eading seems to be falling out of fashion these days: less than half of adults today read for pleasure. This is unfortunate, as reading has been a central activity for humans since literacy became widespread. Whether you want to blame this on the modern school system or the growing prevalence of television as the primary form of downtime entertainment, reading for pleasure is less common. But it should be more common! So if you’re uninspired to read or you’ve been wanting to read but can’t find any good solid books to start with, below is a list of 10 sci-fi and fantasy books you should give a try.

These genres are definitely a deeper pool to jump into for people who don’t read as much, but if you give it a try then they might just grab you, for they all sport incredible worlds and thought-provoking concepts which will leave you wondering for days.

This list is in no particular order, jumping between science fiction and fantasy for each item for variety. Now, without further ado:

10: The Hobbit (J.R.R. Tolkien)

While the Lord of the Rings make an incredible movie trilogy, they are based on the legendary fantasy novels written by one J.R.R. Tolkien. Lord of the Rings has become the fantasy of fantasy, with entire subgenres being defined by their similarity to Tolkien’s elves and dwarves and mythical tales.

But for someone who is not willing to commit as much time to these honestly long books, The Hobbit serves as a nice introduction to the world of Middle-Earth while not being too long and tying in to the larger trilogy. It’s a fun story with a lot of soul and lessons about how anyone, big or small, can change the world.

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9: The Fifth Season (N.K. Jemisin)

N.K. Jemisin is a genius science fiction author, whose range goes from in-depth novels with large stories to even writing a run of incredibly well received Green Lantern comics. 

But the Fifth Season is one of her better-known works, being about a future Earth with only one continent called the Stillness. The world is ravaged by these terrible storms that shake the world, being the aforementioned fifth season. The story is about multiple characters, each of them being a unique species called orogenes, who have the power to control the Earth and its elements. It’s worth a look even if you’re not interested in reading it just because of the beautiful world that Jemisin creates.

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8: The Last Wish (Andrzej Sapkowski)

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Enjoyed the beautiful monster hunting romps of the Witcher games, or were captured by the story of the Netflix show of the same name? Why not check out the novels that those stories came from?

If you don’t already know, the Witcher takes place in a fantasy world that used to be like ours, until monstrous invaders from another world turned it into the bloody death filled landscape that it appears as now. The stories all centrally surround a character who is a witcher, a human who is magically enhanced to be a powerful monster hunter.

The stories are just as good as the show and the game if not better, as incredible books of fantasy that revolve around more human folklore than the highest of high fantasy that Tolkien provides.

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7: The Three Body Problem (Liu Cixin)

Just like the previous, the Three Body Problem has been turned into multiple series that you can watch right now. The novel is more hard science fiction than anything else on this list, and a large section of the book does take place on Earth, but it is an excellent read nonetheless. The book takes place in China in the 1960s, when astronomers discover an alien world around a star system consisting of three stars orbiting each other. The novel is about the discovery and all of the drama that follows as this alien knowledge clashes with real world tensions during that time.

The science fiction comes through in the curiosity of the star system, because the three body problem is a real mathematical problem, which is rooted in the difficulty of  identifying a system of three celestial bodies in a stable orbit with each other. It’s a more grounded take on science fiction, but an excellent read nonetheless.

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6: The Stormlight Archives (Brandon Sanderson)

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This Brandon Sanderson five book high fantasy series begins with the Way of Kings, in a world where wicked beasts have brought desolation to the world and are pushed back by powerful warriors who glow brilliantly, called the Knights Radiant. 

The story rotates between the viewpoint of a couple characters, including the ‘main character’ Kaladin, on a journey through this world fighting against enemy soldiers as well as the oppressive social system he finds himself in. If you like long and epic fantasy, then this series is definitely for you.

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5: Fahrenheit 451 (Ray Bradbury)

You may or may not have read this book in school already, but if you haven’t then give it a try. It’s similar to 1984, in that it takes place in a dystopian future where a totalitarian government has taken control of much of the world and institutes oppressive social policies that suffocate the populace. The government in the novel has taken to burning books, a common form of suppression practiced by real world totalitarian governments. The protagonist navigates through this world as he slowly learns the truth of his reality, and I should not spoil the rest.

In a world where books like this are getting banned more and more, this serves as a more realistic science fiction piece that warns us about what the world might become in the future.

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4: Six of Crows (Leigh Bardugo)

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Having been described as high fantasy Oceans 11, Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo takes place in a darker fantasy setting, in a city called Ketterdam, where a crew of misfit thieves conspires in a grim world. 

The universe of this book (which has been held in high acclaim) is also the setting of the Netflix series Shadow and Bone, which gives a new story to these characters.

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3: Dune (Frank Herbert)

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The Dune movies have reached critical acclaim as of late, but the books that they were based on cannot be ignored. While many say that the books are very dry, if you find the time to stick with them you’ll find that they tell a thrilling and epic tale that can be read as fantasy just as well as science fiction. But the story is science fiction at its core, telling a story about a religious icon as well as corrupt companies and families and the detriment that it has on society.

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2: Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (Douglas Adams)

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The funniest book by far on this list, Hitchhiker’s Guide, tells the story of the last human in existence after the planet is destroyed to make room for an intergalactic highway. He goes on a series of wacky adventures throughout the galaxy that involve the revelation that dolphins are smarter than humans but choose not to communicate with us, and the culturally iconic joke of “42” being the answer to life, the universe, and everything.

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1: Slaughterhouse Five (Kurt Vonnegut)

“So it goes,” is the unofficial tagline Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut, an author known for his dark but thought-provoking stories. This one is a bit of a head-scratcher, but the plot essentially revolves around this man whose consciousness gets pulled out of time and meets a race of aliens called the Tralfamadorians who experience time like him; all at once and never at the same time. 

It’s strange and fun, but it’s ultimately an exploration of experience and consciousness and why anything matters at all, when time and death lose meaning. Death is just one of the many states a creature can be in, and it doesn’t matter so much either way. They were alive once, so what’s the big deal?

It’s hard to explain, but it is genuinely an incredible book.

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If you want to read books, don’t be afraid to simply get started with any of these or any other book that piques your interest! It’s never too late to “start” reading, and make sure to enjoy it! You’re not reading to write essays anymore. Professional tip, just enjoy it.

If you liked this article and want to read more about books, here’s a collection of book series for adults, with some you may recognize from here! If novel type books aren’t quite your thing then here are some female comic book writers whose works you will want to read.