My Top 10 Favorite Books
Dune by Frank Herbert
Why I love it: This books was revolutionary for science fiction; it was one of the first to both integrate real scientific principles into science fiction, while still focusing on humanity's future, not just the future of human technology. Herbert sets a compelling story of political intrigue into a background of Tolkien-caliber world building. It can be a hard one to work through, but particularly the last 100 pages make it all worth it.The Demon Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark by Carl Sagan
Why I love it: Carl Sagan can strike a balance between skepticism and wonderment that is often awe inspiring. He has been a major influence for me as a teacher and a person. Demon Haunted World, written near the end of his life, encapsulates a great deal of his larger body of work and general philosophy. Perhaps more importantly, it is centered around that magical balance of skepticism and wonder. The book strives to instill the importance of healthy skepticism by looking at questions that range from aliens and psychics to American education policy. While this may seem to tear down some potential sources for excitement and magic in our world, Sagan's scientific worldview and eloquent words reveal a world at least as wonderful.Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie
Why I love it: Midnight's Children is an incredible piece of storytelling. Rushdie constructs scores of different characters and lays out their highly interconnected lives through a not-so-reliable narrator. It involves everything from the history of India to superpowers. The plot is labyrinthine, but each corner has a story worth hearing.Watchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons
Why I love it: There are many great graphic novels out there, but I would say Watchmen is among the best. Between Gibbons' artwork and Moore's writing, every page has an incredible amount of depth to pour over. There is more to explore, be moved by, and analyze than many of the most revered classics. Watchmen is a dark, postmodern exploration of superheroes that pulls you down into the darkness as it constructs such compelling, broken characters.The Beast That Shouted Love At The Heart Of The World by Harlan Ellison
Why I love it: Harlan Ellison is one of the lesser known giants of science fiction. He wrote for many episodes of the Outer Limits and his work has been adapted into movies on several occasions (often against his will). Beast... is a collection of some of his short stories and it is a great demonstration of his range. The titular story highlight some of his more psychological and bizarre work, while "Are You Listening?" is a far more realistic story about a mild-mannered man, and stories like "Phoenix" have a clear Outer Limits/Twilight Zone flair. His writing can be dark and gruesome at times, but in a collection as diverse as this one, I feel like there's a story for everyone.Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud
Why I love it: I enjoy critical theory and I enjoy comics. McCloud brings them together in an engaging, insightful, and funny way. In a single frame, McCloud can explain theories that usually require several pages of grad-school-level reading. McCloud explores everything from theories on the evolution of art, to theories of time and space in comics, to postmodern semiology. Maybe most importantly, he manages to do all of this in a way that is genuinely fun to work through. For lovers of comics and lovers of critical theory, I think this is a must-read.The Stories of Your Life by Ted Chiang
Why I love it: Ted Chiang is very possibly the finest example of speculative fiction. While much of his work would fit comfortably in conventional definitions of “science ficiton,” others, such as “Tower of Babel” (a story of miners digging into the Vault of Heaven in a literal interpretation of a Biblical Earth) and “Seventy-Two Letters” (what is nearly a robot story about golems controlled by strings of Hebrew letters) fall a bit outside the normal tropes. It was a tough decision to feature this book or his more recent book, Exhalation, but I feel this is a better introduction to Chiang’s work. From “Stories of Your Life” - which was adapted into the film Arrival - to “Division by Zero” - a truly unique story of divorce told through a mathematical crisis - this collection demonstrates why Chiang should rightfully be viewed as an author at the top of his field.Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind by Hayao Miyazaki
Why I love it: This comic is the chief rival of Watchmen for my ranking of the best comic out there. This extensive series of books (4 or 7, depending on the edition) was written and hand-drawn by the now-famous Hayao Miyazaki. In it, you can see echoes of his work to come, visually and conceptually. While it was adapted into a film, the film covers only the first of 7 books. The books build a much more complex world and plot, as well as a more morally ambiguous end - but an end that is all the more rewarding for its complexity.The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien
Why I love it: These stories, and The Hobbit before them, were read to me when I was young and I've loved them ever since. They are the most seminal works in the history of the fantasy genre, effectively the beginning of that genre. Tolkien's world building is immense and dense, borrowing heavily from Germanic mythology. Beyond nostalgia and historical significance, I love these books for their blend of playful, magical storytelling and serious, epic struggles. It is quite a time investment to read them all, and it can take some work to get through, but they are definitely worth it.Carry On by Rainbow Rowell
Why I love it: This book is a pseudo-sequel to Rowell's Fangirl, which focused on Cath, a fan fiction writer who was finishing her opus: a slash-fiction novel that was effectively a romantic pairing of a legally different Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy. Carry On is Cath's opus, spun into a full novel by Rowell. While there are clear parallels, it is manages to stand on its own as more than just a Harry Potter knock-off. Carry On is silly, serious, romantic, and mysterious all at once. While it is a celebration of fan fiction and slash-fiction (the romantic pairing of same-sex couples in fan fiction), it is also an enjoyable and creative novel in its own right.
Some of my other favorite authors:
Philip K. Dick
Kenneth Burke
James Paul Gee
Sarah Vowell
Penny Kittle
Michel Foucault
Ken Liu
Edward Said
Ta-Nahisi Coates
Neil DeGrasse Tyson
Mary Shelley
