AKICOLJ: A book for tom

[coalescent]

The esteemed Mr Anderson passes on this request for book recommendations:

... an SF book for a reading group - needs to be something that non-SF readers would appreciate, not too hard to read, something to get them started with SF. Any ideas? Also needs to be in cheap-ish paperback I suppose.

The need for it to be readily available in paperback probably implies something fairly recent; it needs to be science fiction, not fantasy; and obviously, it needs to be good. Tom is already suggesting The Separation, The Prestige, and ("through gritted teeth") Cloud Atlas. What else should be on this list? (Tom notes that he will find and kill, horribly, anyone who suggests Air.)

(On a separate note, for anyone who might be interested my books-read-in-2006 roundup is here.)

EDIT: Tom has listed the suggestions so far here.

Comments

[twic.myopenid.com (from livejournal.com)]

I tend to agree about novels. Short stories are the best kind of SF, of course, but i think the novel form is probably appropriate here. I'm far from certain about that, though - i'll see if i can find out.

I'd be really curious as to how non-SF-readers react to Egan. Might suggest it just to find out!

-- tom

[ninebelow.livejournal.com]

I'd be really curious as to how non-SF-readers react to Egan.

I suspect it would be like shooting up someone with pure heroin when they had never even skinpopped before.

[twic.myopenid.com (from livejournal.com)]

Either that, or they just wouldn't get it.

So tempted to suggest an Egan/Chiang/Stapledon triple bill.

-- tom