The first book I read of Iain Banks was Consider Phlebas, a science fiction fantasy set in the very far future where human civilisation has reach a very stable period, assisted by the machines or AI's. Together they are known as the culture and have become a very powerful species. His other culture novels are just as imaginative and, while keeping the culture strain alive, is not at all repetitive reading. If you're into Sci-Fi, goto the link above and get Iain Banks' books. They're excellent reading material.
Read this article which is an interview with Mr. Iain Banks.
I've read The Belgariad which is an excellent series consisting of five books. Refer to the link above for their titles, but believe me, they're good! The second series, The Mallorian continues 11 years after the first series ends. The series (also five books) is just as good, and the characters are even more refined. After Eddings' initial success he should have stopped. I didn't enjoy The Ellinium as much as the previous two series. Still facinating, but a bit flat.
Mr Card manages to realy dwelve into the depths of one's soul and extract every last bit compassion for the characters he creates. He manages to set you thinking about life. The three books that I've read so far are excellent: The Songmaster, Ender's Game, Speaker for the Dead. Recommended!
If you're a science fiction and fantasy fanatic, then get this list. It is an invaluable reference as to which books to get, and their authors are. You realy get the cream of SF writers here.
I love science fiction and, consequently, also the movies that relate to this field. One of the first, and probably still the best "space" movie I've seen, has to be Star Wars. The sequel The Empire Strikes Back keeps the pace of the first movies, with added effects, and the final movie, Return of the Jedi finishes it off with a nice family-style happy ending. The prequels to these three movies have recently been shot. I've seen The Phantom Menace and it was fairly good. Probably because I am a die-hard Star Wars fanatic :-).
Of course, BladeRunner is also here, and counts just as high, but in a different category. Blade Runner captures its audience totally. But this movies is not for all. You either join the BladeRunner cult, or you don't. You decide.
Of late, The 5th Element has become one of my all-time favorite movies. French director, Luc Besson shines once again and brings life and excellent homur to the Science Fiction genre. It's a movie that even Susan likes, which makes it so much more special.
Twelve Monkeys has brought a brand new definition to the words "time travel". While this movie is science fiction at its very best, it is by no means set in the future. Bruce Willis delivers one of his best character portrayals alongside Brad Pitt in a very uncharacteristicly demented picture.
If you enjoy watching movies, be sure to visit the IMDB (Internet Movie Database). It is a mountain of information on movies. Best of all, each movie is rated by the IMDB users. It is an invaluable reference to the movie buff.
