But lists of sf books that are literary classics are pretty easy to come by, and are generally compiled by people with far more knowledge in the area than I, so I thought this time I'd leave the artistic merit to happenstance, and instead have one criterion for my list: these are SF books that I would (and have) happily read over and over again.

 

This means, therefore, that some of these books will be timeless classics, and some of them, well, won't. Many of these, in fact, fall into a category I think of affectionately as “the sweatpants of literature”. They may not be haute couture, and it may be a tiny bit embarrassing to be seen with them in public, but they are comfy and snuggly and perfect to curl up with on a rainy day and I heart them. 

 

I leave it as an exercise for the reader to determine which of these books I think are the classics, which I think are the sweatpants, and which I think fall somewhere in between. (You might be surprised.)

 

In the case of series I happily read over and over, I've listed the first novel in that series. Except for the Sandman entry, which is the fourth volume (because I love the whole series, but that's the one I read over and over). 

 

I assume The Eye of the World, by Robert Jordan goes without saying? Good.

 

So, My List. Enjoy! Over and over, even!