As a dad, I don’t often get feedback on my job performance. Sometimes, the plan is to throw everything on the wall and see what sticks. This mish-mosh style acknowledges that my children may do the opposite of what I say. I liken this behavior to a parental remix of Schrodinger’s Cat of quantum physics fame—while multiple possible outcomes are superimposed in the quantum wave before observing the child, upon fixing the parental eye on the target, all that momentary potential collapses to the least desired result!
Once in a while, however, I abandon the scatter-shot parenting and take the direct approach. Included in this wishful category are books I consider a must for my children to experience. Thus, my tale today concerns science fiction novels—specifically, books that forever transformed my worldview. I have a long list, but for the teen years, my top four reads—and many of you may disagree—are Foundation (Asimov), Rendezvous with Rama (Clarke), Stranger in a Strange Land (Heinlein), and Dune (Herbert). These are generally not for the early teen years. Certainly, any good reader can get through these novels, but the magic occurs with a mindset mature enough to “grok” the beyond.
I have previously quoted many a Dune reference to my daughters with no avail. And so, with my eldest leaving the nest for college, I had almost given up hope that she would crack the book’s pages. Two weeks ago, she walked quietly into my home office, where I was working at my desk. She pulled up a chair, and then began the conversation in a measured tone, “Dad, I have some questions.”
I had immediate feelings of dread and gratitude—could this be about boys, and hadn’t her mother handled that topic … and she still wants my advice.
Taking a deep breath, and turning off my computer, I prompted, “Okay, what’s up?”
She let loose with, “I’m confused about the relationships between the Imperium, the Great Houses and the Emperor. How does the CHOAM company fit in, and is the Spacing Guild more powerful? Does the Emperor control the Bene Gesserit?”
Que the huge smile on my relieved face. Inside, I was laughing with pure joy. Outside, I nodded and asked, “How far into Dune are you?”
“Not very,” she admitted tentatively. Then she quickly added, “His writing style is amazing. I can see why it’s one of your favorites.”
Not wanting to leave her questions hanging, I managed a half-reply along the lines of, “Herbert’s world-building—organizations, governance, trade, religion—is a lot to process. These are great questions. There are layers within layers within layers. It’s not unlike real life. The CHOAM … “
We chatted iteratively for five minutes on a framework. The rest was for her to discover. I finished with, “I’d love to hear your ideas after the next hundred pages.”
Addendum: I took my daughters to the Jersey Shore to visit Grandmom, and this gave my wife a staycation break. My eldest daughter forgot to pack hair conditioner, a brush, extra shoes, and other sundry items, but the big win—she remembered Dune in a plastic bag for reading on the beach!
Question: Regardless of the reader’s age, what are your top five transformative science fiction novels? If I had to provide a fifth choice, it would be from Zelazny, Gibson, or Niven.
Breathe slowly, observe humbly, dream deeply, and evolve.
W.L. Hoffman