A blast from the past (well, in my narrow time frame) admittedly, but thought I’d link to it for more recent converts to the genre. China Miéville’s fifty fantasy & science fiction works that socialists should read.
This is not a list of the “best” fantasy or SF. There are huge numbers of superb works not on the list. Those below are chosen not just because of their quality—which though mostly good, is variable—but because the politics they embed (deliberately or not) are of particular interest to socialists. Of course, other works—by the same or other writers—could have been chosen: disagreement and alternative suggestions are welcomed. I change my own mind hour to hour on this anyway.
I’ve only read about ten or so of these titles, but it’s worth dipping into. Very much recommend Le Guin’s The Dispossessed, William Morris’s News From Nowhere, and Bulgakov’s The Master and Margarita.
6 replies on “Old But Good Socialist SF List”
I’ve only read ‘Use of Weapons’ and the first Gormnghast book. My problem is there is so much good fantasy and SF coming out now, it’s tough to find time to go back and discover old gems. I blame Xbox360 and the fact I’m a horribly slow reader. ‘Nights of Villjamur’ is next on my ‘to read’ pile… looking forward to it.
Yeah, I hear your pain. Add to that my need to read from other genres too, and it leaves me screwed.
If the day ever comes where I find myself writing full time, I’m totally buying an Xbox. Then, and only then.
I’ve read/own 18 of those. The Cortázar story in particular is most excellent.
I’ve read sixteen of them and am quite impressed with myself.
So now we will know why your books will become “late” when you go full-time writing.
I thought “Brave New World” or “Animal Farm/1984” may have been in there too but i guess they are both well known already and only really socialist in showing us how it can go horribly wrong.
In some interview he complained about the allegory of Orwell’s writing. He prefers multifaceted literature with no one-sided meaning. But might have just been an excuse, since he’s a bloody good, multifaceted read anyway…