Lathe of Heaven - tpb 187 pages. It does deal with a lot of complex issues but the writing is very stright forward. Shadow of the Torturer which also is about 200 pages on the other hand...
Loved lathe!! But i recommended it in my novellas video. But i need to read more of her work. So thought provoking. Hahah- oh gene wolfe! I wonder if I could get done with even a whole chapter in day…… he is so smart and so dense.
Caves of Steel is on my personal Top 10 of SF Novels. Set in the I, Robot Universe but much better than the collected short stories, and the start of a trilogy. Great recommendation. And the whole video presents an interesting list. Thank you.
By the way, I have Dogs of War on audio (through audible UK). I’ve actually had it for a couple of years, so strange it’s not available to you guys in the US. It’s a really good audio too, with multiple narrators. (Dogs of War is my favourite work by this author, well one of all time favs period haha). Just wanted to let you know that it is out there!
@@sambell6608 You arent the only one who has said that! I am in the US so im not sure why we don’t have it…. I have also heard it doesnt fit my time limit, but oh well cant change it now.
Great suggestions, Whitney! I love Spider Robinson, particularly his collections of offbeat short stories set in Callahan's Crosstime Saloon that he wrote mostly in the 1970s and 80s. Some of the jokes are a little corny, but the stories themselves have a lot of heart. Little Fuzzy is another favorite of mine.
Little fuzzy needs more love…. I havent heard about spider’s short stories. I will have to check it out- im not afraid of corny. Thanks for watching Bridger! How was the lighting??
Thank you for the video. I stumbled across this and it is the first time I've watched you and it was incredibly entertaining. Your video editing is off the charts! I'm a fan and will be checking out your other videos, too. Thanks!
I read Octavia E. Butler's Kindred in a day and loved every second of it. Really reads like a thriller. No aliens or space travel but it has involuntary time travel, which is executed amazingly. I really need to start reading Tchaikovsky. I'm still doubting which one to start first: Elder Race or Children of Time, but Dogs of War also sounds interesting. Thanks for bringing attention to these lesser known titles!
As for Tchaikovsky, depends on your mood. Elder race is a novella, so its quite as complex or mind blowing. Children of time is his magnum opus but it takes half the book to get into it….. dogs of war is well like i said superficial at times but just a heck of a fun read. Ps -octavia is great i recommend anything she writes.
I read Stoweaway to Mars by Wyndham last year. I loved it. There is also strong female representation. There are some aspects of the relationship between male and female that made me wonder if they were commentary on the state of how women were treated at the time.
Hm. I will have to go find that book. I suspect he had alot to say about how women were treated at the time- i should research that more. I own day of triffids but i need to see if i can find his other works.
This is a great idea for a video! I'm always looking for short reads between lengthy tomes, especially vintage ones. And I'd only read one of your vintage picks! I picked up all the others on Kindle for under $3.
Wonderful!!! I hope you enjoy them. Sounds like many enjoyable days ahead. Thanks for lettibg me know- i didnt know they were available on kindle so cheap…
@@secretsauceofstorycraft btw, which one was your favorite vintage and modern out of the one you’ve read, you never said? On an aside, funny story, I actually picked up The Fuzzy Papers at my local library book sale just last week not knowing anything about it. I just like the cover. It has the first two compiled. I’m excited to read it now.
Great recommendations! I have copies of Roadside Picnic and Trouble with Lichen on my bookshelf crying out to be read soon. I would recommend Planet of the Apes for this list. It's a quick read with short chapters, an engrossing plot and thought-provoking ideas. I am usually quite a slow reader but I got through it very quickly.
I'm glad someone finally recognized the author H. Beam Piper. "Little Fuzzy" is a great read and is part of the larger Terro-Human Future History series of stories (AKA A History of the Future). If he hadn't committed suicide in 1964, he might have become more popular and better known today. If you like this story, consider reading "Omnilingual" (a short story) and "The Cosmic Computer" (A novel) both set in his future history. If you like parallel Earth type stories, consider reading "The Complete Paratime" (A set of short stories and one novel involving the Paratime Police). In any case, give this undeservedly forgotten author a chance. You will be glad you did.
I’ve really been enjoying your channel and I think the video quality is excellent. If I may make a suggestion though it would be to use a bit less b-roll. It can get distracting sometimes. I do enjoy the gif bits of humor on some of it though. Keep up the good work
Hey. I have been experimenting with that and do appreciate the feedback. I am planning to try and cut back but i dont want to have too many jump cuts either. Balance is hard for me. But keep the constructive criticism coming!! I want to improve.
@@secretsauceofstorycraft Yes, I’d like to read both once time allows. Although I think I might get Fuzzy Nation on audio too. I’m listening to Downward to Earth next.
Yes, it is! He got permission to write it from the piper estate- his version. Its directly a retelling. I will have to read scalzi’s version and see which i like better…
No idea if your into lots of visceral violent cyberpunky blood and guts action but if you are you can't do much better than Neal Ashers 'Prador Moon' a sort of prequel to his Ian Cormac series of books set in his Polity Universe. Pretty short novella, easily read in a day (or two). Great video and I've actually read a few of the recommendations, especially Little Fuzzy, Piper has largely been forgotten I think. Shame as he was pretty good imo. Keep up the good work, much appreciated.
Yes! I absolutely love me some violent cyberpunky blood and guys action. Im sold! Will check out. Thanks for watching, i’d love more people to hear about h beam piper- but first i better finish the complete fuzzy…..
Another vintage book that I would recommend is "Wasp" by Eric Frank Russell. It is 170 pages and can also easily be read in a day. It was first published in 1957. The blurb on the cover says, "He was sent to make war against another planet, to terrorize it and destroy it singlehanded". The story is inventive and witty in places. Eric Frank Russell is a somewhat overlooked author from that time period but I think he was one of the best.
Lots of great recommendations here. A book I picked up because of Bookpilled’s recommendation was Hothouse by Brian Aldiss, and I would definitely recommend it for this category. I read it in two sittings on a train and it is the only book that I’ve read with world-building that I think can rival Dune (the storytelling doesnt rival Dune but literally nothing does). One of my favorite books of all time.
@@secretsauceofstorycraft I think you’ll like it. It’s one of the strangest books i’ve ever read, definitely times when reading it where things get extremely weird, but the way the story progresses from the midway point of the book to the end is amazing. I don’t wanna give anything away but the ending is incredible.
I agree about page length; It's a publisher illusion. I think short books these days are looked down on, so publishers make them look thicker (The Shining Girls). I probably read in 66% of audiobooktime. I would add Alfred Bester - The Stars My Destination and Robert Heinlein - The Puppet Masters. Also John Scalzi - Old Man's War.
Such a great video! So many great recommendations. Half Way Home seems like it will be a lot of fun. I read Caves of Steel and I Robot about twenty years ago and loved them. I must say that Little Fuzzy gives me some tribbles vibes.
Tribbles?? I am not familiar with it. But fuzzies was better than i expected…. And i liked it. Thanks for watching and especially for commenting. I appreciate.
@@secretsauceofstorycraft Tribbles were furry little ball creatures on the original Star Trek series. They overwhelmed the Enterprise. First season, I believe.
@@JasonsWeirdReads aww they sound kinda adorable and troublesome. That is probably true about the fuzzies but they are smart and very emotional. Let me know if u pick it up, what u think. We have to resolve the tribble debate :)
Almost every book on this video sounds like something I would like. My ten year old son is obsessed with Kaiju. Would you happen to remember if "The Kaiju Preservation Society" would be ok for a ten year old. I was thinking it might be something we could do together.
I would let my kids listen to or read it. I am pretty sure it was like PG-13 at worst. I didn't care much for it, but a kanji loving 10yo would probably love it.
@@BookPigg thank you so much for the response. I will definitely ask him if he would like for us to read this together or if he'd like to read it himself.
I can tell u that its 99% ok for a 10 year old- what i dont remember is if there was any sex scenes. Scalzi does tend to have description there in many of his other books. I will flip thru it this weekend and re-respond.
@@secretsauceofstorycraft thank you so much. One other thing I thought of is that you might want to consider an affiliate link to Amazon to purchase books you recommend. That would take us right to the book and give you a small cut for the recommendation.
I had never heard Little Fuzzy talked about but the cover with the Fuzzy leaning on a tree, I think the more modern cover, is burned into my mind for some reason. Roadside Picnic has been on my shame list so I just grabbed it for kindle sounds like Annihilation / Colour out of Space vibes with a twist
I would agree with ur interpretion of roadside picnic. You will have to let me know what you think. little fuzzy is a book that should get a more modern cover but i think that old style one is hilarious!
@@secretsauceofstorycraft I am going to pick up the weirdest one I can find. Check out The Long Way Home by Paul Anderson's cover . .. Fuzzy is back. . . and this time it's personal
It's kind of odd. I read this novel as a young teenager some fifty-five years ago and much of it is still fresh in my mind yet I don't remember the sexism. Unless you are thinking of the place where they are briefly discussing open relationships as a way to repopulate and avoid the problems of a small gene pool. I could say more but I don't want to introduce spoilers to the plot.
You need a spoiler alert for Roadside Picnic. Also, supposedly John Wyndham was often cited as an important reason for why people went into science and space exploration for their careers; they enjoyed his science fiction so much as they were growing up.
@@secretsauceofstorycraft Well, I think that applied to the UK where I live, when I was growing up. I couldn't say if that were necessarily true of the U.S. I was certainly as influenced in my choice of career by American SF novels, short stories and TV series.
LOVED LOVED LOVED Dogs of War (19:49). However, as a dog person, it broke my heart all the time. Rex is a good boy 😭 Bear Head is the next one in that series, also great.
Please tell me how you like it. I havent read anything else by him. Also for record, i love your channel. Plan to comment more now that this video is done….
@@secretsauceofstorycraft It's funny that somehow (I tended to rely on what I could find in the public library rather than buying SF back in the day) I read The Naked Sun (which I liked) and planned to read the prequel, The Caves of Steel but somehow never got around to it.
Dogs of War has an audiobook on all other platforms i believe from 2018. I can see it available on Audible India, Scribd and Storytel. Maybe its not available in US yet?
I enjoyed the following short books: The Chrysalids by John Wyndham (200 pages, 6h 58m), Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang by Kate Wilhelm (207 pages, 7h 48m), Solaris by Stanslaw Lem (204 pages, 7h 42m), This Immortal by Roger Zelazny (174 pages, 7h 30m), Invasion of the Body Snatchers by Jack Finney (216 pages, 6h 39m), and Planet of the Apes by Pierre Boulle (189 pages, 5h 55m). I have not read a Case of Conscience by James Blish (188 pages, 8h 1m) but friends have recommended it.
I appreciate that you talk about the female representation in a lot of the older books. Sometimes its so bad its a deal breaker for me! I started reading To be taught, if fortunate by Becky Chambers because of your videos and I'm loving it! :)
@@secretsauceofstorycraft Ok WTF was that ending????? 🤨 so pretentious lol but other than that I loved the book! As someone with a degree in Ecology, I loved that the mission was normal field work but with aliens!
I actually read Childhoods End, as I recall it ended pretty much like the last season of The One-hundred which I hated, but I did enjoy Arthur Clarkes book. I also enjoyed reading The Forever War by Joe Haldene I think.
I have not seen the end of of the 100. I will say the end of childhood’s end wasnt the greatest part of the book, it was the ideas things like humans needing struggle, the good yet specific aliens 👽, Anyhow - i havent read the forever war yet. But im glad you recommended!!
I liked Childhood's End, evocative and rather elegiac but it seemed a bit disjointed with some retconning and plot direction shifts like it was a fix-up novel from separate sections published in a magazine. Funny, the main thing I remember was was the one-line review by C.S. Lewis on the back cover saying something to the effect that Clarke at least didn't see the survival of the human race as the only end worth attaining. A nod to his character of the atheistic Weston in his trilogy (which started with Out of the Silent Planet) who repeatedly sought to let the ends of human survival by Darwinian means justify unethical means. Supposedly a stand-in for H.G. Wells but I suspect it was C.S. Lewis's private opinion of all scientists.🙂
One for your list, The Last Machine in the Solar System by Matthew Isaac Sobin, it is Sci-Fi & relevant in the light of the recent advances in AI, I've read this story 2x, at an average reader pace it os certainly a day read, recommend you check it out,
@@secretsauceofstorycraft If I had to guess, taking into account size & that this book is not on any bestseller lists, its likely not available in audiobook, have to confess, I don't read actual physical books any longer, I have been reading vie iPad & ePubs since both came out & also don't do audiobook,
I thought Annihilation (the book that the Natalie Portman movie is based on) was great. relatively short listen/read. First of a trilogy but I'm still counting it
You cheated with Tchaichovsky! Lavie Tidhar is IMHO, the best "modern" SF writer. Almost all of his novels fit within the length requirements you used. Admittedly, some (particularly A Man Lies Dreaming) require contemplation and probably shouldn't be read in a day, but most would be fine. His early metafictional Bookman stories are just a roller coaster of fun. Try them.
low expectations can turn out. If you set the bar low enough, less disappointments. Kinda like pizza. No such thing as bad pizza. Some better than others
I have to admit, I picked up Roadside Picnic after hearing Bookpilled gush about it but....I DNFed it. The translation is so horrible. It's so corny and clunky to me, and even though the scenes in the Zones were somewhat intriguing, it wasn't enough for me to get past the annoying translation. Particularly the dialogue. I wish a new translation would be released.
OK, now you triggered my Math Geek Daemon! You said, "8 hours or less, but you put on the screen, ">8 hrs". That is greater than 8 hours. You are going to make people think that you are a liberal arts major. LOL
Lathe of Heaven - tpb 187 pages. It does deal with a lot of complex issues but the writing is very stright forward.
Shadow of the Torturer which also is about 200 pages on the other hand...
Loved lathe!! But i recommended it in my novellas video. But i need to read more of her work. So thought provoking.
Hahah- oh gene wolfe! I wonder if I could get done with even a whole chapter in day…… he is so smart and so dense.
Great episode. Lighting, editing, thumbnail, all on point!. Great books. Great video!
Thank you!!
Caves of Steel is on my personal Top 10 of SF Novels. Set in the I, Robot Universe but much better than the collected short stories, and the start of a trilogy. Great recommendation. And the whole video presents an interesting list. Thank you.
Yay!! Caves of steel gets a bad rep but i enjoyed it.
A book I read when I was 12. Read it in a day and have been hooked on the genre since. A Fall of Moondust, Arthur C. Clarke, 220 pages.
Havent read that one. I need to delve i to clarke more.
Wow so many amazing recommendations of short books I’d never heard of. Have added quite a few to my TBR. Thanks for putting out this video!
Thanks for watching. I appreciate you letting me know.
@@secretsauceofstorycraft very welcome, looking forward to watching more of your content in the future, greetings from the Netherlands
By the way, I have Dogs of War on audio (through audible UK). I’ve actually had it for a couple of years, so strange it’s not available to you guys in the US. It’s a really good audio too, with multiple narrators. (Dogs of War is my favourite work by this author, well one of all time favs period haha). Just wanted to let you know that it is out there!
@@sambell6608 You arent the only one who has said that! I am in the US so im not sure why we don’t have it…. I have also heard it doesnt fit my time limit, but oh well cant change it now.
Great suggestions, Whitney! I love Spider Robinson, particularly his collections of offbeat short stories set in Callahan's Crosstime Saloon that he wrote mostly in the 1970s and 80s. Some of the jokes are a little corny, but the stories themselves have a lot of heart. Little Fuzzy is another favorite of mine.
Little fuzzy needs more love…. I havent heard about spider’s short stories. I will have to check it out- im not afraid of corny. Thanks for watching Bridger! How was the lighting??
Freeze Frame!! I definitely want to reread that one. This is a really great list
Yes! You knew it was coming tho right :) Thanks for watching!!
Thank you for the video. I stumbled across this and it is the first time I've watched you and it was incredibly entertaining. Your video editing is off the charts! I'm a fan and will be checking out your other videos, too. Thanks!
Welcome! Thanks for watching -- And for letting me know what you liked. I hope you enjoy it!
I haven't read any of these and the descriptions are so delicious that I want to read them all at once!
Hahah! I have that problem all the time!
I read Octavia E. Butler's Kindred in a day and loved every second of it. Really reads like a thriller. No aliens or space travel but it has involuntary time travel, which is executed amazingly.
I really need to start reading Tchaikovsky. I'm still doubting which one to start first: Elder Race or Children of Time, but Dogs of War also sounds interesting. Thanks for bringing attention to these lesser known titles!
As for Tchaikovsky, depends on your mood. Elder race is a novella, so its quite as complex or mind blowing. Children of time is his magnum opus but it takes half the book to get into it….. dogs of war is well like i said superficial at times but just a heck of a fun read.
Ps -octavia is great i recommend anything she writes.
I took note of many of the listed books in this vid to add to my wish list. Great recommendations!
Yay, thank you!
I read Stoweaway to Mars by Wyndham last year. I loved it. There is also strong female representation. There are some aspects of the relationship between male and female that made me wonder if they were commentary on the state of how women were treated at the time.
Hm. I will have to go find that book. I suspect he had alot to say about how women were treated at the time- i should research that more.
I own day of triffids but i need to see if i can find his other works.
This is a great idea for a video! I'm always looking for short reads between lengthy tomes, especially vintage ones. And I'd only read one of your vintage picks! I picked up all the others on Kindle for under $3.
Wonderful!!! I hope you enjoy them. Sounds like many enjoyable days ahead. Thanks for lettibg me know- i didnt know they were available on kindle so cheap…
Your criteria selection is amazing, Whitney!! Thank you!!!
You're so welcome! Thank you for appreciating it and for commenting.
Nice! I gotta give these books a try. Thank you for your videos, they're great!
Glad you like them! Thanks for commenting! I really appreciate.
@@secretsauceofstorycraft btw, which one was your favorite vintage and modern out of the one you’ve read, you never said?
On an aside, funny story, I actually picked up The Fuzzy Papers at my local library book sale just last week not knowing anything about it. I just like the cover. It has the first two compiled. I’m excited to read it now.
Great recommendations! I have copies of Roadside Picnic and Trouble with Lichen on my bookshelf crying out to be read soon.
I would recommend Planet of the Apes for this list. It's a quick read with short chapters, an engrossing plot and thought-provoking ideas. I am usually quite a slow reader but I got through it very quickly.
I saw the movies-_ but never read the books… smart choice. Will have to give em a look-seee.
This sounds complicated. I’m sticking with my pop-up books, thank you very much.
Hahaha! I shoulda included picture books! That woulda been amazing.
I'm glad someone finally recognized the author H. Beam Piper. "Little Fuzzy" is a great read and is part of the larger Terro-Human Future History series of stories (AKA A History of the Future). If he hadn't committed suicide in 1964, he might have become more popular and better known today.
If you like this story, consider reading "Omnilingual" (a short story) and "The Cosmic Computer" (A novel) both set in his future history. If you like parallel Earth type stories, consider reading "The Complete Paratime" (A set of short stories and one novel involving the Paratime Police).
In any case, give this undeservedly forgotten author a chance. You will be glad you did.
Thanks for the recommendations!!! I will see what more i can rummage up. I am sad more folks dont know him.
I’ve really been enjoying your channel and I think the video quality is excellent. If I may make a suggestion though it would be to use a bit less b-roll. It can get distracting sometimes. I do enjoy the gif bits of humor on some of it though. Keep up the good work
Hey. I have been experimenting with that and do appreciate the feedback. I am planning to try and cut back but i dont want to have too many jump cuts either. Balance is hard for me. But keep the constructive criticism coming!! I want to improve.
Misses the cut at 8 hours and 30 minutes, but The City and the Stars is my favorite shorter Clarke novel. Love it.
Great video! I would like to check all of these out (well, the books that I haven't already read, that is). Thank you!
Glad it was helpful!
Keep the videos coming. We enjoy them all.
Thanks! Will do!
And your special effects are phenomenal.
I listened to Little Fuzzy the other day based on your recommendation. I really enjoyed it! It’s amazing how well this story has aged.
I’m sooo happy to hear this!! It did age so well. Will you check out Fuzzy Nation? Or are you considering the rest of the fuzzy series?
@@secretsauceofstorycraft Yes, I’d like to read both once time allows. Although I think I might get Fuzzy Nation on audio too. I’m listening to Downward to Earth next.
I think the word for world is forest could make the list. Less than 200 pages if I recall correctly
I am reading it currently!!
Little Fuzzy sounds a lot like Fuzzy Nation by John Scalzi. Now I need to read Little Fuzzy. Great video!!! Thank you for the recommendations
Yes, it is! He got permission to write it from the piper estate- his version. Its directly a retelling. I will have to read scalzi’s version and see which i like better…
@@secretsauceofstorycraft holy smokes!!! Now I’ll need to pick up Little Fuzzy! And we can compare notes. :)
I read Little Fuzzy today because of you and it was so sweet and fun.
It's so good! Im so glad you liked it!!
Excellent recommendations. As I was watching I thought to myself "Dogs of War" would be perfect for this list :)
😁 great minds, sir, great minds….
Loved Roadside Picnic. Atmospheric is definitely a good word for it. The ending was one of my favorites I've ever read.
I’m a huge sucker for well done ambigous endings. So glad u appreciated!
I will be checking a few of these books, hopefully soon.
So glad to hear it!! Appreciate the comment.
This is a really great video. Everything looks good 👍
Thank you so much 🤗
Oooo i like the idea of your criteria. Saved to watch for later
Thank you!!! Hope you enjoy.
Great to see new content.
Thanks! And good to hear from you :) comments always appreciated
Asimov spoke with admiration of Clifford Simak's stories.
Thats great!!
I'll keep these in mind for when I want a shorter read
Wonderful!!
It's amazing how deep some of Samuel R. Delany's short works are. 'The Einstein Intersection' & 'Empire Star' are as multi-layered as onions.
Boy, you arent kidding…. Im still not sure i got it all the way. I will probably have to reread it in the future.
Great video! Nice idea.
Thank you!!
the goblin reservation and downward to earth have been on my list for a long time. I keep getting distracted.
They are fast reads! Def consider them at some point.
Never heard of Little Fuzzy but now I need it in my life!
Haha! Agreed! I mean sounds like you could use “the complete fuzzy”!
@@secretsauceofstorycraft Oh yes! 🤗
The Midwich Cuckoos (1957) by John Wyndham is a great read; set in a parochial English village sharing some parallels with Childhoods End.
I own a copy but havent statted it yet :)
Great video! Thank you 😊
You are so welcome!
No idea if your into lots of visceral violent cyberpunky blood and guts action but if you are you can't do much better than Neal Ashers 'Prador Moon' a sort of prequel to his Ian Cormac series of books set in his Polity Universe.
Pretty short novella, easily read in a day (or two).
Great video and I've actually read a few of the recommendations, especially Little Fuzzy, Piper has largely been forgotten I think.
Shame as he was pretty good imo.
Keep up the good work, much appreciated.
Yes! I absolutely love me some violent cyberpunky blood and guys action. Im sold! Will check out.
Thanks for watching, i’d love more people to hear about h beam piper- but first i better finish the complete fuzzy…..
I am glad you enjoyed The Goblin Reservation. As I commented in one of your previous videos it is my favorite novel by Simak.
I remember! Everyone else said it was terrible place to start with simak- but im glad i listened to you it was great! 👍🏻 im open to other reccs!!
Another vintage book that I would recommend is "Wasp" by Eric Frank Russell. It is 170 pages and can also easily be read in a day. It was first published in 1957. The blurb on the cover says, "He was sent to make war against another planet, to terrorize it and destroy it singlehanded". The story is inventive and witty in places. Eric Frank Russell is a somewhat overlooked author from that time period but I think he was one of the best.
Thanks for the video I read "the illustrated man" in one day. "Childhood's End" has one of the creepiest endings I know of.
I have yet to pickup illustrated man
Great video, Whitney! Loved the Zoolander snippet! 😂
Thank you!! 😁
I just read Kaiju book by John Scalzi. I mean finished it yesterday. Was fun.
Nice! You should check out Starter Villian
Lots of great recommendations here. A book I picked up because of Bookpilled’s recommendation was Hothouse by Brian Aldiss, and I would definitely recommend it for this category. I read it in two sittings on a train and it is the only book that I’ve read with world-building that I think can rival Dune (the storytelling doesnt rival Dune but literally nothing does). One of my favorite books of all time.
Ironic, that I just ordered a copy!!! I will have to proiritize it. Matt always has such great suggestions.
@@secretsauceofstorycraft I think you’ll like it. It’s one of the strangest books i’ve ever read, definitely times when reading it where things get extremely weird, but the way the story progresses from the midway point of the book to the end is amazing. I don’t wanna give anything away but the ending is incredible.
I agree about page length; It's a publisher illusion. I think short books these days are looked down on, so publishers make them look thicker (The Shining Girls). I probably read in 66% of audiobooktime. I would add Alfred Bester - The Stars My Destination and Robert Heinlein - The Puppet Masters. Also John Scalzi - Old Man's War.
I had stars me destination on the list but didnt get to it. Havent read puppet masters either- will add to top of my tbr!
@@secretsauceofstorycraft I also read The Bourne Identity in probably 2 days, but that's 20 hours and a thriller.
This really hammers home the reminder that I need to read me some Peter Watts… 🤔
Hahaha 🤣 we all do….
Such a great video! So many great recommendations. Half Way Home seems like it will be a lot of fun. I read Caves of Steel and I Robot about twenty years ago and loved them. I must say that Little Fuzzy gives me some tribbles vibes.
Tribbles?? I am not familiar with it. But fuzzies was better than i expected…. And i liked it. Thanks for watching and especially for commenting. I appreciate.
@@secretsauceofstorycraft Tribbles were furry little ball creatures on the original Star Trek series. They overwhelmed the Enterprise. First season, I believe.
@@JasonsWeirdReads aww they sound kinda adorable and troublesome. That is probably true about the fuzzies but they are smart and very emotional. Let me know if u pick it up, what u think. We have to resolve the tribble debate :)
The Free Lunch sounds really good.
You should check it out!! Let me know what you think :)
@@secretsauceofstorycraft Definitely will :)
Almost every book on this video sounds like something I would like. My ten year old son is obsessed with Kaiju. Would you happen to remember if "The Kaiju Preservation Society" would be ok for a ten year old. I was thinking it might be something we could do together.
I would let my kids listen to or read it. I am pretty sure it was like PG-13 at worst. I didn't care much for it, but a kanji loving 10yo would probably love it.
@@BookPigg thank you so much for the response. I will definitely ask him if he would like for us to read this together or if he'd like to read it himself.
I can tell u that its 99% ok for a 10 year old- what i dont remember is if there was any sex scenes. Scalzi does tend to have description there in many of his other books. I will flip thru it this weekend and re-respond.
@@secretsauceofstorycraft thank you so much. One other thing I thought of is that you might want to consider an affiliate link to Amazon to purchase books you recommend. That would take us right to the book and give you a small cut for the recommendation.
I had never heard Little Fuzzy talked about but the cover with the Fuzzy leaning on a tree, I think the more modern cover, is burned into my mind for some reason. Roadside Picnic has been on my shame list so I just grabbed it for kindle sounds like Annihilation / Colour out of Space vibes with a twist
I would agree with ur interpretion of roadside picnic. You will have to let me know what you think. little fuzzy is a book that should get a more modern cover but i think that old style one is hilarious!
@@secretsauceofstorycraft I am going to pick up the weirdest one I can find. Check out The Long Way Home by Paul Anderson's cover . .. Fuzzy is back. . . and this time it's personal
Always great content.
Thank you! I appreciate the comment.
A book by Delany which might fit your criterion better is Babel-17. It's fast paced and on my short list of favorite books by him!
Day of the Triffids may be the worst offender for sexist stereotypes of the time, still a great story which most post apocalyptic stories have copied!
Oh no! Well thanks for the warning…. But I do still want to read
It's kind of odd. I read this novel as a young teenager some fifty-five years ago and much of it is still fresh in my mind yet I don't remember the sexism. Unless you are thinking of the place where they are briefly discussing open relationships as a way to repopulate and avoid the problems of a small gene pool. I could say more but I don't want to introduce spoilers to the plot.
Great video!
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks again for commenting.
Great video, thank you.
Glad you liked it! Thanks for commenting and watching!
I recommend Annihilation by Jeff Vandermeer. 195 pages in the trade paperback. I read it in one day. It is creepy and fast paced.
U found my weakness!!! Ive been avoiding it because the movie was so freaky. I should just suck it up and read it.
@@secretsauceofstorycraft Heads up. Annihilation is 1.99 for kindle on Amazon this morning
Love your videos!
Thank u! I appreciate your commenting and watching.
There is audiobook Dogs of War on Audible and has more than 9 hours.
Oh no!!! It’s out already!!!
I think the Audiobook is only available in the UK?
@@grahamodwyer4746 that may be the truth. I am using UK Audible.
You need a spoiler alert for Roadside Picnic.
Also, supposedly John Wyndham was often cited as an important reason for why people went into science and space exploration for their careers; they enjoyed his science fiction so much as they were growing up.
I had no idea john wyndam was so popular but i see why. He is incredible!!!
@@secretsauceofstorycraft Well, I think that applied to the UK where I live, when I was growing up. I couldn't say if that were necessarily true of the U.S. I was certainly as influenced in my choice of career by American SF novels, short stories and TV series.
LOVED LOVED LOVED Dogs of War (19:49). However, as a dog person, it broke my heart all the time. Rex is a good boy 😭
Bear Head is the next one in that series, also great.
Yayaya!!! I loved dogs of war tooo!!!!! Bear head is in the mail but should b coming soon. I cant wait to pick it up.
I just got got a book by H. Beam Piper two days ago, not Little Fuzzy, but Space Viking.
Please tell me how you like it. I havent read anything else by him.
Also for record, i love your channel. Plan to comment more now that this video is done….
@@secretsauceofstorycraft Many thanks! 😊 I’ll let you know on Space Viking of course
The Caves of Steal are ok to start from. I have and after read the trilogy and other robot books of the series.
🔥 i liked em all except the third robot book
@@secretsauceofstorycraft It's funny that somehow (I tended to rely on what I could find in the public library rather than buying SF back in the day) I read The Naked Sun (which I liked) and planned to read the prequel, The Caves of Steel but somehow never got around to it.
The Robinson/Heinlein novel was Variable Star.
Ooh 😲 u always have such good tidbits. Thank you.
@@secretsauceofstorycraft Fair exchange the enthusiasm you have for sci-fi is infectious.
Yes little fuzzy is a good book no one talks about. Day of the triffids is good also.
Yesss!!!! Hopin to read day of triffids soonn!!!
Great stuff
Thanks. Appreciate you watching and commenting! 😎
Dogs of War has an audiobook on all other platforms i believe from 2018. I can see it available on Audible India, Scribd and Storytel. Maybe its not available in US yet?
I still cant see it on my audible yet! But i will keep looking
So the Strugatskys came up with that concept before Gary Larson.
I enjoyed the following short books: The Chrysalids by John Wyndham (200 pages, 6h 58m), Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang by Kate Wilhelm (207 pages, 7h 48m), Solaris by Stanslaw Lem (204 pages, 7h 42m), This Immortal by Roger Zelazny (174 pages, 7h 30m), Invasion of the Body Snatchers by Jack Finney (216 pages, 6h 39m), and Planet of the Apes by Pierre Boulle (189 pages, 5h 55m). I have not read a Case of Conscience by James Blish (188 pages, 8h 1m) but friends have recommended it.
This is a wonderful list!!! I will have to work my way through it… thank you.
Try tine travel books by Robert Young. The Dandelion Girl & Eridahn
Havent heard of that one! thank you!! 🙏
Many authors in th 50s and 60s could do a short, snappy, entertaining book of 250-300 pages.
I'm reading All Systems Red by Martha Wells. It is easy to read, 2 hours read, very entertaining, it won an Hugo, what else can you ask for?
Yes its a great novella!!
I appreciate that you talk about the female representation in a lot of the older books. Sometimes its so bad its a deal breaker for me! I started reading To be taught, if fortunate by Becky Chambers because of your videos and I'm loving it! :)
Yay!! I hope you still do after you get to the end…. Let me know.
@@secretsauceofstorycraft Ok WTF was that ending????? 🤨 so pretentious lol but other than that I loved the book! As someone with a degree in Ecology, I loved that the mission was normal field work but with aliens!
Dogs of war sounds similar to Grant Morrison's "we3"
Havent heard of that one…
In The Robots of Dawn, it says Elijah knew there were times in history when women had positions of power, his own time hadn't been one of them.
Hmm 🤔
I actually read Childhoods End, as I recall it ended pretty much like the last season of The One-hundred which I hated, but I did enjoy Arthur Clarkes book. I also enjoyed reading The Forever War by Joe Haldene I think.
I have not seen the end of of the 100. I will say the end of childhood’s end wasnt the greatest part of the book, it was the ideas things like humans needing struggle, the good yet specific aliens 👽,
Anyhow - i havent read the forever war yet. But im glad you recommended!!
I liked Childhood's End, evocative and rather elegiac but it seemed a bit disjointed with some retconning and plot direction shifts like it was a fix-up novel from separate sections published in a magazine. Funny, the main thing I remember was was the one-line review by C.S. Lewis on the back cover saying something to the effect that Clarke at least didn't see the survival of the human race as the only end worth attaining. A nod to his character of the atheistic Weston in his trilogy (which started with Out of the Silent Planet) who repeatedly sought to let the ends of human survival by Darwinian means justify unethical means. Supposedly a stand-in for H.G. Wells but I suspect it was C.S. Lewis's private opinion of all scientists.🙂
Dogs of War is on Audible now. It fits your criteria if you listen at 1.5x speed haha
Good to know!! Dang i knew this would happen- still a good read tho!
@@secretsauceofstorycraft I'm halfway through now haha I accidentally read Bear Head first - didn't realise it was a #2 doh! Rex is a very good boy.
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and Time Machine couldn't put them down!
Wonderful choices
One for your list, The Last Machine in the Solar System by Matthew Isaac Sobin, it is Sci-Fi & relevant in the light of the recent advances in AI, I've read this story 2x, at an average reader pace it os certainly a day read, recommend you check it out,
I'll check it out! Thanks for the recommendation. How is the audiobook? I statt working soon so I probably need to listen to it….
@@secretsauceofstorycraft If I had to guess, taking into account size & that this book is not on any bestseller lists, its likely not available in audiobook, have to confess, I don't read actual physical books any longer, I have been reading vie iPad & ePubs since both came out & also don't do audiobook,
I thought Annihilation (the book that the Natalie Portman movie is based on) was great. relatively short listen/read.
First of a trilogy but I'm still counting it
Totally counts!! I havent picked that one up yet
So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish !(1984) by Douglas Adams.
🔥 🔥 💕
You cheated with Tchaichovsky! Lavie Tidhar is IMHO, the best "modern" SF writer. Almost all of his novels fit within the length requirements you used. Admittedly, some (particularly A Man Lies Dreaming) require contemplation and probably shouldn't be read in a day, but most would be fine. His early metafictional Bookman stories are just a roller coaster of fun. Try them.
Will see if I can get ahold of these
Criterion :)
Haha thank you!!
low expectations can turn out. If you set the bar low enough, less disappointments. Kinda like pizza. No such thing as bad pizza. Some better than others
Haha so true!!! And now you have made me hungry!
Robinson Completed Heinlein''s last novel. I also enjoyed Robinson's series of stories from Calaban's cross time cafe. TANSTAAFL
Hothouse.
!!!! I want to read this!
I have to admit, I picked up Roadside Picnic after hearing Bookpilled gush about it but....I DNFed it. The translation is so horrible. It's so corny and clunky to me, and even though the scenes in the Zones were somewhat intriguing, it wasn't enough for me to get past the annoying translation. Particularly the dialogue. I wish a new translation would be released.
I think a new translation would b nice… but its probably unlikely. Its good that u tried it tho!
OK, now you triggered my Math Geek Daemon!
You said, "8 hours or less, but you put on the screen, ">8 hrs". That is greater than 8 hours.
You are going to make people think that you are a liberal arts major. LOL
Hahah 👀 i was 😜