[Zsinj16]

Now I know this topic has probably come up before, but I would like to know what was the first sci-fi novel that people on this board read.

My first Sci-Fi novel was "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" by Jules Verne. Man, was that a great novel!!!
In fact, it not only started me reading sci-fi novels, but reading in general!! You see, the first time I read it, it was an assignment for school, and since at that time I hated reading I thought, "Oh geez, here we go again!!" But, lo and behold, I started on 20,000 Leagues, and about near halfway through the novel I found myself completely immersed in the story and I couldn't put the book down!! So, from then on, I started to read sci-fi and fantasy novels!!

[AuntiePam]

The Ant Men -- can't remember the author. This was back in the mid 50's and I read it for a book report at school.

Humans went to a planet populated by -- Ant Men -- (duh). This was at about the time of that great SF movie, Them, and the class loved the book report so much that I repeated it the following week.

I think I'll see if I can hunt that book down.

Thanks for asking the question -- took me back to 6th grade.

[Corwwyn]

I'm not sure what the first SF book I read was but here's a list of some of the earliest books I remember reading:

Isaac Asimov
Pirates of the Asteroids
I, Robot
Nightfall One
Asimov's Mysteries

John Brunner
A Planet of Your Own

John Rackham
The Beasts of Kohl
The Anything Tree

Marion Zimmer Bradley
The Winds of Darkover

Jack Vance
The Brains of Earth
The Many Worlds of Magnus Ridolph

James Blish
Cities in Flight
Star Trek 1-10

John Wyndham
The Chrysalids

Theodore Sturgeon
The Dreaming Jewels

Doris Piserchia
A Billion Days of Earth

Andre Norton
Catseye
Starman's Son
Uncharted Stars

Tanith Lee
The Storm Lord

Michael Moorcock
The Runestaff Quadrilogy

E E Doc Smith
The Lensman Series

Eric Frank Russell
Wasp

John Varley
The Ophiuchi Hotline

Poul Anderson
Planet of No Return

Pierre Boulle
Monkey Planet

Robert Heinlein
Stranger in a Strange Land
The Menace from Earth

Zenna Henderson
Pilgrimmage

Raymond F Jones
Man of Two Worlds

Milton Lesser
Secret of the Black Planet

John Gregory
Legacy of the Stars

Arthur C Clarke
The City and the Stars
Childhood's End

Saul Dunn
The Steeleye Trilogy

Stuart Gordon
One-Eye

Frank Herbert
Whipping Star

Walter M Miller Jr
A Canticle for Leibowitz

[knox]

Asimov's The End of Eternity. I really wasn't much of a reader, but I was so blown away! I started reading everything by Asimov, and eventually, I started to branch out. But that book really got me into reading in general.

[Alai]

Ender's Game, The greatest book of all times.

[This message has been edited by Alai (edited February 12, 2002).]

[Loque]

a-men

[Vitriol]

Andre Norton's The Beast Master.

Actually, as far as I can tell, I read it, then the sequel. For about ten yeasr I was convinced there was only one book with the plot of both. Then I got hold of a second-hand copy of the Beast Master, and found half the plot seemed to be missing! But now all is clear :-)

[Carmichael]

I suppose it depends on whether Tom Swift counts as science fiction. If so, I think I went through most of that series by the time I was seven.

Otherwise, it would probably be the original Foundation trilogy.

I think.

[Lady Fox]

Anne McCaffrey's Dragonsong was my first scifi book. Not long after that I found Heinlein's Citizen of the Galaxy in the public library and absolutely loved it. I think I read some of the Darkover novels by MZB around that time as well.

[Kamakhya]

Hmmm...I don't think I can remember what the very first was. I grew up in a sci-fi household and was introduced at a young age. However, some of the books that really turned me on to the genre include Arthur C. Clarke's Rendezvous with Rama and Childhood's End. I also read something called Iceman which I loved. Pohl's Gateway was also a favorite. When I first started buying my own books (instead of pulling something off my dad's or brother's shelves) I was really into Isaac Asimov, Ursula K. LeGuin and Heinlein and read virtually everything all three wrote before 1980.

Kamakhya