Project Hail Mary, by Andy Weir
Project Hail Mary follows the space adventure of Rayland Grace as he tries to save the world from a bacterium able to absorb the sun’s energy at an apocalyptic rate. Most of all, though, it is a novel about friendship.
Can Humanity Survive Itself?
I have recently read the very interesting novella by Adrian Tchaikovsky; “One Day All This Will Be Yours,” and though imaginative and funny, I would have never thought it could mess with me in the way it did.
“On the Shortness of Life” by Lucius Annaeus Seneca
“On the Shortness of Life” is a short essay on what makes life enjoyable and worth living. Written as a letter to Seneca’s friend Paulinus, its core message is to live life for oneself, not for other people or for ambitious pursuits.
“Children of Time” by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Children of Time is an epic sci-fi story following the very last attempt of humanity to survive our dying planet. Facing a race of intelligent spiders—mistakenly came to being because of humans’ technology—the biggest threat to men’s survival will be, unsurprisingly, themselves.
“Unsettled Ground” by Claire Fuller
Unsettled Ground is a beautiful and heart-wrenching tale of survival and disillusionment. Julius and Jeanie’s world shatters when their mother Dot dies, leaving them in a house they can’t keep nor pay for; without jobs, or money, or phones, or bank accounts and, most of all, without any explanation about why their life turned out to be the way it is.
“The Haunting of Hill House” by Shirley Jackson
The Haunting of Hill House is an unsettling ghost story told from the point of view of Eleanor, who grows more and more paranoid while she gets to know her companions in the meanderings of the terrible Hill House.
“The Kite Runner” by Khaled Hosseini
The Kite Runner is the story of Amir and Hassan’s friendship, which, though polluted by violence and wrong early choices, results to be stronger than distance, stronger than Taliban, stronger than war and even stronger than death.
“Life of Pi” by Yann Martell
Life of Pi is the story of Piscine Molitor Patel; an Indian boy who ends up being a castaway on a lifeboat for 277 days with a tiger.
“The Blind Assassin” by Margaret Atwood
“The Blind Assassin” is a story, within a story, within a story. It’s a poignant family drama with no happy ending, just a painful yet poetic conclusion, not unlike life can be sometimes.