[U-Borat]

ive only recently forayed into sci-fi.( im a bit of a fantasy nut)
I have read the 1st book of Dune and Misspent Youth by Peter Hamilton.
I quite enjoyed Misspent Youth, but found Dune to be boring and static.
Do you people have any suggestions on good places to start reading sci-fi?

[Ropie]

I have read quite a bit of Sci-Fi and am reading Dune at the moment. I have to agree with you, it is pretty boring in places, though overall I think it will probably be worth reading.

A good place to start reading Sci-Fi is your local library, that way you won't waste any money! ;) Try some Arthur C Clarke - he has an easy to read style allied to some of the best ideas in the genre. 'Rendezvous with Rama' is my favourite of his.

[ArthurFrayn]

Hi! Welcome to the board! One of the great things about this board, it that there is a diverse readership represented,so you're bound to find someone who's tastes line up with yours to some degree.
I recommend that you take a look at the thread below-everyone's all-time favorite books:

http://www.sffworld.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7792

There's an extensive discussion of short stories directly below that:

http://www.sffworld.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9701

Here's another good one:

http://www.sffworld.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9666

And this, which is everybody and their brother's 10 best list (and then some ) :

http://www.sffworld.com/forums/showthread.php?t=453




There you go. Those threads will lead you in a better direction than any attempt at a singular recommend that I could make based on what you gave as an example of what you like. Good hunting!!

[qonox]

Do you people have any suggestions on good places to start reading sci-fi?

You should get the complete list of Hugo and Nebula award winners and start reading those. They are considered to be the best of the best SF, and are quite accessible.

Personally, I would recommend to you:

2001: A Space Odyssey
Solaris
I, Robot

...popular titles like that.

[bigGdelta]

any heinlein
lois bujold's vorkosigan books
david weber's honor harrington series
ringworld--larry niven
varley's titan series

[Brys]

If you're in the UK, or can find it any other way, try to get ahold of the SF masterworks series published by Gollancz.

In particular, you might want to look at the following:

Foundation novels - Isaac Asimov
The Stars My Destination - Alfred Bester
A Canticle for Leibowitz - Walter M Miller Jr
Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card
The Book of the New Sun - Gene Wolfe

[Monty Mike]

Like Brys said, definitely check out the SF Masterworks.

Here's a link which shows their cover and brief details regarding story (some also have reviews): http://www.sfsite.com/lists/orion01.htm

In total there are 4 pages worth of SF Masterworks and 3 of Fantasy. Some great classics amongst them ;)

[U-Borat]

im halfway through The Neutronium Alchemist by Peter Hamilton, Book 2 of the Night Dawn's Trilogy.
I was just wondering whether all sci-fi books had the same tendency in that Neutronium Alchemist and Reality Dysfunction use complicated terminology that I couldnt comprehend. it was only because i had a friend who had read teh book before, and could therefore help me understand some of the more complicated terms that I was able to gain a full understanding of the story. DO all sci-fi books have the same tendency?

[Archren]

No, absolutley not. In fact, not even all of Peter Hamilton's books have that tendency. There's another series of his, that starts with "Mindstar Rising," that is near-future and much more accessible. The series that you're reading is notorious for having all sorts of overly-militaristic-futuristic crud to keep track of. I couldn't read much of it, even though I'm a hard SF devotee.

Don't let that one book sour you on SF in general. Pick up some of the earlier works mentioned, (another one to start off with would be "Ender's Game" by Orson Scott Card), and stay away from Greg Egan for now.

In general the amount of jargon depends a lot on the author and what the author is going for. It really isn't a universal tendency. I Promise! :D

[Brys]

Don't worry Nightsorrow, none of the recommendations I made have that tendency. I just thought of a couple more which I should recommend:

Altered Carbon - Richard Morgan
Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card

For dystopian novels:
Farenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
1984 - George Orwell
Brave New World - Aldous Huxley

I haven't read any Philip K Dick yet, but seeing the sheer number of novels he has in the SF masterworks series it's probably worth checking out a couple of his novels (which I'll be doing soon).