Automatic Noodle★★★★★
Annalee Newitz A short but joyful tale of creating the future you want out of the present you’ve been stuck with, told by robots who would rather make noodles than war.
Five Ways to Forgiveness★★★★☆
Ursula K. Le Guin Five loosely-connected stories set in the final years of a color-based enslaving society, the war for liberation, and the messy aftermath.
Head On★★★★★
John Scalzi The sequel to Lock In is a fast read with intriguing concepts, fun characters and an interesting mystery. This time locked-in FBI agent Chris Shane investigates the death of a locked-in athlete in a sport too extreme for human bodies, played with remotely-controlled robots.
Interference★★★★☆
Sue Burke An intriguing followup to Semiosis that weaves several drastically different sentient species (both plant and animal) into a story about factions, community, freedom, communication and war.
The Lathe of Heaven★★★★★
Ursula K. Le Guin A surreal tale of dreams changing reality, global stakes anchored by the three people involved. Be careful what you wish for.
Nomad of the Time Streams★★★☆☆
Michael Moorcock A 19th-century British soldier in India is flung into three wildly different future wars, forcing him to reexamine the world he thought he was building.
Parable of the Sower★★★★★
Octavia Butler Hard to put down. And hard to pick up again. It’s certainly not a fun book, but it’s extremely engaging, despite the bleakness of the slow-apocalypse setting and story.
The Word for World is Forest★★★★☆
Ursula K. Le Guin Infuriating to read…and that’s the point. A story of colonial exploitation, asymmetric warfare, dehumanization and environmental destruction.