The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers is a weird book where practically nothing happens, then you can't stop thinking about it. It has very strong character work.

The sequel, A Close and Common Orbit has a more plot based structure, which is why I like it better, but still has really great character work. The series is called Wayfarers, there are two more.

She also has an unconnected book called To Be Taught, If Fortunate, about space exploration.

I don't think anyone assembles better titles. These are fairly short and don't focus on violence.

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Colorado Springs?

I walked in to my 8th grade science class to find my science teacher crying. She had set up a TV in the room to watch the launch. It had just exploded prior to the start of the class. We watched them play the explosion over and over.

Edit: it was a huge deal to teachers because Christa McAuliffe was to be the first teacher in space. We had a lot of teachers in our district that applied for the selection process when it was announced.

Loved the first Rama book. The rest were meh.

Adrian Tchaikovsky’s Children of Time & The Final Architecture series. Both are great.

Heinlein's books are very readable and not too long, Tunnel in the Sky, or Have Spacesuit Will Travel are fun if you enjoy a retro sci-fi feel.

Rendezvous with Rama is a great story of exploration, and if you like that, check out Ringworld, and The Mote in God's Eye.

A Fire Upon the Deep, Hyperion, and the Culture novels all have some really cool concepts and a lot of space travel

Old Man's War is a fun read if you like a military story

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Rendezvous with Rama, by Clark addresses some ethics and even religion during first contact with a massive alien spacecraft.

It's a good read.

But Magellan didn’t die from a sailing issue. He died because he was an evil, stupid dipshit who thought a few dozen men could face two thousand and win. He fucked around and found out.

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I really tried to like that book, but I just didn't think it was very well written. The best part is the bit about the revolution at the beginning.

Ringworld. The mote in gods eye. The legacy of herot. Starmans son.

I can't recommend The Expanse enough. My favorite sci-fi series of all time.

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Thank you for sharing. I wasn’t born yet (I’m 32), but I can only imagine the sudden rush of concern giving way to terror and then horror.

It’s already been recommended a million times but this is another vote for Project Hail Mary, if it’s not the best it’s in the top three for best audiobooks ever.

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rendezvous with rama, the mote in god's eye, and left field weird one: the unreasoning mask.

It was absolutely amazing from start to finish. I can't belive those guys wrote like 9 novels in the time Martin hasn't finished one.

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