I can hear one of you saying: “But there are more than five science fiction books worth reading twice!” I understand that, Reader Who States the Obvious to Irk Me Into Whimsical Asides. But these are the five I want to talk about right now and you, RWStOtIMIWA, are delaying the magic moment.
The reason I chose these five books is because they resonated with me as both reader and writer. To a writer, most book are pleasant journeys, but some are experienced as deep dives into the depths of fiction and how it can be written. These are the books that entertain, but also leave you admiring the talent and mastery of the author. That is why they are worth reading twice: as Reader, to enjoy; as Writer, to grow in craftsmanship. None of the five will be a surprise, for obvious reasons: I am not the only one who appreciates their value.
- The Left Hand of Darkness. Reading this novel for the first time was to plunge into a world so deftly created a summary of what is revealed about it would almost certainly be longer than the book. Ursula K. Le Guin was a superbly talented writer who could present depths of character and human/alien nuances without drawing attention to the techniques she used to build her stories. This is writing to the ear as well as the eye, as she uses words in almost poetic fashion to evoke emotions in subtle ways.
- Ilium, & Olympos. Note the Oxford comma: these are two novels, set in the same complex world, a whirling mélange of literary and mythological tropes along with cutting-edge biology-based science-fiction. Others might have chosen Dan Simmons’ other very excellent Hyperion Cantos series, but I favor this two-book work because it grabs the reader from the first chapter and never really lets go. The intricacy of the plot and multi-layered characters are triumphs of imagination and technique, so the Reader can be swept along to a breathtaking adventure, while the Writer can take their time to peer into the structural expertise that makes this series so fascinating to learn from.
- The Moon is a Harsh Mistress. Robert Heinlein is a giant in science fiction, and several other works of his could have made this list. But the advantage that Moon has is that his entire repertoire of techniques and imaginative vision are on display in a read you can get through in a couple of hours. Read it to get caught in the struggle of a colony to throw off the yoke, enjoy the dialogue and details that make the story seem real, then go back and identify how expertly Heinlein uses a paragraph or even a sentence to paint a larger picture you as the Reader “see” more completely. Once you grok it, you can’t unsee it, but you will find it worthwhile to work hard to master it as a writing tool.
- Exhalation. Ted Chiang is nothing short of genius in this anthology. Not only has this book sold hundreds of thousands of copies, its nine stories tallied three Hugos, three additional Hugo nominations, two Locus Awards, a Nebula Award, and a Seiun. Read for the nova-like imagination, the almost preternatural character depth in short form and the poetic language. Then re-read it to understand that every paragraph is built with peerless precision, some like origami, some like a circuit board, but all of them evocative and intricate and insightful. Then think about how this might not even be Chiang’s best anthology.
