This memo contains a big list of books I want. It’s probably not very thrilling reading.

I intend to get all the books in the “reading plan” and “book series” sections, the others are more mutable.

Reading Plan

A while ago I read a blog post about why you should have a reading plan, and so I decided to put one together. Many people read the classics, or biographies of statesmen, or histories of a certain period: these are all well-defined categories. So I felt that my reading plan should be more structured than just a list of books I happened to like the sound of.

I didn’t much like the idea of reading the classics and, after some thought, I settled on a list of some classics:

SF Masterworks

ISBN Title Author
1857988191 The Rediscovery of Man Cordwainer Smith
1857988213 Earth Abides George R. Stewart
185798837X Martian Time-Slip Philip K. Dick
1857988221 The Demolished Man Alfred Bester
1857988361 Stand on Zanzibar John Brunner
1857988833 The Drowned World J. G. Ballard
185798885X Emphyrio Jack Vance
1857989147 The Book of Skulls Robert Silverberg
1857988531 Ubik Philip K. Dick
185798935X Timescape Gregory Benford
1857988523 More Than Human Theodore Sturgeon
1857989244 A Case of Conscience James Blish
185798997X The Centauri Device M. John Harrison
185798952X Dr. Bloodmoney Philip K. Dick
1857989988 Non-Stop Brian Aldiss
1857987217 The Fountains of Paradise Arthur C. Clarke
1857989376 Pavane Keith Roberts
1857987012 Now Wait for Last Year Philip K. Dick
185798742X Nova Samuel R. Delany
1857987462 The First Men in the Moon H. G. Wells
1857987624 Blood Music Greg Bear
1857987896 Jem Frederik Pohl
1857987640 Bring the Jubilee Ward Moore
1857983394 VALIS Philip K. Dick
1857983408 The Complete Roderick John Sladek
1857983416 Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said Philip K. Dick
1857987985 Grass Sheri S. Tepper
0575073179 A Fall of Moondust Arthur C. Clarke
0575073160 Eon Greg Bear
0575074639 The Shrinking Man Richard Matheson
0575074809 The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch Philip K. Dick
0575075287 The Space Merchants Frederik Pohl and Cyril M. Kornbluth
0575074582 Time Out of Joint Philip K. Dick
0575074604 The Simulacra Philip K. Dick
0575075252 Dying Inside Robert Silverberg
0575076909 The Child Garden Geoff Ryman
0575077085 Mission of Gravity Hal Clement
0575074612 A Maze of Death Philip K. Dick
0575077344 Life During Wartime Lucius Shepard
0575079142 Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang Kate Wilhelm
9780575079779 Dark Benediction Walter M. Miller Jr.
9780575079151 Mockingbird Walter Tevis
9780575082410 The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress Robert A. Heinlein
0575072202 A Canticle for Leibowitz Walter M. Miller Jr.
9780575090996 Dhalgren Samuel R. Delany
9780575082106 Inverted World Christopher Priest
9780575094994 The Female Man Joanna Russ
9780575095014 Arslan M. J. Engh
9780575099401 The Difference Engine William Gibson and Bruce Sterling
9780575099418 The Prestige Christopher Priest
9780575071131 Greybeard Brian Aldiss
9780575105232 City Clifford D. Simak
9780575101081 Hellstrom’s Hive Frank Herbert
9780575099449 Of Men and Monsters William Tenn
9780575099463 The Affirmation Christopher Priest
9780575099456 R.U.R. and War with the Newts Karel Čapek
9780575108233 Floating Worlds Cecelia Holland
9780575108004 Rogue Moon Algis Budrys
9780575108028 Dangerous Visions Harlan Ellison
9780575119543 Synners Pat Cadigan
9780575131361 Sarah Canary Karen Joy Fowler
9780575118232 Ammonite Nicola Griffith
9780575118317 The Continuous Katherine Mortenhoe D. G. Compton
9780575131095 Doomsday Book Connie Willis
9780575118546 Unquenchable Fire Rachel Pollack
9780575118287 The Caltraps of Time David I. Masson
9780575082816 Engine Summer John Crowley
9780575119529 Take Back Plenty Colin Greenland
9780575118256 Slow River Nicola Griffith
9780575131040 The Gate to Women’s Country Sheri S. Tepper
9780575118690 The Sea and Summer George Turner
9780575129047 Wasp Eric Frank Russell
9780575113121 To Say Nothing of the Dog Connie Willis
9780575129054 The Gods Themselves Isaac Asimov
9780575081185 This Is the Way the World Ends James Morrow
9780575082649 The Deep John Crowley
9780575131149 Time is the Fire: The Best of Connie Willis Connie Willis
9780575093119 No Enemy But Time Michael Bishop
9780575122031 Double Star Robert A. Heinlein
9780575129061 Revelation Space Alastair Reynolds
9780575132306 Random Acts of Senseless Violence Jack Womack
9780575093096 Transfigurations Michael Bishop
9780575120723 The Door Into Summer Robert A. Heinlein
9780575129627 Half Past Human T. J. Bass
9781473203242 Her Smoke Rose Up Forever James Tiptree Jr
9781473208292 Hard to Be a God Arkady and Boris Strugatsky
9781473208926 Night Lamp Jack Vance
9781473205765 The Wind’s Twelve Quarters and The Compass Rose Ursula K. Le Guin
9781473212527 Dying of the Light George R. R. Martin
9781473211957 A Fire Upon the Deep Vernor Vinge
9781473212534 Norstrilia Cordwainer Smith
9781473202214 Monday Begins on Saturday Arkady and Boris Strugatsky
9781473215160 Fairyland Paul J. McAuley
9781473213111 The Man Who Fell to Earth Walter Tevis
9781473205802 Always Coming Home Ursula K. Le Guin
9781473211964 A Deepness in the Sky Vernor Vinge
9781473214668 Swastika Night Murray Constantine
9781473214620 China Mountain Zhang Maureen F. McHugh
9781473212473 Limbo Bernard Wolfe
9781473222281 The Doomed City Arkady and Boris Strugatsky
9781473222656 Raising the Stones Sheri S. Tepper
9781473222670 The Embedding Ian Watson
9781473222731 Cryptozoic Brian Aldiss
9781473224063 Land Under England Joseph O’Neill
9781473224742 Dreaming in Smoke Tricia Sullivan
9781473226029 Fools Pat Cadigan
9781473213449 The Best of R. A. Lafferty R. A. Lafferty
9781473227675 Light M. John Harrison
9781473227569 Native Tongue Suzette Haden Elgin
9781473228283 The Snail on the Slope Arkady and Boris Strugatsky
9781473228306 The Shockwave Rider John Brunner
9781473229228 Lord Valentine’s Castle Robert Silverberg
9781473229501 River of Gods Ian McDonald
9781473229235 A Time of Changes Robert Silverberg
9781473230118 The Andromeda Anthology Fred Hoyle and John Elliot
9781473230194 Bold as Love Gwyneth Jones
9781473230200 Castles Made of San Gwyneth Jones
9780575119512 Riddley Walker Russell Hoban
9781473202511 Feersum Endjinn Iain M. Banks
9780575116726 The Lies of Locke Lamora Scott Lynch
9781473223264 Doomsday Morning C. L. Moore
9781473224704 Galactic Patrol E. E. ‘Doc’ Smith
9781473222557 Fury Henry Kuttner
9781473222366 The Sands of Mars Arthur C. Clarke
9781473222373 Earthlight Arthur C. Clarke
9781473224711 Grey Lensman E. E. ‘Doc’ Smith
9781473224728 Second Stage Lensman E. E. ‘Doc’ Smith
9781473222540 Northwest of Earth C. L. Moore
9781473222526 Jirel of Joiry C. L. Moore
9781473224735 Children of the Lens E. E. ‘Doc’ Smith
9781473222342 Against the Fall of Night Arthur C. Clarke
9781473222533 Judgement Night C. L. Moore
9781473227682 The Stainless Steel Rat Harry Harrison
9781473228375 Deathworld (omnibus) Harry Harrison
9781473227392 Sidewise in Time Murray Leinster

Fantasy Masterworks

ISBN Title Author
9781857987119 Little, Big John Crowley
9781857987263 The Chronicles of Amber Roger Zelazny
9781857989953 Viriconium M. John Harrison
9781857989991 The Land of Laughs Jonathan Carroll
9781857987577 The Compleat Enchanter: The Magical Misadventures of Harold Shea L. Sprague de Camp and Fletcher Pratt
9781857987676 Lud-in-the-Mist Hope Mirrlees
9781857983319 Fevre Dream George R. R. Martin
9781857987225 Beauty Sheri S. Tepper
9781857987430 Elric Michael Moorcock
9781857983272 The First Book of Lankhmar Fritz Leiber
9781857987966 The Riddle-Master’s Game Patricia A. McKillip
9780575073609 Time and Again Jack Finney
9780575072848 Mistress of Mistresses E.R. Eddison
9780575073593 Gloriana Michael Moorcock
9780575072671 The Well of the Unicorn Fletcher Pratt
9780575073586 The Second Book of Lankhmar Fritz Leiber
9780575073678 Voice of Our Shadow Jonathan Carroll
9780575073739 The Emperor of Dreams Clark Ashton Smith
9780575073746 Lyonesse I: Suldrun’s Garden Jack Vance
9780575073760 Peace Gene Wolfe
9780575073784 The Dragon Waiting John M. Ford
9780575073661 Chronicles of Corum Michael Moorcock
9780575074170 Black Gods and Scarlet Dreams C. L. Moore
9780575074255 The Broken Sword Poul Anderson
9780575073722 The House on the Borderland and Other Novels William Hope Hodgson
9780575074262 The Drawing of the Dark Tim Powers
9780575075177 Lyonesse II and III: The Green Pearl and Madouc Jack Vance
9780575074699 The History of the Runestaff Michael Moorcock
9780575074835 A Voyage to Arcturus David Lindsay
9780575075467 Darker Than You Think Jack Williamson
9780575074989 Three Hearts & Three Lions Poul Anderson
9780575075825 Grendel John Gardner
9780575076051 The Iron Dragon’s Daughter Michael Swanwick
9780575076693 Was Geoff Ryman
9780575076594 Song of Kali Dan Simmons
9780575075597 Replay Ken Grimwood
9780575076891 Sea-Kings of Mars and Otherworldly Stories Leigh Brackett
9780575077256 The Anubis Gates Tim Powers
9780575077652 The Forgotten Beasts of Eld Patricia A. McKillip
9780575077911 The Mark of the Beast and Other Fantastical Tales Rudyard Kipling
9780575083004 Aegypt John Crowley
9780575089921 The Dragon Griaule Lucius Shepard
9780575116818 Last Call Tim Powers
9780575133143 The Falling Woman Pat Murphy
9780575130388 The Phoenix and the Mirror Avram Davidson
9781473201040 Lord Darcy Randall Garrett
9780575105508 Votan and Other Novels John James
9781473205741 Ombria in Shadow Patricia A. McKillip
9781473205451 Mythago Wood Robert Holdstock
9781473211988 Expiration Date Tim Powers
9781473211995 Lavondyss Robert Holdstock
9781473212053 Earthquake Weather Tim Powers
9781473211629 Thomas the Rhymer Ellen Kushner
9780575092211 The Anvil of Ice Michael Scott Rohan
9781473211698 Elleander Morning Jerry Yulsman
9781473213678 The Circus of Dr. Lao Charles G. Finney

Penguin Little Black Classics

Number Title Author
1 Mrs Rosie and the Priest Giovanni Boccaccio
2 As kingfishers catch fire Gerard Manley Hopkins
3 The Saga of Gunnlaug Serpenttongue
5 Aphorisms on Love and Hate Friedrich Nietzsche
6 Traffic John Ruskin
8 A Modest Proposal Jonathan Swift
9 Three Tang Dynasty Poets
10 On the Beach at Night Alone Walt Whitman
13 The Eve of St Agnes John Keats
14 Woman Much Missed Thomas Hardy
15 Femme Fatale Guy de Maupassant
17 Caligula Suetonius
18 Jason and Medea Apollonius of Rhodes
19 Olalla Robert Louis Stevenson
23 The Tinder Box Hans Christian Andersen
24 The Gate of the Hundred Sorrows Rudyard Kipling
25 Circles of Hell Dante
26 Of Street Piemen Henry Mayhew
27 The nightingales are drunk Hafez
28 The Wife of Bath Geoffrey Chaucer
29 How We Weep and Laugh at the Same Thing Michel de Montaigne
30 The Terrors of the Night Thomas Nashe
31 The TellTale Heart Edgar Allan Poe
32 A Hippo Banquet Mary Kingsley
33 The Beautifull Cassandra Jane Austen
34 Gooseberries Anton Chekhov
35 Well, they are gone, and here must I remain Samuel Taylor Coleridge
36 Sketchy, Doubtful, Incomplete Jottings Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
37 The Great Winglebury Duel Charles Dickens
38 The Maldive Shark Herman Melville
39 The Old Nurse’s Story Elizabeth Gaskell
40 The Steel Flea Nikolay Leskov
42 The Yellow WallPaper Charlotte Perkins Gilman
43 Remember, Body… C.P. Cavafy
44 The Meek One Fyodor Dostoevsky
45 A Simple Heart Gustave Flaubert
46 The Nose Nikolai Gogol
47 The Great Fire of London Samuel Pepys
48 The Reckoning Edith Wharton
49 The Figure in the Carpet Henry James
50 Anthem for Doomed Youth Wilfred Owen
51 My Dearest Father Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
53 Goblin Market Christina Rossetti
55 Antigone Sophocles
58 Leonardo da Vinci Giorgio Vasari
59 Lord Arthur Savile’s Crime Oscar Wilde
60 The Old Man of the Moon Shen Fu
61 The Dolphins, the Whales and the Gudgeon Aesop
62 Lips too chilled Matsuo Bashō
63 The Night is Darkening Round Me Emily Brontë
64 Tomorrow Joseph Conrad
65 The Voyage of Sir Francis Drake Around the Whole Globe Richard Hakluyt
66 A Pair of Silk Stockings Kate Chopin
68 The Robber Bridegroom Brothers Grimm
69 I Hate and I Love Catullus
70 Circe and the Cyclops Homer
71 Il Duro D. H. Lawrence
72 Miss Brill Katherine Mansfield
74 Come Close Sappho
75 Kasyan from the Beautiful Lands Ivan Turgenev
76 O Cruel Alexis Virgil
77 A Slip under the Microscope H. G. Wells
78 The Madness of Cambyses Herodotus
79 Speaking of Śiva
80 The Dhammapada
81 Lady Susan Jane Austen
83 The World is Full of Foolish Men Jean de la Fontaine
84 The Sea Raiders H.G. Wells
85 Hannibal Livy
86 To Be Read at Dusk Charles Dickens
87 The Death of Ivan Ilyich Leo Tolstoy
88 The Stolen White Elephant Mark Twain
89 Tyger, Tyger William Blake
91 The Yellow Book
92 Kidnapped Olaudah Equiano
93 A Modern Detective Edgar Allan Poe
94 The Suffragettes
95 How To Be a Medieval Woman Margery Kempe
96 Typhoon Joseph Conrad
97 The Nun of Murano Giacomo Casanova
98 A terrible beauty is born W.B. Yeats
99 The Withered Arm Thomas Hardy
100 Nonsense Edward Lear
101 The Frogs Aristophanes
103 Letters to a Young Poet Rainer Maria Rilke
104 Seven Hanged Leonid Andreyev
105 Oroonoko Aphra Behn
106 O frabjous day! Lewis Carroll
107 Trivia: or, the Art of Walking the Streets of London John Gay
108 The Sandman E. T. A. Hoffmann
109 Love that moves the sun and other stars Dante
110 The Queen of Spades Alexander Pushkin
111 A Nervous Breakdown Anton Chekhov
112 The Book of Tea Kakuzo Okakura
113 Is this a dagger which I see before me? William Shakespeare
114 My life had stood a loaded gun Emily Dickinson
115 Daphnis and Chloe Longus
116 Matilda Mary Shelley
117 The Lifted Veil George Eliot
120 Flush Virginia Woolf
121 Lot No. 249 Arthur Conan Doyle
123 Rip Van Winkle Washington Irving
125 Waterloo Victor Hugo
126 Stancliffe’s Hotel Charlotte Brontë

Book Series

Series ISBN Title
Overlord Volume 14: The Witch of the Falling Kingdom
The Collected Fiction of William Hope Hodgson 9781597809214 Volume 2: The House on the Borderland and Other Mysterious Places
9781597809412 Volume 3: The Ghost Pirates and Other Revenants of the Sea
9781597809597 Volume 4: The Night Land and Other Perilous Romances
9781597809603 Volume 5: The Dream of X and Other Fantastic Visions
The Best Short Fiction of Darrell Schweitzer 9781786364425 Volume 1: The Mysteries of the Faceless King
9781786364449 Volume 2: The Last Heretic

Candidate series

Out of print

I might have to give up on these and buy a different printing:

Series ISBN Title
20th Century Boys 9781421535357 Volume 17: Cross-counter
9781421535364 Volume 18: Everybody’s Song
9781421535371 Volume 19: The man who came back
9781421535388 Volume 20: Humanity in the Balance
21st Century Boys 9781421543260 Volume 1: The Death of “Friend”
9781421543277 Volume 2: 20th Century Boys

Roleplaying Games

System Type Title
RuneQuest Sourcebooks The Guide to Glorantha
Traveller Sourcebooks The Glorious Empire
The Great Rift
Behind the Claw
Adventures & Campaigns Shadows of Sindal
OSR Sourcebooks Yoon-Suin
Fungi of the Far Realms
Magical Industrial Revolution
Trilemma Adventures Compendium Volume I
Lorn Song of the Bachelor

Miscellaneous

ISBN Title Author
9781556346293 Robin’s Laws of Good Game Mastering Robin D. Laws
9780981884042 Beating the Story Robin D. Laws
9781138632059 The Art of Game Design: A Book of Lenses Jesse Schell
9780134667607 Advanced Game Design: A Systems Approach Michael Sellers

Computer Science, Programming, + Digital Culture

ISBN Title Author
9780321842688 Hacker’s Delight Henry S. Warren
9780201835953 The Mythical Man-Month: Essays on Software Engineering, Anniversary Edition Frederick P. Brooks Jr
9781881526919 Selected Papers on Computer Science Donald E. Knuth
9780521513388 Pearls of Functional Algorithm Design Richard Bird
9780521663502 Purely Functional Data Structures Chris Okasaki
9781732265189 An Elegant Puzzle: Systems of Engineering Management Will Larson
9781732102200 A Philosophy of Software Design John Ousterhout
9780321125217 Domain-Driven Design: Tackling Complexity in the Heart of Software Eric Evans

Politics, Philosophy, Economics, + History

ISBN Title Author
9781540622402 Cyropaedia Xenophon
9781297565090 An Account of the Cultivation and Manufacture of tea in China Samuel Ball
9780521893312 Metropolis and Hinterland: The City of Rome and the Italian Economy Neville Morley
9780521634168 Trade in Classical Antiquity Neville Morley
9781577315933 The Hero with A Thousand Faces Joseph Campbell
9780691208015 1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed Eric H. Cline

Design

ISBN Title Author
9783721201451 Grid Systems in Graphic Design: A Handbook for Graphic Artists, Typographers, and Exhibition Designers Josef Mülller-Brockmann

Miscellaneous

ISBN Title Author
9780356506142 The Wheel of Time Companion Robert Jordan
9780199549740 The Old English Baron Clara Reeve
9780343546373 An Encyclopædia Of Occultism Lewis Spence
9781447263401 Last Days Adam Nevill
9780765318145 Anvil of Stars Greg Bear
9780586217467 The Mote in God’s Eye Larry Niven
9780141191447 The Haunting of Hill House Shirley Jackson
9780575082373 House of Suns Alastair Reynolds
9781771481595 Wild Fell Michael Rowe
9781511536738 The Turn of the Screw Henry James
9780099908807 The Snows Of Kilimanjaro And Other Stories Ernest Hemingway
9780156306300 Fiasco Stanislaw Lem
9780552101233 Logan’s Run William Nolan
9780575082090 Diaspora Greg Egan
9780575082076 Permutation City Greg Egan
9780967321547 Eyes of the God: The Weird Fiction and Poetry of R. H. Barlow S. T. Joshi
9780199552351 The Last Man Mary Shelley
9781609807450 Things to Do When You’re Goth in the Country And Other Stories Chavisa Woods
9780765333629 The Weird Jeff VanderMeer
9781892391551 The New Weird Jeff VanderMeer
9781585678259 Islandia Austin Tappan Wright
9781402780035 The Sign of the Four I. N. J. Culbard
9781906838058 The Valley of Fear I. N. J. Culbard
9781402770005 The Hound of the Baskervilles I. N. J. Culbard
9781906838355 The Case of Charles Dexter Ward I. N. J. Culbard
9781906838683 Shadow Out of Time I. N. J. Culbard
9780330534239 Perdido Street Station China Mieville
9780099529040 Planet of the Apes Pierre Boulle
9781447263210 Wicker Man Hardy
9780143107651 Perchance to Dream: Selected Stories Charles Beaumont
9781590179062 The Rim Of Morning William Sloane
9780199536733 No Name Wilkie Collins
9781857231793 Against A Dark Background Iain M. Banks
0749386428 The Magic Mountain Thomas Mann
9780007528417 The Space Trilogy C. S. Lewis
9780374175412 Infinite Detail Tim Maughan
9780553382914 The Etched City K. J. Bishop
9781590176689 The Black Spider Jeremias Gotthelf
9780947757984 Malpertuis Jean Ray
9781596061330 The Best of Lucius Shepard Lucius Shepard
9780743417358 Weaveworld Clive Barker
9780812533057 Seventh Son Orson Scott Card
9780062094537 On Stranger Tides Tim Powers
9781892391797 The Stress of Her Regard Tim Powers
9780316029186 The Last Wish Andrzej Sapkowski
9780060557812 Neverwhere Neil Gaiman
9780345497529 The City & The City China Mieville
9780345524256 Midnight Riot Ben Aaronovitch
9780809500314 The Beckoning Fair One Oliver Onions
9781840226409 The Dead of Night Oliver Onions
1594745269 Horrorstör Grady Hendrix
1594748624 My Best Friend’s Exorcism Grady Hendrix
9781683691433 The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires Grady Hendrix
9780843948448 Black Butterflies John Shirley
9781849161350 The Leaping Tom Fletcher
9781849161367 The Thing on the Shore Tom Fletcher
9780984480203 Tempting Providence and Other Stories Jonathan Thomas
9780978991128 Omens Richard Gavin
9780809572496 Mr. Gaunt and Other Uneasy Encounters John Langan
9781906120597 Murmurations: An Anthology of Uncanny Stories About Birds Nicholas Royle
9780982843697 Ugly Behaviour Steve Rasnic Tem
9781566892254 Fugue State Brian Evenson
9780715653739 World War Z Max Brooks
9781616963026 The Very Best of Caitlín R. Kiernan Caitlín R. Kiernan
9781505602562 The Horror Society Presents: Forgotten Places Henry Snider et al.
9781906652173 Songs from Spider Street Mark Howard Jones
9780970400031 The Womb of Time Brian Stableford
9781614980704 The Ancient Track: The Complete Poetical Works of H. P. Lovecraft S. T. Joshi
9780312931995 The Boat of a Million Years Poul Anderson
9781925355796 A Collapse of Horses Brian Evenson
9781566894173 The Open Curtain Brian Evenson
9781566895484 Song for the Unravelling of the World Brian Evenson
9781566894159 Father of Lies Brian Evenson
9781566894166 Last Days Brian Evenson
9781786361998 The Ceremonies T. E. D. Klein
9781946154330 The Cipher Kathe Koja
9780312863944 The Urth of the New Sun Gene Wolfe