Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Forums

The problem is that "genre" storytelling and "realistic" storytelling have been unwisely separated for centuries. Ever since Don Quixote, so-called serious novelists have usually considered fantastic elements as things to be mocked rather than used in art. Things like science fiction and fantasy have been kept in the fringe by the literary elite, while they write about family funerals and sordid love affairs.

Occasionally you'll get respected novelists like Gabriel García Márquez who use fantastic elements, only to have a new category created for it: "magical realism" (because they can't call it fantasy). I'd like to see the materialistic streak taken out of "serious literature," if only to open the windows and let in some fresh air.

There's a relevant article on the Guardian. Some excerpts:

Literary readers will probably recognise The Road by Cormac McCarthy, one of the sections of Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell, The Gone-Away World by Nick Harkaway, Stone Gods by Jeanette Winterson and Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood from their descriptions above. All of these novels use the tropes of what most people recognise as science fiction, but their authors or publishers have taken great pains to ensure that they are not categorised as such.
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It's this cartoon imagery of science fiction that least appeals to serious writers and readers. Or, as Margaret Atwood put it more bluntly and infamously: "Science fiction is rockets, chemicals and talking squids in outer space."
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Perhaps the problem is that our present has caught up with the future presented to us by the pioneers of science fiction. Back in the 40s and 50s, when bright-and-shiny/dark-and-dangerous futures were given to us by the pulps, they were truly beyond anyone's ken. Now we are actually living in a science fiction future, is it fair to label a novel that extrapolates from what is possible today to what will probably be possible tomorrow, such as Oryx and Crake, as a flight of fancy, no more than a fairy story?

First, welcome to WWEnd!  This site's main focus is helping people find the best the genre has to offer so you've come to the right place.  If you have any questions please feel free to contact me directly or post them here in the forum.

To answer your question, here are a some books that come readily to mind for your club:

A Canticle for Leibowitz - Walter M. Miller, Jr. - This is simply a fabulous book.  Sixteen ratings on the site so far and it's sitting at 9.5 on a 10 scale so it's got wide appeal.  Lots to discuss in this book.

The Sparrow - Mary Doria Russell - Another great SF book that will engender discussion.  This book is one that will stick with you long after you read it.  Read the excerpt on this one.

Calculating God - Robert J. Sawyer - This one is light of the tech side and very approachable for the SF novice.  Again, read the excerpt.  It really hooked me.

Hope that helps.