web of fate
shapes events as each cycle reincarnates old heroes and villians in new flesh.
Imprisoned throughout the changing of the years is the Dark One, fastened by magic
in his mountain prison, Shayol Ghul. He yearns to escape and break all that has
escaped his grasp, while his minions scour the land subverting, manipulating and
otherwise enforcing his dark will. Enter Rand al'Thor, farm boy. He has no
comprehension of the events outside his little villiage. But when a mysterious woman
arrives to open his eyes to the approaching evil, Rand and his friends set out on a
quest that will forever change the world. You see, Rand is the Dragon Reborn, the
most powerful male sorcerer to live during his age. He's got the power to level
whole cities, to erase history, to challenge the Dark One himself - except it's
slowly driving him insane.
It. Stephen King. A creature which preys upon the weak, the vulnerable, the
abandoned. A creature which becomes your worst nightmare.
A Clockwork Orange. Anthony Burgess. When ultraviolent Alex gets caught, he
undergoes treatment to have his antisocial urges artificially controlled. Is a
person capable of goodness without free will?
Timescape. Gregory Benford. Near-future scientists send messages back in time to
1962 to save the planet.
Pern. Anne McCaffery. Human riders link minds with benevolent, airplane-sized
dragons to fight off the all-devouring Thread.heh
Slaughterhouse Five. Kurt Vonnegut. The horrors of war are examined as one man
shifts back and forth between existences, from experiences in WWII Dresden to
captivity on the alien planet Tralfamadore.
Good Omens. Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett. In this bizarre, end-of-the-world
comedy, Armageddon has come, except the angels and devils aren't ready for it.
Fionavar. Guy Gavriel Kay. A group of modern-day students is mysteriously
transported to a fantasy world in peril. When a malevolent diety is released from
1,000 of imprisonment, the students discover that their fates are intertwined with
those of Fionavar.
Earthsea. Ursula K. Le Guin. A misfit boy named Ged studies to be a wizard and
eventually is called to help reestablish the balance of the universe: between light
and dark, male and female, life and death, magic and its ultimate price.
2001. Arthur C. Clarke. How did we get to be what we are? This series answers that
one fundamentally human question. It begins with the establishment of a connection
between our ape-ancestors, struggling to merely survive. We are hoplessly weaker and
outnumbered by the other animals of the planet. An outside force plants the seeds of
real intelligence by way of a great black "monolith." These first conceptual
thoughts launch us toward a chain of events into the future. As the future unfolds,
our curiosity leads to the discovery of another such box on the moon - proof
positive that we are not the only intelligent force in the universe! It is a
discovery that is as impossible for us to understand as our survival problem was
millennia ago. Still, humanity presses on, only to discover another box near
jupiter, which brings even more events crucial to himanity. In 3001: The Final
Odyssey, many of the questions raised in the series are - for good or ill - finally
answered.
Xenogenesis. Octavia Butler. The Oankali aliens have saved the earth. For a price.
Oankali survival requires constant genetic exchange...and we are mating stock.
A Fire Upon the Deep. Vernor Vinge. A god-like artificial intelligence from another
universe threatens this universe. One group has the knowledge to stop it, but
they're trapped on a primative planet without the technological means for space
travel or communication.
Conan. Robert E. Howard. The ultimate barbarian hero kicks the crap out of a
cornucopia of evil sorcerers, trashes a legion of demonic monstrosities, and rescues
every beautiful princess on the planet. Then he eats breakfast.
Mars. Kim Stanley Robinson. In the year 2026, a group of 100 explorers sets out to
colonize and terraform Mars. Except, not everyone wants it that way.
Midnight at the Well of Souls. Jack L. Chalker. Most of the universe was actually
built by an ancient dead race and is manipulated by one massive computer. Whoever
controls the computer has ultimate power.
A Spell for Chameleon. Piers Anthony. In Xanth, everyone has a special magic power
unique to themselves. Unfortunately, Blink is born without one. Or is he?
The Gap. Stephen R. Donaldson. From beyond the boundaries of Forbidden Space, the
Amnion, an alien race capable to horrific atrocities, want something unspeakable
from humanity - and they'll go to unthinkable lengths to get it.
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. Mark Twain. A 19th century man is
transported back to the Round Table where he becomes Arthur's second in command by
introducing a number of modern tools like railroads and telephones.
Adventures of the Stainless Steel Rat. Harry Harrison. Jim diGriz is the most
brilliant con artist and thief in the galaxy. When he's finally captured, the law
enforcement has only one choice - make him one of their own - for it takes a rat to
catch a one.
The Martian Chronicles. Ray Bradbury. A collection of short stories focusing on
humanity's encounters with the Red Planet and its eerie inhabitants. It starts with
first contact and moves on from there. Every story's got a trademark Bradbury twist.
Dark Elf. R.A. Salvatore. One of the best series of gaming-related fiction
introduces Drizzt Do'Urdern, a dark elf (or drow) born with something that no other
drow has or can afford to have: a conscience. His hometown, the underground city of
Menzoberranzan, is a rough place, and his family achieved its position of power by
adhering to the city's Golden Rule: Don't get caught. As Drizzt comes of age, more
and more of life in Menzoberranzan becomes repugnant to him, and he can't perform
the evil acts his society requires. Eventually, he embarasses his family, and, being
a male in a matriarchal society, the penalty for that sort of thing is death. He has
no choice but to escape to the surface world, which doesn't take kindly to dark
elves, who have a reputation of beeing bloodthirsty evildoers. Drizzt's quest for
acceptance in "good" society and escape from his past lead to many adventures and
battles.
West of Eden. Harry Harrison. The earth is ruled by intelligent dinosaurs; they
discover America, populated by tool-using, Stone Age men. Bloody fights ensue.
A Fine and Private Place. Peter S. Beagle. A timeless classic romance between two
ghosts who must fight to remember what life and love once were.
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. Jules Verne. Captain Nemo's exploration of the oceans
and battle for their control. Verne's Nautilus predates real submarines.
Dying Inside. Robert Silverberg. An aging telepath starts to lose the grip on his
mental powers. A fascinating journey into the mind of an average man granted unusual
powers.
Dragonlance. Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. The creatures of legend, dragons, have
returned - and brought darkness and destruction with them. Only one band of
adventurers can save the world...if they're not betrayed from within.
Lensman. E.E. "Doc" Smith. Classic space opera with pure-as-Boy-Scout heros and
unrelentingly evil bad guys fighting for control of planet-squishing "doomsday
devices."
Something Wicked This Way Comes. Ray Bradbury. Perhaps the subtlest horror story
ever written. The Carnival promises to fulfill your greatest wish, but charges the
highest price for it. The images from this book will haunt you for the rest of your
life.
The Mote in God's Eye. Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle. It's 3017 A.D. Humanity
discovers intelligent aliens in a backwater region of space: Should we embrace them
or bomb 'em to bits?
Stranger in a Strange Land. Robert A. Heinlein. The stranger is Valentine Michael
Smith, and the strange land is Earth. Smith was born on Mars, the only human
survivor of our first expedition there. He was raised by Martians, then "rescued" by
the second expedition some 25 years later. He thinks of himself as a Martian and
uses Martian abilities like levitation without seeing anything unusual about them.
Now, like a child raised in the wilderness by wolves, he must learn how to be
human...and at the same time, teach his new friends how to think like a Martian. He
discovers the joys of sex and free love (which is part of what made this book so
popular with the 60's generation), and tries to reconcile the many conflicting
teachings of Earthly religions with his Martian knowledge. The reader not only
watches Smith's growth, but also gets a tour of a futuristic Earth and all the
foibles of human society.
Space Trilogy. C.S. Lewis. A Mars rampant with life. A water-covered Venus populated
with floating, living "islands." An Earth where King Arthur fights corporate
Britain.
The Invisible Man. H.G. Wells. A scientist's sanity and morality is the price of his
invisibility formula.
Gun, With Occasional Music. Jonathan Lethem. A private eye gets involved in a murder
mystery in a near, dark future populated by leftover humans and animals - like gun-
toting kangaroos - genetically enhanced to near-human intelligence. Scathingly dark
and very funny.
Lyonesse. Jack Vance. Supernatural novels full of faeries, witches and inter-kingdom
intrigue - and it all takes place beneath the English Channel.
Catspaw. Joan Vinge. Cyberpunk, murder-mystery and political intrigue twist together
in this page-turner which tells the story of Cat, a half-human psychic, forced to
work as a bodyguard for the people he hates most.
Crystal Express. Bruce Sterling. Humanity has finally abandoned Earth for space and
divided into two factions separated by biology as well as philosophy. The Shaper
faction uses genetic and bio-engineering to adapt their bodies to space while the
Mechanists believe in creating superior humans using cybernetic enhancements.
The Last Unicorn. Peter S. Beagle. When a unicorn receives word that all the other
unicorns have vanished, she embarks on a quest to find her lost fellows. She is
mortal for a brief period and is the only unicorn that has ever loved a human being
for more than a short time.
To Your Scattered Bodies Go. Philip Jose Farmer. Anyone who has ever died - you, me,
Hitler, Mark Twain - ends up on a strange alien world. The first book in the
Riverworld series follows the adventures of a lone explorer trying to puzzle out the
mysteries of the freakish "afterlife."
The Silence of the Lambs. Thomas Harris. An FBI agent must enlist the help of a
sadistic serial killer to hunt down another serial killer.
Downbelow Station. C.J. Cherryh. Humanity has been exploring space for a few hundred
years with sub-light ships, long enough to establish trade routes between orbital
stations in a handful of distant solar systems. Downbelow Station is at the crux of
the shipping routes, the gateway to Earth's defensive perimeter. Earth authorities
worry that the sub-light communication lags - of 10 years or more in some cases -
are giving their distant colonies and upstart merchant vessels too much freedom, but
when Earth finally cracks down, it's already too late: Scientists at distant Cyteen
have already built the first faster-than-light spacedrive, and Cyteen has become the
center of a new power called Union. Although Downbelow Station has always prided
itseld on its neutrality, it's now caught between Earth, Union, and merchanter
forces, fated to become the center of the conflict.
Flowers for Algernon. Daniel Keyes. A mentally retarded custodian undergoes a
breakthrough surgical technique that triples his IQ. He's got the mind of a genius,
but the emotional maturity of a child.
The Songs of Distant Earth. Arthur C. Clarke. Humankind learns that the Sun is going
to explode and sends its genetic seed into the universe before the Earth is
destroyed. This is hard science-fiction with a reasonably viable method of space
travel.
The Four Lords of the Diamond. Jack Chalker. A secret agent has his mind copied into
four different bodies to infiltrate four enemy worlds and assasinate their rulers.
Swords. Fred Saberhagen. The god Vulcan crafts magical blades, each with a specific
unstoppable power, and unleashes them upon an unsuspecting world. First, humanity
uses the swords to kill the gods. After that, things get violent.
Way Station. Clifford Simak. An Earthling is employed by an intergalactic federation
to watch over a Way Station they secretly set up on Earth. Can he balance the
loyalties to his race and to his employers and prevent an atomic war?
The Kraken Wakes. John Wydham. An unusual "invasion from below" premise with a
couple similar to Paul and Jamie from "Mad About You" fulfilling the lead roles.
Snow Crash. Neal Stephenson. The first cyberpunk novel to feature a Matrix with
personality and the first hints of virtual reality. Plus, you've gotta love a main
character named Hiro Protagonist who's a hacker, samurai-swordsman and pizza-
delivery guy for The Mob.
The High Crusade. Poul Anderson. Dark Age knights comandeer a space craft and
conquer the galaxy, converting aliens to Christianity along the way.
Through the Looking Glass. Lewis Carroll. In the novel that follows Alice in
Wonderland, young Alice seeks to return home while exploring a mad, enchanted land
and dodging those who seek to do her harm.
Carrion Comfort. Dan Simmons. A secret society of psychic vampires feed off others'
misery and play games with human minds.
The Postman. David Brin. You've seen the movie about one man standing up for his
ideals in a post-apocalypse America. Now read the book; it's better.
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是指这个吗，其实排名这种东西随便看看就算了，一般来说当不得真的^_^
