Starting this as a work in progress. (I need to do something semi-productive today or I will just die from pure angst.)

Updated 8-6-08



Contemporary/Non-Genre Fiction:

--White Teeth, Zadie Smith
Multi-racial people in London, humor, families
--The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Mark Haddon
Narrated by a character who has Asperger's Syndrome or something like it; it also works as an adventure story
--Skinny Legs and All, Tom Robbins
Humor, religion, absurdity, animate objects

Non-Fiction

--Godel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Brain, Douglas R. Hofstader
Probably the most challenging book I've ever actually finished, and yet it was pretty accessible overall. I especially liked the Socratic dialogs between chapters and the intertwining of many subjects. I came away with a much better appreciation of Escher and of all things meta. I read this for a philosophy seminar in college; my prof was especially interested in cognition, AI, and language. My mathy friends would also probably enjoy it (the parts about Godel and Bach were a bit over my head).
--The Family who Couldn't Sleep by D. T. Maxx. About prion diseases of all kinds, but particularly about Fatal Familial Insomnia. Accessible, informed, fascinating, and compassionate. After I read it my mom read my copy, and then my grandpa did.

Young Adult (YA books that I'd recommend to adults)
--The Wings of a Falcon, Cynthia Voigt
My favorite book ever. Ripped my heart right out. About two boys who grow up on an island where they are basically abused slaves, and they escape to find their fortunes. Part of a very good, loosely connected series that includes other beautiful books: Jackaroo, On Fortune's Wheel, Elske
--First Test/Page/Squire/Lady Knight, Tamora Pierce ("Protector of the Small" series)
Everyone loves Pierce; I thought these were more realistic than some of her others. This is a nice feminist series about the 2nd girl to pursue knighthood in her country in centuries, and the first to do so openly. She has a very firm sense of right and wrong, and although this is a fantasy series, she does not have a gift for magic. I also enjoyed the "Circle of Magic" books. (Rec'd by kagenokaji, along with many others on this list)
--Harry Potter
Well, obviously.
--Dinotopia, James Gurney. Mostly I love it for the beautiful, detailed artwork.
--The Abhorsen trilogy, Garth Nix (Sabriel, Lirael, Abhorsen)
Surprisngly dark tales about young women who have the power to call up the dead and send them back using magical bells on a bandolier. I liked the second one the best--Lirael is a librarian, a social outcast, and she has a magical dog. The imagery in these books is haunting and lovely.
--Book of a Thousand Days, Shannon Hale. Written in a journal style. The main character is Dashti, a lady's maid, who is imprisoned with her lady in a tower (it's based on an obscure Grimm fairy tale). The setting is a fantasy version of the Mongolian steppes. Fast, engaging, and an all-around lovely read.
--The Theif, The Queen of Attolia, The King of Attolia; Megan Whalen Turner. The sequels are even better than the first book. These are smart, twisty adventures that take place in a fantasy version of Greece.
--The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian; Sherman Alexie.
This book is bitingly funny, incredibly honest, sad and uplifting and wonderful. A must-read!

Science Fiction
--Startide Rising, David Brin
Dolphins in space! Dolphins in space!!! Lots of interesting ideas about sentience, and cool aliens. Space opera.
--Foundation series, Isaac Asimov
Classic brainy, idea-driven SF; the idea of psychohistory blew my mind at the time I read these (high school). Also the all-human galaxy, the city-planet of Trantor, the Zero-th law of robotics!
--Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams
Just classic SF humor. The movie is fairly faithful to the book.
--Cordelia's Honor, Lois McMaster Bujold
The beginning of a long and wonderful series; this is two novels in one volume. Space adventure, understated middle-age romance, consequences of parenthood. My favorite of the subsequent Miles books is probably Memory. Bujold does a lot of things well, but I especially like her treatment of disability and relationships and human societies.
--The Steerswoman series, Rosemary Kerstein.
I think more people should read these. Here's a non-technological world in which the secretive "wizards" have things like explosives, computers, electricity. The Steerswomen (and a few Steersmen) are in the business of finding, recording, and distributing information to anyone and everyone, which is why they are in conflict with the wizards. Rowan loves being a Steerswoman and is really smart and capable and highly principled. But she also finds cause to question her own values, occasionally. These books have a deliberate pace--we're still waiting for secrets to be revealed, four books in. The world-building and ideas are really great, and I love reading about a character who is very clearly intelligent and analytical, and in over her head.
--China Mountain Zhang by Maureen McHugh
A near-future where China is the world's superpower. It's a coming-of-age story for Zhang, a mixed-race gay man living in New York. I loved this book!

Fantasy
--The Curse of Chalion, Lois McMaster Bujold
A cool system of five gods that meddle in the lives of mortals, a main character with intelligence and humility, curses and mystery. I also highly recommend the sort-of-sequel, Paladin of Souls. It was Bujold who really turned me on to fantasy in the first place.
--Kushiel's Dart, Jacqueline Carey (and sequels)
A people who have a living, breathing polytheistic religion in which sex is holy, indeed all kinds of love are holy. A courtesan, adventure, drama, romance, a warrior priest, and did I mention sex? A review said something like "emphatically not for the judgemental or squeamish reader", but I think the S/M stuff was non-gratuitous and enlightening. (I'm an innocent but open-minded reader.)
--George R.R. Martin, A Game of Thrones (and sequels)
Intricate, terribly suspenseful, good characterizations, can't wait for the next ones.
--The Privilege of the Sword, Ellen Kushner
"Fantasy of Manners", feminist, funny while taking on serious issues. My book club gave this one mixed reviews.
--Melusine; The Virtu; The Mirador; Sarah Monette
I particularly liked the depth of the character development and the use of voice. Felix is a powerful, popular wizard whose world comes crashing down around him. Mildmay is a cat-burglar and sometimes assassin with a bitingly funny internal monologue. Lots of good drama centered around the relationship between these two, both of whom are damaged people. It takes a while for them to finally meet, but after that I just couldn't put the book down.
--The Liveship Traders trilogy, Robin Hobb
Sentient sailing ships, character-based conflicts, interesting people, a surprising plot and a theme of redemption and healing. (Rec'd by nabonidus) Starts with Ship of Magic.
--The Terror, Dan Simmons. About the failed arctic expedition led by Franklin, this book is fantasy-horror. Extremely well crafted, engrossing, thought-provoking, and highly recommended.
--A Companion to Wolves by Sarah Monette and Elizabeth Bear. Recommended for readers of feminist fantasy and slash fans, but not for those who are prurient about sex. It's an "animal companion" story that addresses some of the issues that books like Dragonflight missed. It's also a coming-of-age adventure story, and a quick fun read.

Comics/Graphic Novels
--Y: The Last Man by Brian K. Vaughn
The first comic I've ever been really absorbed by. My favorite volume was Safe Word, because it was so unexpected. I'm eagerly awaiting more of these from the library.
--Fun Home, by Allison Bechdel
Surprisingly literary, brutally honest, wryly funny
--Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi

Fan Fiction
I moved all my SGA fanfic recs here.
I have one Harry Potter fanfic rec: "Do Wizards Dream of Magical Sheep?" by keelywolfe.

Short Stories
--Nearly anything by Isaac Asimov
His brilliant ideas opened a whole new world to me. He's a master of the form.
--Nearly anything by Edgar Allan Poe
Master of the creepy horror story, also the very first detective stories such as "The Purloined Letter". He's sometimes considered a forerunner of science fiction.
--"An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" by Ambrose Bierce
Kurt Vonnegut called this the best American short story.

Articles
Michael Pollan, NY Times:

Unhappy Meals
"Eat only things your great-great-grandmother would recognize as food."

(Michael Pollan has several books out, all of which I've been meaning to read.)