Some classic short story recommendations:
“Nightfall” by Isaac Asimov. It’s classic for a reason and the ending will probably give most LessWrongers shivers.
“The Dead Past” by Isaac Asimov. Not as highly regarded as Nightfall, but it has become even more relevant today in at least two directions than it was when Asimov wrote it and presents real, genuine moral difficulties that are neither contrived nor given the standard treament. Refreshing!
“Can He Bake a Cherry Pie?” by Laurell Hamilton, available here
A lot of ordinary rationality—asking sensible questions, keeping track of what one is trying to accomplish, looking for cooperation unless there are clear reasons to not expect it.
The anime is much better. The manga tries to cover the same material, but in basically a sort of cracked-out heavily-stylized surrealistic way which makes it hard to read without, I felt, really adding anything.
I’m currently reading a collection of Robert Scheckley’s short stories. “A ticket to Tranai” (conveniently available online ) strikes me as one of the earliest literary attempts to show a weirdtopia. (The physics and economics here are both ridiculous, but it’s nonetheless quite entertaining as an early form of the genre.)
Fiction Books Thread
Some classic short story recommendations: “Nightfall” by Isaac Asimov. It’s classic for a reason and the ending will probably give most LessWrongers shivers.
“The Dead Past” by Isaac Asimov. Not as highly regarded as Nightfall, but it has become even more relevant today in at least two directions than it was when Asimov wrote it and presents real, genuine moral difficulties that are neither contrived nor given the standard treament. Refreshing!
“Can He Bake a Cherry Pie?” by Laurell Hamilton, available here
A lot of ordinary rationality—asking sensible questions, keeping track of what one is trying to accomplish, looking for cooperation unless there are clear reasons to not expect it.
Umineko (too many thoughts & feels, haven’t finished my review yet) EDIT: I finally finished my writeup
Anderson’s Tau Zero (review)
FLCL
How is the FLCL manga compared to the show?
The anime is much better. The manga tries to cover the same material, but in basically a sort of cracked-out heavily-stylized surrealistic way which makes it hard to read without, I felt, really adding anything.
MaddAddam by Margaret Atwood—end-of-the-world and beyond dystopian novel, superb. I also mentioned it here.
I’m currently reading a collection of Robert Scheckley’s short stories. “A ticket to Tranai” (conveniently available online ) strikes me as one of the earliest literary attempts to show a weirdtopia. (The physics and economics here are both ridiculous, but it’s nonetheless quite entertaining as an early form of the genre.)