18 books like Exhalation

What to read after Exhalation — books similar to it, matched on shared themes.

The Dispossessed Ursula K. Le Guin · 1974 · ★ 4.3 · 352p · ≈ 11h · Moderate Shevek, a brilliant physicist, decides to take action. He will seek answers, question the unquestionable, and attempt to tear down the walls of hatred that have isolated his planet of anarchists from the rest of the civilized universe. To do this dangerous task will mean giving up his family and possibly his life. Shevek must make the unprecedented journey to the planet, Anarres, to challenge… Shares: Science Fiction

The Fourth R George Oliver Smith · 1959 · 168p · ≈ 5h · Moderate George O. Smith’s 1959 sci-fi novel follows five-year-old child prodigy Jimmy Holden as he tries to survive on his own after his parents are murdered by their best friend. Shares: Scientists, Artificial Intelligence

Junkyard Planet H. Beam Piper · 1631 · ★ 2.0 · 192p · ≈ 6h · Demanding This novel had its genesis in a much shorter story called "Graveyard of Dreams" (Galaxy, 1958) Piper expanded it to book length, and it appeared in 1963 as Junkyard Planet. Ace later renamed the book The Cosmic Computer for its paperback appearance. This edition returns the book to Piper's original title, Junkyard Planet.Conn Maxwell returns from Terra to his home world of Poictesme, dubbed "The… Shares: Scientists, Science Fiction

Winter Dreams F. Scott Fitzgerald · 2004 · ★ 3.7 · 48p · ≈ 1h · Moderate "Winter Dreams" is a short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald that first appeared in Metropolitan Magazine in December 1922, and was collected in All the Sad Young Men in 1926. It is considered one of Fitzgerald's finest stories and is frequently anthologized. In the Fitzgerald canon, it is considered to be in the "Gatsby-cluster," as many of its themes were later expanded upon in his famous novel The… Shares: American Short stories, Short Stories

South Sea Tales Jack London · 1911 · ★ 3.8 · 157p · ≈ 5h · Challenging Despite the heavy clumsiness of her lines, the Aorai handled easily in the light breeze, and her captain ran her well in before he hove to just outside the suck of the surf. The atoll of Hikueru lay low on the water, a circle of pounded coral sand a hundred yards wide, twenty miles in circumference, and from three to five feet above high-water mark. On the bottom of the huge and glassy lagoon was… Shares: American Short stories, Short Stories

Waifs and Strays O. Henry · 1917 · 78p · ≈ 2h · Challenging Urban teens take center stage in a pair of edgy short story collections. Waifs and Strays presents 15 previously published works by Canadian fantasy writer Charles de Lint, including "May This Be Your Last Sorrow" from The Essential Bordertown and "There's No Such Thing," which appeared in Yolen and Greenburg's anthology Vampires. In its first appearance, "Sisters," tells of precocious… Shares: American Short stories, Short Stories

Children Playing Before a Statue of Hercules David Sedaris · 2005 · ★ 3.6 · 344p · ≈ 11h · Moderate From the internationally bestselling author of Me Talk Pretty One Day, David Sedaris, comes a collection of his favorite short stories from acclaimed authors such as Flannery O'Connor, Jhumpa Lahiri, Tobias Wolff, and more.David Sedaris is an exceptional reader. Alone in his apartment, he reads stories aloud to the point he has them memorized. Sometimes he fantasizes that he wrote them.… Shares: American Short stories, Short Stories

Welcome to the Monkey House Kurt Vonnegut · 1950 · ★ 4.2 · 310p · ≈ 10h · Moderate Welcome to the Monkey House is a collection of Kurt Vonnegut’s shorter works. Originally printed in publications as diverse as The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction and The Atlantic Monthly, these superb stories share Vonnegut’s audacious sense of humor and extraordinary range of creative vision. Includes the following stories: “Where I Live” “Harrison Bergeron” “Who Am I This… Shares: American Short stories, Short Stories, Science Fiction

Whirligigs O. Henry · 1910 · ★ 3.7 · 314p · ≈ 10h · Challenging O. Henry's short, simple stories are noted for their careful plotting, ironic coincidences, and surprise endings. Contents: The World and the Door; The Theory and the Hound; The Hypotheses of Failure; Calloway's Code; A Matter of Mean Elevation; "Girl"; Sociology in Serge and Straw; The Ransom of Red Chief; The Marry Month of May; A Technical Error; Suite Homes and their Romance; The Whirligig of… Shares: American Short stories, Short Stories

Mirrorshades - Una Antologia Ciberpunk Bruce Sterling · 1986 · ★ 4.4 · 239p · ≈ 7h · Moderate "The definitive cyberpunk short fiction collection." Shares: American Short stories, Short Stories, Science Fiction

Great sky river Gregory Benford · 1984 · ★ 3.6 · 326p · ≈ 10h · Moderate From back cover Warner paperback August 2004: Nearly 100,000 years after first contact with the machines that dominate the universe, only a few hundred humans survive. Trapped on Snowglade, a barren world near the center of the galaxy, Killeen and his child Toby of the Bishop Tribe are primitive scavengers, homeless and hunted by the ruling "mechs." Then suddenly, a strange cosmic entity --… Shares: Artificial Intelligence, Science Fiction

The Turing option Harry Harrison · 1992 · ★ 3.7 · 409p · ≈ 13h · Moderate Classic SF Harry Harrison enthralls with the discovery, loss and re-discovery of AI. Quaint but fairly accurate predictions of modern computing power. 24 style presentation. Shares: Artificial Intelligence, Science Fiction

When God Laughs and Other Short Stories Jack London · 1911 · ★ 3.0 · 148p · ≈ 4h · Challenging Released in 1911, When God Laughs, and Other Stories is the eleventh collection of short stories by Jack London. In contrast with most of his other work that had been released at the time, When God Laughs is set in Polynesia. The book consists of twelve short stories that range from humorous to shocking. Shares: American Short stories, Short Stories

Cathedral Raymond Carver · 1983 · ★ 4.3 · 238p · ≈ 7h · Moderate Twelve stories deal with loneliness, loss, the tragic banality of everyday life, and redemption. Shares: American Short stories, Short Stories

I Sing the Body Electric! Ray Bradbury · 1969 · ★ 4.1 · 305p · ≈ 10h · Moderate Eighteen stories with bizarre and whimsical themes which transcend time and space. Shares: Short Stories, Science Fiction

Rolling Stones O. Henry · 1910 · ★ 2.5 · 292p · ≈ 9h · Challenging The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. The first settled line-up consisted of Brian Jones (guitar, harmonica), Ian Stewart (piano), Mick Jagger (lead vocals, harmonica), Keith Richards (guitar), Bill Wyman (bass) and Charlie The Rolling Stones (also published under the name Space Family Stone in the United Kingdom) is a 1952 science fiction novel by Robert A.… Shares: American Short stories, Short Stories

Triplanetary Edward E. Smith · 1948 · ★ 3.7 · 272p · ≈ 9h · Challenging Lensman series, Book 1 of 7 Even back before the first bits of this story hit the newsstands, the folks who published it in Amazing Stories (January through April, 1934) knew they were on to something special. "We are sure that our readers will be highly pleased to have us give the first installment of a story by Dr. Smith. It will continue for several numbers and is a worthy follower of the… Shares: Scientists, Science Fiction

Not Till We Are Lost Dennis E. Taylor · 2024 · ★ 4.2 · 374p · ≈ 12h · Moderate The Bobiverse is a different place in the aftermath of the Starfleet War, and the days of the Bobs gathering in one big happy moot are far behind. There’s anti-Bob sentiment on multiple planets, the Skippies playing with an AI time bomb, and multiple Bobs just wanting to get away from it all. But it all pales compared to what Icarus and Daedalus discover on their 26,000-year journey to the center… Shares: Artificial Intelligence, Science Fiction

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