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15 items

• The Dry Salvages

  Kiernan, Caitlín R.

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  A haunting story about first contact and human memory - in this case, the story of Dr. Audrey Cather, a key player in the discovery of the first extraterrestrial civilization, and the last surviving member of the crew... who is now struggling to…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Red Mars

  Robinson, Kim Stanley,

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  Kim Stanely Robinson's heavily researched 1992 vision for a 2026 manned mission to Mars, imagining the next step in human evolution through terraforming technology.

• The Deep :

  [a Novel]

  Cutter, Nick,

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  A plague of memory loss is spreading across the globe - it starts small, with misplaced keys, and keeps escalating until the body forgets how to perform its basic functions. The good news? There's the possibility of a cure, being researched eight…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Roadside Picnic

  Strugatsky, Arkadiĭ Natanovich

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  A classic of Russian literature that's widely considered one of the greatest sci-fi novels of all time (and also maybe the most commonly recommended read-alike for both "Solaris" AND "Annihilation"), "Roadside Picnic" is a story about venturing into…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Three-body Problem

  Liu, Cixin,

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  A very hard science first contact story for readers who enjoy their action-packed alien invasion narratives with a generous helping of theoretical physics (and I'm not joking). A blend of high level science, reflection on China's Cultural Revolution…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Sparrow

  Russell, Mary Doria, 1950-

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  A philosophical take on a first contact story, which plumbs the spiritual, existential, and anthropological implications of two very alien races meeting for the first time... told through the perspective of an 8-person Jesuit scientific team that…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Lagoon

  Okorafor, Nnedi,

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  When an alien object crashes off the coast of Lagos, Nigeria, the world's first reaction? Nuke it! Which means it's up to the on-site "first responders" (a rapper, a biologist, and a rogue soldier) to not only make first contact, but pre-empt an…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Dawn

  Butler, Octavia E.,

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  A first contact story that questions the limits of humanity and our ability to comprehend a deeply alien species... by proposing genetically intermingling the two. This one tackles the inheritance of collective memory and survival on a cosmic scale.

• Spin

  Wilson, Robert Charles, 1953-

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  Tyler Dupree is just ten years old when all the stars go out. An alien barrier has been erected around the planet, slowing time within while the universe speeds by outside... at a rate that brings Earth within decades of the death of the sun.

• The Vorrh

  Catling, Brian

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  A little more fantasy than sci-fi, "The Vorrh" nevertheless falls squarely in the realm of weird fiction. The story of one determined adventurer seeking to traverse a seemingly-endless forest - a strange and magical expanse that toys with the mind,…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• If You Liked "Annihilation" by Jeff VanderMeer

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  Looking for more bio-punky sci-fi, horror novels about venturing into dangerous alien territory, or weird fiction that confronts the frailties and intricacies of the human mind? Check out our book club book, "Annihilation" by Jeff VanderMeer and…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• If You Liked "Embassytown" by China Miéville

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  Looking for more books that explore alien languages, deep space exploration, or first (and ongoing) extra terrestrial contact? Check out our book club pick, "Embassytown" by China Miéville and more similar reads!

• Solaris

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  The original film adaptation of the novella, directed by Andrei Tarkovsky in 1972. A classic of the genre!

• Solaris

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  (Not to be mistaken for this 2002 Hollywood remake, which is less faithful to the original novel and scrubs much of the philosophy and metaphysics of the earlier adaptation).

• Solaris

  Lem, Stanisław

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  Haven't had a chance to read "Solaris" by Stanislaw Lem? Click through to check out a copy in your preferred format!