Classics of Science Fiction

Titles in bold are on the Classics of Science Fiction v5 list.

Douglas Adams

1979

1984	The Science Fiction Source Book edited by David Wingrove
1996	North American College Courses in Science Fiction, Utopian Literature, and Fantasy edited by Arthur B. Evans
1999	The Internet Top 100 SF/Fantasy List
2002	Strictly Science Fiction: A Guide to Reading Interests by Diana Tixier Herald and Bonnie Kunzel
2003	The Internet Top 100 SF/Fantasy List
2003	The Cambridge Companion to Science Fiction edited by Edward James and Farah Mendlesohn
2009	1000 novels everyone must read (science fiction section)
2011	NPR Top 100 Science-Fiction, Fantasy Books
2011	Forbidden Planet: The 50 Books You MUST Read
2011	Internet Top 100 SF/Fantasy List
2012	Locus Poll Best 20th Century Science Fiction Novels
2012	AbeBooks: 50 Essential Science Fiction Books
2016	Gunn Center for the Study of Science Fiction: A Basic Science Fiction Library
2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction & Fantasy 200
2016	Sci-Fi Lists Top 200 - novel
2016	75 Best New Wave Sci-Fi (1964-1983) Novels by Josh Glenn
2016	Easton Press Masterpieces of Science Fiction
2016	Amazon: 100 Sci-Fi & Fantasy Books to Read in a Lifetime
2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction 100
2016	Ranker: The Greatest Science Fiction Novels of All Time
2016	SF Masterworks
2018	The Great American Read - PBS
2019	Worlds Without End: Most Read Books of All-Time
2019	The Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Penguin Random House
2019	100 Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Reedsydiscovery
2020	Top 100 Sci Fi Books - Movie Death Cult
2020	The Best Modern Classic Science Fiction Books
2022	The 50 Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Esquire Magazine
2023	Your Top Science Fiction Books Of All Time (Survey Results) - Media Death Cult
2024	SciFiScavenger's 2024 Poll of All-Time Favorite SF Books
2025	Shortform: 100 Best Classic Sci-Fi Books of All Time

2015	The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams - review (The Guardian)

The Handmaid's Tale

Margaret Atwood

1985

	Nebula Award - Novel Finalist
	Arthur C. Clarke Awards
1996	North American College Courses in Science Fiction, Utopian Literature, and Fantasy edited by Arthur B. Evans
2001	200 Significant Science Fiction Books by Women, 1984-2001 by David G. Hartwell
2003	The Cambridge Companion to Science Fiction edited by Edward James and Farah Mendlesohn
2004	Feminist Science Fiction and Fantasy by Cynthia Ward
2004	Anatomy of Wonder: A Critical Guide to Science Fiction, 5th Edition by Neil Barron
2005	ISFDB Top 100 Books (Balanced List)
2009	1000 novels everyone must read (science fiction section)
2009	Mindblowing SF by Women and People of Color (Reactor)
2011	NPR Top 100 Science-Fiction, Fantasy Books
2012	Science Fiction the 101 Best Novels 1985-2010 by Damien Broderick and Paul Di Filippo
2012	Locus Poll Best 20th Century Science Fiction Novels
2014	Mistressworks by Ian Sales
2014	Best-Sci-Fi-Books: The 23 Best Science Fiction Books by Female Authors
2016	Sci Femme: The Reading List edited by Shannon Turlington
2016	Sci-Fi Lists Top 200 - novel
2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction & Fantasy 200
2016	Goodreads Science Fiction Books by Female Authors
2016	Amazon: 100 Sci-Fi & Fantasy Books to Read in a Lifetime
2016	Book Riot 100 Must-Read Sci-Fi Fantasy Novels by Female Authors
2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction 100
2016	Ranker: The Greatest Science Fiction Novels of All Time
2016	How Great Science Fiction Works by Gary K. Wolfe
2016	Gunn Center for the Study of Science Fiction: A Basic Science Fiction Library
2016	Best-Sci-Fi-Books: 31 Best Literary Science Fiction Books
2018	The Great American Read - PBS
2019	Worlds Without End: Most Read Books of All-Time
2019	The Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Penguin Random House
2019	100 Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Reedsydiscovery
2020	Top 100 Sci Fi Books - Movie Death Cult
2020	The Best Modern Classic Science Fiction Books
2021	Worlds Without End: Award Winning Books by Women Authors
2025	Brent McLean Recommended Novels (First to finish reading all of CSF v.5)
2025	Shortform: 100 Best Classic Sci-Fi Books of All Time

1985	The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood (Kirkus Reviews)
1986	The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood (New York Times)
2015	A Politics of Auto-Cannibalism: Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale (Literature and Theology)

Ready Player One

Ernest Cline

2011

2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction & Fantasy 200
2016	Sci-Fi Lists Top 200 - novel
2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction of the 21st Century
2016	Amazon: 100 Sci-Fi & Fantasy Books to Read in a Lifetime
2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction 100
2018	The Great American Read - PBS
2019	Worlds Without End: Most Read Books of All-Time
2020	The Best Modern Classic Science Fiction Books
2022	Best Science Fiction of the 21st Century (Listopia/Goodreads 6/25/22)
2024	Best Sci-Fi of the 2010s - Goodreads/Listopia (1/29/24)
2025	Shortform: 100 Best Classic Sci-Fi Books of All Time

The Hunger Games

Suzanne Collins

2008

2012	Locus Poll Best 21st Century Science Fiction Novels
2012	Science Fiction the 101 Best Novels 1985-2010 by Damien Broderick and Paul Di Filippo
2014	Best-Sci-Fi-Books: The 23 Best Science Fiction Books by Female Authors
2016	Book Riot 100 Must-Read Sci-Fi Fantasy Novels by Female Authors
2016	Ranker: The Greatest Science Fiction Novels of All Time
2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction of the 21st Century
2016	Goodreads Science Fiction Books by Female Authors
2016	Sci Femme: The Reading List edited by Shannon Turlington
2016	Sci-Fi Lists Top 200 - novel
2016	Amazon: 100 Sci-Fi & Fantasy Books to Read in a Lifetime
2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction & Fantasy 200
2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction 100
2018	The Great American Read - PBS
2019	Worlds Without End: Most Read Books of All-Time
2019	100 Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Reedsydiscovery
2020	Top 100 Sci Fi Books - Movie Death Cult
2020	15 Recent Sci-Fi Books That Forever Shaped The Genre - Andrew Liptak for Polygon
2022	Best Science Fiction of the 21st Century (Listopia/Goodreads 6/25/22)
2022	The 25 Best Sci-Fi Books from the 2000s Decade - The Portalist
2024	Classic Science Fiction - 2000-2009 - Goodreads/Listopia (1/29/24)
2024	The 100 Best Books of the 21st Century NY Times - Poll of Readers

2010	Book Review: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (Seattle PI)
2010	Classic review: The Hunger Games (The Christian Science Monitor)

Dune

Frank Herbert

1965

	Nebula Award - Novel Winner
	Hugo Award - Novel Winner
1966	Analog All-Time Favorite Science Fiction Poll
1974	Modern Science Fiction edited by Norman Spinrad
1975	Locus Poll Best All-Time Science Fiction Novels
1976	The World of Science Fiction by Lester Del Rey
1976	Anatomy of Wonder: Science Fiction, 1st Edition by Neil Barron
1977	"A Basic Science-Fiction Library" from The Road to Science Fiction by James Gunn
1979	A Reader's Guide to Science Fiction by Baird Searles, et al.
1984	The Science Fiction Source Book edited by David Wingrove
1985	Science Fiction: The 100 Best Novels by David Pringle
1987	Locus Poll Best All-Time Science Fiction Novels
1987	Anatomy of Wonder: A Critical Guide to Science Fiction, 3rd Edition by Neil Barron
1996	The Best 105 Books Since the Invention of the Field in the Twenties - Age of Wonders by David G. Hartwell
1996	North American College Courses in Science Fiction, Utopian Literature, and Fantasy edited by Arthur B. Evans
1998	Locus Poll Best All-Time Science Fiction Novels
1999	The Internet Top 100 SF/Fantasy List
2002	Strictly Science Fiction: A Guide to Reading Interests by Diana Tixier Herald and Bonnie Kunzel
2003	The Internet Top 100 SF/Fantasy List
2003	The Cambridge Companion to Science Fiction edited by Edward James and Farah Mendlesohn
2004	Anatomy of Wonder: A Critical Guide to Science Fiction, 5th Edition by Neil Barron
2005	ISFDB Top 100 Books (Balanced List)
2006	100 Must-Read Science Fiction Novels
2009	1000 novels everyone must read (science fiction section)
2011	NPR Top 100 Science-Fiction, Fantasy Books
2011	Internet Top 100 SF/Fantasy List
2011	Forbidden Planet: The 50 Books You MUST Read
2012	Locus Poll Best 20th Century Science Fiction Novels
2012	AbeBooks: 50 Essential Science Fiction Books
2016	Easton Press Masterpieces of Science Fiction
2016	Amazon: 100 Sci-Fi & Fantasy Books to Read in a Lifetime
2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction 100
2016	Ranker: The Greatest Science Fiction Novels of All Time
2016	Sci-Fi Lists Top 200 - novel
2016	75 Best New Wave Sci-Fi (1964-1983) Novels by Josh Glenn
2016	SF Masterworks
2016	How Great Science Fiction Works by Gary K. Wolfe
2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction & Fantasy 200
2016	Gunn Center for the Study of Science Fiction: A Basic Science Fiction Library
2018	The Great American Read - PBS
2019	The Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Penguin Random House
2019	100 Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Reedsydiscovery
2019	Worlds Without End: Most Read Books of All-Time
2020	Top 100 Sci Fi Books - Movie Death Cult
2021	29 of the Best Science Fiction Books Everyone Should Read - WIRED UK
2022	The 50 Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Esquire Magazine
2023	Your Top Science Fiction Books Of All Time (Survey Results) - Media Death Cult
2024	SciFiScavenger's 2024 Poll of All-Time Favorite SF Books
2025	Brent McLean Recommended Novels (First to finish reading all of CSF v.5)
2025	Shortform: 100 Best Classic Sci-Fi Books of All Time

2015	Dune, 50 years on: how a science fiction novel changed the world (The Guardian)
2015	Frank Herbert's Dune - A guide for further study: Articles (Pollak Library)
2018	Elitist Classic: Dune (Elitist Book Reviews)
2020	Heresies of "Dune" (Los Angeles Review of Books)
2021	What Accounts for the Lasting Appeal of Dune? (Literary Hub)

Watchers

Dean Koontz

1987

2018	The Great American Read - PBS
2019	The Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Penguin Random House
2019	100 Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Reedsydiscovery

The Giver

Lois Lowry

1993

2004	Anatomy of Wonder: A Critical Guide to Science Fiction, 5th Edition by Neil Barron
2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction & Fantasy 200
2016	Sci-Fi Lists Top 200 - novel
2016	Goodreads Science Fiction Books by Female Authors
2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction 100
2016	Ranker: The Greatest Science Fiction Novels of All Time
2016	Best-Sci-Fi-Books: 31 Best Literary Science Fiction Books
2018	The Great American Read - PBS
2019	100 Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Reedsydiscovery

Nineteen Eighty-Four

George Orwell

1949

1952	Astounding Magazine, the Twenty-Eight All-Time Best SF Books
1956	Astounding Magazine, The Twenty-Six All-Time Best SF Books
1974	Modern Science Fiction edited by Norman Spinrad
1975	Locus Poll Best All-Time Science Fiction Novels
1976	Anatomy of Wonder: Science Fiction, 1st Edition by Neil Barron
1977	"A Basic Science-Fiction Library" from The Road to Science Fiction by James Gunn
1984	The Science Fiction Source Book edited by David Wingrove
1985	Science Fiction: The 100 Best Novels by David Pringle
1987	Anatomy of Wonder: A Critical Guide to Science Fiction, 3rd Edition by Neil Barron
1987	Locus Poll Best All-Time Science Fiction Novels
1994	The Ultimate Guide to Science Fiction by David Pringle
1996	North American College Courses in Science Fiction, Utopian Literature, and Fantasy edited by Arthur B. Evans
1998	Locus Poll Best All-Time Science Fiction Novels
1999	The Internet Top 100 SF/Fantasy List
2002	Strictly Science Fiction: A Guide to Reading Interests by Diana Tixier Herald and Bonnie Kunzel
2003	The Cambridge Companion to Science Fiction edited by Edward James and Farah Mendlesohn
2003	The Internet Top 100 SF/Fantasy List
2004	Anatomy of Wonder: A Critical Guide to Science Fiction, 5th Edition by Neil Barron
2006	100 Must-Read Science Fiction Novels
2009	1000 novels everyone must read (science fiction section)
2011	Internet Top 100 SF/Fantasy List
2011	NPR Top 100 Science-Fiction, Fantasy Books
2012	AbeBooks: 50 Essential Science Fiction Books
2012	Locus Poll Best 20th Century Science Fiction Novels
2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction & Fantasy 200
2016	Ranker: The Greatest Science Fiction Novels of All Time
2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction 100
2016	Gunn Center for the Study of Science Fiction: A Basic Science Fiction Library
2016	Easton Press Masterpieces of Science Fiction
2016	Amazon: 100 Sci-Fi & Fantasy Books to Read in a Lifetime
2016	Best-Sci-Fi-Books: 31 Best Literary Science Fiction Books
2016	How Great Science Fiction Works by Gary K. Wolfe
2016	Sci-Fi Lists Top 200 - novel
2016	Golden Age Sci-Fi: 75 Best Novels of 1934-1963 by Josh Glenn
2018	The Great American Read - PBS
2019	The Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Penguin Random House
2019	100 Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Reedsydiscovery
2019	Worlds Without End: Most Read Books of All-Time
2020	Top 100 Sci Fi Books - Movie Death Cult
2022	The 50 Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Esquire Magazine
2023	My 25 Favourite Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Words in Time
2023	Your Top Science Fiction Books Of All Time (Survey Results) - Media Death Cult
2023	The 25 Best Science Fiction Books I've Ever Read (Parts 1 and 2) - Outlaw Bookseller
2024	SciFiScavenger's 2024 Poll of All-Time Favorite SF Books
2025	Brent McLean Recommended Novels (First to finish reading all of CSF v.5)
2025	Shortform: 100 Best Classic Sci-Fi Books of All Time

1949	Where The Rainbow Ends (Time)
2017	Why ‘1984’ Is a 2017 Must-Read (The New York Times)
2019	Doublethink Is Stronger Than Orwell Imagined (The Atlantic)

Atlas Shrugged

Ayn Rand

1957

2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction & Fantasy 200
2018	The Great American Read - PBS

Frankenstein

Mary Shelley

1818

1976	Anatomy of Wonder: Science Fiction, 1st Edition by Neil Barron
1977	"A Basic Science-Fiction Library" from The Road to Science Fiction by James Gunn
1979	A Reader's Guide to Science Fiction by Baird Searles, et al.
1984	The Science Fiction Source Book edited by David Wingrove
1987	Anatomy of Wonder: A Critical Guide to Science Fiction, 3rd Edition by Neil Barron
1994	The Ultimate Guide to Science Fiction by David Pringle
1996	North American College Courses in Science Fiction, Utopian Literature, and Fantasy edited by Arthur B. Evans
1998	Locus Poll Best All-Time Science Fiction Novels
2002	Strictly Science Fiction: A Guide to Reading Interests by Diana Tixier Herald and Bonnie Kunzel
2003	The Cambridge Companion to Science Fiction edited by Edward James and Farah Mendlesohn
2004	Anatomy of Wonder: A Critical Guide to Science Fiction, 5th Edition by Neil Barron
2006	100 Must-Read Science Fiction Novels
2009	1000 novels everyone must read (science fiction section)
2011	NPR Top 100 Science-Fiction, Fantasy Books
2014	Best-Sci-Fi-Books: The 23 Best Science Fiction Books by Female Authors
2014	Mistressworks by Ian Sales
2016	Book Riot 100 Must-Read Sci-Fi Fantasy Novels by Female Authors
2016	Sci-Fi Lists Top 200 - novel
2016	SF Masterworks
2016	Amazon: 100 Sci-Fi & Fantasy Books to Read in a Lifetime
2016	Goodreads Science Fiction Books by Female Authors
2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction 100
2016	Ranker: The Greatest Science Fiction Novels of All Time
2016	Gunn Center for the Study of Science Fiction: A Basic Science Fiction Library
2016	Sci Femme: The Reading List edited by Shannon Turlington
2016	Best-Sci-Fi-Books: 31 Best Literary Science Fiction Books
2016	How Great Science Fiction Works by Gary K. Wolfe
2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction & Fantasy 200
2018	The Great American Read - PBS
2019	The Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Penguin Random House
2019	100 Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Reedsydiscovery
2019	Worlds Without End: Most Read Books of All-Time
2020	Top 100 Sci Fi Books - Movie Death Cult
2021	29 of the Best Science Fiction Books Everyone Should Read - WIRED UK
2022	The 50 Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Esquire Magazine
2023	My 25 Favourite Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Words in Time
2023	Your Top Science Fiction Books Of All Time (Survey Results) - Media Death Cult
2023	The 25 Best Science Fiction Books I've Ever Read (Parts 1 and 2) - Outlaw Bookseller
2024	SciFiScavenger's 2024 Poll of All-Time Favorite SF Books
2025	Shortform: 100 Best Classic Sci-Fi Books of All Time

2016	The origins of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein (Percy and Mary Shelley)
2017	'Frankenstein' Reflects the Hopes and Fears of Every Scientific Era (The Atlantic)
2017	Frankenstein by Mary Shelley - Annotated for Scientists, Engineers, and Creators of All Kinds (MIT Press)
2018	Frankenstein at 200 – why hasn't Mary Shelley been given the respect she deserves? (The Guardian)
2018	Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (Origins)
2018	Mary Shelley's Monster Turns 200 (New York State Library)
2018	Mary Shelley, Frankenstein & Moral Philosophy (Philosophy Now)
2018	The Strange and Twisted Life of "Frankenstein" (The New Yorker)
2020	Anatomy of tragedy: the skeptical gothic in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein (Nature)
2021	First Edition of Mary Shelley’s ‘Frankenstein’ Sells for Record-Breaking $1.17 Million (Smithsonian)
2021	Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein: the birth of a gothic monster (BBC History Extra)

The Sirens of Titan

Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.

1959

	Hugo Award - Novel Finalist
1974	Modern Science Fiction edited by Norman Spinrad
1977	"A Basic Science-Fiction Library" from The Road to Science Fiction by James Gunn
1984	The Science Fiction Source Book edited by David Wingrove
1985	Science Fiction: The 100 Best Novels by David Pringle
1994	The Ultimate Guide to Science Fiction by David Pringle
1996	The Best 105 Books Since the Invention of the Field in the Twenties - Age of Wonders by David G. Hartwell
1996	North American College Courses in Science Fiction, Utopian Literature, and Fantasy edited by Arthur B. Evans
2003	The Cambridge Companion to Science Fiction edited by Edward James and Farah Mendlesohn
2009	1000 novels everyone must read (science fiction section)
2012	AbeBooks: 50 Essential Science Fiction Books
2016	Ranker: The Greatest Science Fiction Novels of All Time
2016	Easton Press Masterpieces of Science Fiction
2016	SF Masterworks
2016	Golden Age Sci-Fi: 75 Best Novels of 1934-1963 by Josh Glenn
2016	Gunn Center for the Study of Science Fiction: A Basic Science Fiction Library
2016	Sci-Fi Lists Top 200 - novel
2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction & Fantasy 200
2018	The Great American Read - PBS
2019	Worlds Without End: Most Read Books of All-Time
2020	Library of America Science Fiction
2022	The 50 Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Esquire Magazine
2025	Shortform: 100 Best Classic Sci-Fi Books of All Time

	Kurt Vonnegut's The Sirens of Titan and the Question of Genre
2014	The Sirens of Titan (Kara Reviews)
2021	"The Sirens of Titan" by Kurt Vonnegut - The Inescapable Plan (Bookwormex)
2022	The Sirens of Titan, by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. (The Metaphysical Circus)

The Martian

Andy Weir

2012

2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction of the 21st Century
2016	Amazon: 100 Sci-Fi & Fantasy Books to Read in a Lifetime
2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction 100
2016	Ranker: The Greatest Science Fiction Novels of All Time
2016	Goodreads Best Science Fiction & Fantasy 200
2018	The Great American Read - PBS
2019	Worlds Without End: Most Read Books of All-Time
2019	The Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Penguin Random House
2019	100 Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time - Reedsydiscovery
2020	15 Recent Sci-Fi Books That Forever Shaped The Genre - Andrew Liptak for Polygon
2020	Top 100 Sci Fi Books - Movie Death Cult
2020	The Best Modern Classic Science Fiction Books
2021	NPR Books Summer Poll 2021: A Decade of Great Sci-Fi and Fantasy
2021	29 of the Best Science Fiction Books Everyone Should Read - WIRED UK
2022	Best Science Fiction of the 21st Century (Listopia/Goodreads 6/25/22)
2023	Your Top Science Fiction Books Of All Time (Survey Results) - Media Death Cult
2024	Best Sci-Fi of the 2010s - Goodreads/Listopia (1/29/24)
2024	SciFiScavenger's 2024 Poll of All-Time Favorite SF Books
2025	Brent McLean Recommended Novels (First to finish reading all of CSF v.5)
2025	Shortform: 100 Best Classic Sci-Fi Books of All Time

2015	Review: The Martian (Elitist Book Reviews)
2017	Book Review: The Martian by Andy Weir (Medium)

Books: 12

The Great American Read - PBS