h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

According to recent statistics, 22 out of 100 books bought in the UK are either fantasy or sci-fi based, most of which are riding on the Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings band wagon. So are any of them any good or are they all basically the same!!!

There are a lot of them the same old pap - but there are some jewels in amongst the crud If you haven't read any or many of the genre then most of them are mindless enjoyment, which if you have the time are a fair enough read. As my time has gotten fuller I find I have to become more discriminating.

Try Robin Hobbs - The Farseer Trilogy, Guy Gaveral Kay's - The Fionaver Tapestry both grown up books hiding in the Sci-Fi Fantasy section and both devestating, still greet like a bairn when I read them Other recommended reads include Ash : A Secret History by Mary Gentle and anything at all by Roger Zelazny (specially the Amber Series )

Work is calling, got to go for now. Until later...
BCNU - Crescent

For older kids, Garth Nix's Sabriel, Lirael and Abhorsen are very good indeed. Liam Hearn's Across the Nightingale Floor and sequel Grass for his Pillow are very very good indeed. Anything by Ursula Le Guin, but especially her Earthsea books, marvellous. Anything by Terry Pratchett ditto. I assume you are asking for 'kids' stuff rather than grown-up, but if you do want grown-up titles Iain M. Banks' Culture books are very good Sci Fi. I also agree about Robin Hobb and Fionavar and Mary Gentle.

Do NOT waste your brain on Shadowmancer. There's only so much religious propaganda I can take forced down my throat in one novel.

Almost all of the books I read are either sci-fi or fantasy, and there are some real gems out there. I reccomend David Eddings (especially the earlier stuff), Tad Williams, Neil Gaiman, Anne McCaffrey and George R.R. Martin. I simply don't understand why everyone isn't reading them.

Have you tried Tad Williams' Otherland, all about internet and becoming 'live' with the computer. His DragonChair is good as well.
You could also try Raymond Feist and/or Anne McCaffrey. I soon got Bored with the Wheel of Time, by Robert Jordan. What is it now? Book 10, 11? Mercedes Lackey (?) can be good at times as well.

If I think of any others, I'll add them. I could refill WHSmith's sci-fi fixture twice over!!!

I've read all of them, including Shadowmarch, the book he published online and is only now adapting for print. In fact, the only published book of Tad's I currently do not own is Tailchaser's Song, and that is on order from Amazon.

I really enjoyed Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy, also intended for older teens.

You could also try Juliet Marillier's Sevenwaters Trilogy

I have tried Otherland (because the book is so shiny ), but I'm still on page 400 for about the last 6 months. maybe I should start again...but I found the constant changing of protagonists a bit tireing . are the sequels with the same characters?

Terry Goodkinds "Sword of Truth" series is quite good espescially the first "Wizards First Rule", also Sara Douglass has written a really good trilogy: Battleaxe, Enchanter, and Starman

No offence to those who enjoy them, but I never good see why Anne McCaffrey's books got higher praise/wider readership than the rest of the standard pulp fantasy. There's nothing *wrong* with them, to my mind, but nothing to recommend (damn, I hate that word, I never could spell it) them either.

I think Anne McCaffrey's so very popular because every teenager who found the Pern books simply fell in love with the idea of the dragons. I know I did. now, as a grown-up, I can't bear to read her later books, they are getting more and more boring, formulaic, the characters are becoming more and more wooden, the plots more and more lazy, and she keeps getting into partner-ships and getting some drongo to write half the book! The 'joins' are highly visible and highly irritating. I still have a soft spot for the first half-dozen Pern books but would happily recycle the rest.

I second, third and even fourth whoever recommended Neil Gaiman. Even if you don't care for 'comics' and are put off by the Sandman thing (and more fool you, by the way. Some of the wittiest, saddest explorations of the human heart, despair and Shakespeare ever) read his novels. Neverwhere and American Gods and, for kids, Coraline are my favourites.

Well I thought good omens with Prachett/Gaiman was fantastic but I must admit I have not looked into Gaimans books yet... any recomendations where to start?

I think Margaret Weis is also a fantastic author, especially once you get out of the Dragonlance series....

'American Gods' is a wonderful Gaiman book. It takes the theory that gods exist as long as their people believe in them and imagines what that must mean in modern-day America. So many immigrant groups brought their gods with them and then forgot them. So the Norse, Egyptian, Babylonian and other gods are eking out an odd kind of existence until one man comes along who may change things...

For older kids I second the suggestion of Garth Nix's books. And Lian Hearn's.

Good adult science fiction: anything by Stanislaw Lem, 'Forever War' by Joe Haldeman, 'Babel 5' by, um, Samuel Delaney?.

David B, the