Sci-Fi Books About Space Travel

This was the first sci-fi book I ever read, and it was plucked from my father’s bookshelves, tucked away in a basement closet. A collection of loosely-connected short stories that were initially not meant for novel form, taken together, they chronicle a Mars that is explored and eventually colonized by those back on Earth who are living under the threat of nuclear war. I’ve read this book many times over the years and I love that every time I come back to it, I take away something new.

And here we have one of the first comics I ever read, which catapulted me into a full-on comics obsession. This series is a no holds barred sci-fi story from a future in which women who are found to be “noncompliant” are shipped off to a prison planet. Noncompliance takes many forms, from “seduction and disappointment” to “disrespect” to being a “bad mother.” A reclamation of the women in prison exploitation films from the ’60s and ’70s, the storyline centers around a group of inmates who agree to compete in “Megaton,” Earth’s most popular sporting event. But winning the game isn’t necessarily their first priority. Could those imprisoned on Bitch Planet possibly escape this carceral world?

The Saga series is known for being a gateway comic for people who think they don’t like comics and, in fact, a buddy of mine gave me the first volume around the same time I first read Bitch Planet. This space opera is about two lovers from long-warring extraterrestrial races who are forced to flee the authorities from both sides as they struggle to care for their newborn daughter. In the process, they find themselves seeking shelter on a multitude of planets, but they are sadly unable to ever settle down for very long. This series went on a three-year hiatus following the most upsetting cliffhanger ever and has just recently returned, thank the gods.

This sci-fi epic spans lifetimes, laying out a sprawling tale you can get lost in. The novel covers everything from space travel and colonization to ambition and regret to the importance of found family. At the heart of this story is a mute child who may carry the power to cross light-years in the blink of an eye, enabling space travel to be completely revolutionized. But at what cost?

This one is a recent read for me, and I’m eager to read the next volume. In this first volume, a man and his son are transporting cargo across space when a large creature destroys their vessel and they become separated. As the father fights to find his way back to his son, the young boy revels in the newfound powers he’s suddenly picked up, powers that allow him to swim through space safely, among other things. But when a group of people from another planet become aware of the power he carries, things get dicey. Aside from being a fun story on its own, I really enjoy its humor.

An astronomer discovers an Earth-like planet orbiting a nearby star and predicts that one day, humans will build a new utopia there. This book chronicles a time in which this prediction comes close to becoming a reality. Ten astronauts — four veterans and six teenagers — spend 23 years on the journey to Terra-Two. And, well, 23 years is a hella long time to be living together in such close quarters. Will their mission be successful?

In this trilogy, Binti is accepted into prestigious Oomza University thanks to her skill with math and astrolabes. She sets off on an interstellar journey, filled with both nerves and excitement for what the future may hold. But when her ship is attacked, she ends up as the only survivor. There are still five days until she reaches her destination, and she is stuck on a ship with beings who murdered everyone else. Can she survive her voyage and also save the inhabitants of the planet that houses her university?

In this chilling and troubling trilogy, the human survivors of a nuclear war awake to find that they’ve been “rescued” by the Oankali. But what at first seems like salvation becomes something darker when they learn that the Oankali intend to bond with them, crossbreeding to form a hybrid species that are more likely to survive. Over the course of the trilogy, humanity is split between rebellion and resignation.