John Wyndham?

Yeah, Chocky maybe for starters…

Cougar

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Hitchhikers guide to the Galaxy

… is the right answer. I read it at about that age, it changed my life.

In what ways? Do you always carry a towel? Feel depressed that nothing’s going to work out right and we’re all insignificant specks?! 😀

squirrelking

Iain M may be pushing it, even in my mid 20s it took me a few goes to finally read Player of Games. Glad I did though.

Oh yeah, you start with Phlebeas, explosions and weirdness and the biggest train crash evar. Could do with some more tits though.

In what ways? Do you always carry a towel? Feel depressed that nothing’s going to work out right and we’re all insignificant specks?!

It sparked a love of words and language, and was a direct influence on my sense of humour. I mean, just take this (paraphrasing from memory):

“The spaceships hung in the air, in much the same way that bricks don’t.”

That’s just glorious. Has a finer sentence ever been committed to paper? I THINK NOT!

Oh yeah, you start with Phlebeas,

Or at least consider it.

How about some Larry Niven – Ringworld for starters.

Warhammer 40k? Gaunt’s Ghosts is excellent series of military SF (start with this one: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Founding-Gaunts-Ghosts-Omnibus/dp/1784966177/ref=sr_1_1_twi_pap_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1547234401&sr=8-1&keywords=gaunt+ghosts+omnibus)

But I agree that Hitchhikers is the best suggestion so far 🙂

I have just read this book:

Aspects of Science Fiction The Albemarle Library for Schools: Amazon.co.uk: Geoffrey D. Doherty

Even though the book is old, Panel Game [short story] by Brian Aldiss is right now 🙂

Black Jack 😉

Wow, I’ve just come back to this thread, lots of good stuff, he’s in for a treat.

The White Mountains trilogy by John Christopher. There’s sci-fi fantasy, lord of the rings and anti-establishment rebellion too.

Clarke is too dry and devoid of humanity, not many will get Banks’s satire at that age and TBH when I was 14, Asimov’s prose came over as pulp-clunky. Niven & Pournelle’s Footfall & Lucifer’s Hammer were gritty, but are now pretty dated.

@Northwind I’d probably start with anything other than the player if I was doing it again (except maybe Excession or Inversions).

Oh, speaking of players, Ready Player One?

Another vote for John Wyndham. Day of the Triffids obvs but I also LOVED The Chrysalids as a kid, might still be my favourite book ever and definitely kicked off a life-long addiction to post-apocalypitica. Iain M Banks also a good recommendation. Dune as noted above definitely. You might want to see how he gets on with some of the more accessible Philip K Dick stuff, maybe one of the short story compilations as a starter.Try Olaf Stapledon’s First and Last Men for some mind blowing epoch-spanning early SF. And obviously Brave New World too.

The passage by Justin Cronin, it runs a fine line between SF and fantasy but works really well. It’s also about to be shown on TV so he can be the ” it’s not as good as the book geek”.

Cronin on tv? Do tell, please! Is it Netflix or sonething?

Starts on Monday on Fox apparently, saw it advertised when I was at my folks over Christmas. Almost makes me consider getting sky.

Starship troopers by Robert e Henlein.
The forever war by joe haldaman

I’d suggest Iain M Banks too. Player of Games is brilliant.

Edit: though it might be a bit fruity for some parents pf 14 year olds. Glancing to change gender and such like

How about some Larry Niven – Ringworld for starters.

See the previous page. Re: Player of Games – that’s the one Banks novel that, having read once, I can never go back to, I find the main protagonist to be so irredeemably unpleasant that I just don’t enjoy the story. I know that many/most of the characters in Banks’ books are morally dubious, but they do, mostly, have redeeming qualities.

Niven & Pournelle’s Footfall & Lucifer’s Hammer were gritty, but are now pretty dated.

And that’s going to be a concern to a fourteen year old just getting into SF?
Niven wrote a whole bunch of books that are hugely enjoyable just because any science in them is assumed to be so far advanced that there’s no point in getting nitpicky about any perceived flaws. Even Niven admits there are aspects of Ringworld that he got wrong, but really, who gives a shit, when you’ve got aliens like the Kzin and Puppeteers!

That’s just glorious. Has a finer sentence ever been committed to paper? I THINK NOT!

She fitted into my biggest arm-chair as if it had been built round her by someone who knew they were wearing arm-chairs tight about the hips that season

Carry on Jeeves, PG Wodehouse

Another shout for Mortal Engines. Don’t let the recent dire movie put you off, the books are brilliant.

Short story collections are always a good choice too. Peter F Hamilton – Second Chance At Eden is a great toe hold into his work.

Player of Games – that’s the one Banks novel that, having read once, I can never go back to, I find the main protagonist to be so irredeemably unpleasant that I just don’t enjoy the story.

Really?

Struggling to counter that without going into plot but I’d heartily disagree. Is Morat the player or just a piece in the game?

Ernest Cline… Ready Player One and Armada. I enjoyed both.