Questions tagged [books]
Use this tag on [story-identification] questions when the work is a book series or when the written media is unclear but use a more specific tag where appropriate e.g. [novel], [novella], [short-stories], [anthology-book], etc. Use this tag to indicate the question is about the book version or adaptation of a work. For differences between the book and other versions, such as a movie, use [adaptation-comparison].
3,333
questions
123
votes
9
answers
192k
views
What's the recommended reading order of the Ender Wiggin books?
The series that starts with Ender's Game has a parallel series that starts with Ender's Shadow. The graph of the timeline is... well... complicated.
Does it make more sense if you read them in the ...
- 19.9k
102
votes
1
answer
8k
views
Boy transported to another planet where the being who owns the Earth lives
I read this book probably in the late 1990s. I assume the intended audience is teenagers/youth because I checked it out of my junior high library.
In the book there is a boy on a plane and the plane ...
- 913
75
votes
1
answer
11k
views
Book in which the "mountain" in the distance was a hole in the flat world
Science fiction novel or short story. Characters were lost or crashed or something on a new-to-them world and were making for a mountain they could see in the distance. But when they reached the ...
- 719
49
votes
1
answer
9k
views
Do dwarf women have beards?
In light of Amazon's recent depiction of a non-bearded dwarf woman, and some of the recent controversy around this, the question is what exactly did Tolkien say about bearded dwarf women?
Popular ...
- 95.3k
47
votes
3
answers
7k
views
What did Aragorn do with his sword between the battles of Pelennor Fields and Morannon?
After the Battle of the Pelennor Fields, Aragorn draws his sword Andúril and says:
"You shall not be sheathed again until the last battle is fought."
The Lord of the Rings, The Return of ...
- 70.1k
47
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Identifying a story with a portal that only organic tissue can pass through
I'm looking for a book that I read when I was young (~1985). My guess is that it was published in the 70s or 80s.
In this story, a scientist (or more) created some sort of portal. Only organic tissue ...
- 473
45
votes
1
answer
7k
views
What changes were made for the second edition of 'The Martian'?
I read Andy Weir's novel The Martian when it was first released as a Kindle edition. Some time after that I got a notification from Amazon that a second edition was available, which downloaded ...
- 3,698
45
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Book from the 70s: Battle/Balance between Light/Sun and Moon/Dark?
I remember reading a book in the 70s, so it could be YA. It is set on modern-day Earth, and the story is about a boy. His mother is sick (maybe cancer?) and he is socially awkward, so he doesn't ...
- 451
42
votes
3
answers
8k
views
Name of sci fi book where academy entrance exam is "impossible" [duplicate]
I can almost quote the text, I recall it so well, but which book it comes from is escaping me. I want to say "Starship Troopers", but that really doesn't fit.
The protagonist is a young man ...
- 583
42
votes
2
answers
6k
views
Identifying a story about a girl named Sarah who finds out she is a robot
I read this sci-fi novel for young adults when I was a kid, and I would love to re-read it but I can't remember the title. I remember the copy I borrowed from the library had some sort of television ...
- 437
40
votes
2
answers
3k
views
Story from Middle-earth about the events of "The Lord of the Rings" being a lie
In the early 2010s, I read a book about a group of adventurers in Middle-earth who retraced the steps of the Fellowship of the Ring and Frodo, only to gradually learn that the history of the Ring and ...
- 1,462
39
votes
1
answer
8k
views
Fantasy story about a knife that can cut holes to other dimensions [duplicate]
I read this story a few years ago (estimate: 8-10 years), so I was around 13-15 at that time. The language of the book was German, but I'm not sure whether or not that is the original language of the ...
- 473
38
votes
1
answer
5k
views
Fantasy book where a normal man accepts job advertisement to become a king of a fantasy kingdom
I read the first chapter of this book while I was waiting at a train station. I read it like a couple of years ago but I think that at least 3 books of the series were published so I'm not sure when ...
- 383
37
votes
3
answers
9k
views
Why did the climate in World War Z go cold?
I recently read World War Z, and one question nagged me throughout it- why did the Earth get colder during the Zombie apocalypse? The story suggested that most places were burning, which I thought ...
- 825
37
votes
4
answers
154k
views
What is the correct reading order for Stephen King's 'Dark Tower' series (updated)?
There are a considerable number of properties relating to Stephen King's Dark Tower; The original novels as well as various media such as a prequel and sequel-comic series, short stories, mentions in ...
- 481