jimb@ISM780B.UUCP (09/03/85)
Lord of Light is *my* all-time favorite SF book; I've read it more than any other single book. However, it is somewhat unconventional, poetic to the point of being lyrical, and is not the cup of tea for many of my friends who do read SF. Other titles I recommend to first time readers are (in no particular order): Startide Rising The Moon is a Harsh Mistress (but keep them away from most of Heinlein's other crud.) A Canticle for Liebowitz Tea With the Black Dragon and occasionally, depending on personality of prospective reader: Foundation Trilogy (but not #4, or Asimov's other recent crud) Neuromancer Generally, I look for something that the reader will find accessible yet "new" to them while being well written. For a new/skeptical SF reader, I think the accessibility is important. I agree with the tenor of your original posting. STAR WARS may have brought a lot of people into (junk) SF, but it's also kept a lot of people from discovering the good stuff. Cheers, from the bewildered musings of Jim Brunet decvax!vortex!ism780!jimb ucbvax!ucla-cs!ism780!jimb cca!ima!ism780!jimb