In 1932, English writer Aldous Huxley published Brave New World and foretold a future in which individualism is abhorred, the population is permanently limited and everyone is strung out on a hallucinogen known as soma. Many critics today describe this anti-utopian story as a science-fiction classic. But another 10 years or so would pass before mainstream publishers began embracing sci-fi as a genre. The years before, during and after World War …

March - Comic Book Report Comic By Jim Davis Created By Stan Lee, Co-plotter Steve Ditko For March s book report you have a choice between reading a fantasy or science fiction story. Remember a fantasy story includes elements that are impossible like magic or talking animals. A science fiction story uses science or technology. Print the directions and the comic storyboard planner below. Printable Comic Book Report Directions Examples: Tut, Tut comic …

Science-fiction is an ideal genre for kids of all ages — not the sole domain of ponderous, provocative philosophical tomes using space as a metaphor for the human condition and psyche. Although rooted in astronomy, robots and other scientific truths, the accompanying sense of wonder and speculation makes the genre (and its myriad sub-genres) so enduring. Introducing children and young adults to the comfortable, familiar narratives, character archetypes …

Aurora Award When the Canadian SF and Fantasy Association was started up in 1980 there was only one award given. Since 1991, awards have been presented in 10 categories. There are 6 professional awards (3 English and 3 French), 3 fan awards, and the artistic achievement award. The Aurora awards are closest to the style of the Hugo awards in the method by which they are selected. First, there is the nomination phase to select a short list. Then a voting …

By T.N. Tobias | Tuesday, September 27th, 2011at 12:29 am Over the summer, NPR solicited the input of its listeners to rank the top science fiction and fantasy books of all time. Over 60, people voted for the top picks which were then compiled into a list by their panel of experts. The result? This list of 100 books with a wide range of styles, little context, and absolutely no pithy commentary to help readers actually choose something to read from …

One thing to keep in mind when picking an audio version is the production quality – e.g. I have encountered a few versions of Dune books I simply could not finish due to a monotonous or uninformed narrator. Here is my top 10 list of books that do have great audio versions (some even with multiple narrators and music), along with corresponding links on Audible. 1. Frank Herbert: Dune Classic Series (6 books) This original series containing Dune, Dune …

My latest space opera novel, The Returning, follow up to last year’s The Worker Prince, wound up being modeled after thrillers like Robert Ludlam’s Bourne novels and got me thinking a lot about great science fiction and fantasy thrillers. Obviously science lends itself well to the thriller genre, and the thriller genre is one of the easiest and most fun to cross-mix with other genres. So based in part on Amazon listings and recommendations from friends …

Science fiction cover art has a bad reputation. Not without reason: much of it is pulpy, overly brash, or just plain scary — it’s kind of the name of the game. Yet there are also plenty of science fiction novels and collections that buck the trend and manage to be not only palatable to those that (for instance) love the insides but hate that naked green woman on the cover, but downright gorgeous. After the jump, a selection of some of the best, from …

This was a virtually impossible task. Put together a list of 50 must-read science fiction books and don’t make anyone angry. Science fiction is the most discussed and argued over genre in literature but it actually goes way beyond books and into film, TV, video games and even toys. Here are the criteria I used. One book per author, so that was hard on the big three of science fiction – Robert Heinlein, Isaac Asimov and Arthur C Clarke, who each have …

2012 has seen a wealth of science fiction novels released throughout the year. There s no shortage of great reads out there to add to the ever-growing to-read pile well into 2013. Here s 15 novels that are sure to please. Throne of the Crescent Moon, Saladin Ahmed Saladin Ahmed has made a name for himself in fantasy’s short-fiction circles, and has recently released his debut novel. Throne of the Crescent Moon takes epic fantasy to an inventive new …