Belated New Year's resolution.

I will not argue with men's rights activists.
I will not argue with men's rights activists.
I will not argue with men's rights activists.
I will not...

[repeat until believed]

Happy fun project time.

Last night our young friend Sarah came over to babysit so that Michael and I could go out to dinner. While I was driving her home, she mentioned that "sci fi is all I feel like reading these days." She loves it. But the only SF she has actually encountered is the stuff her mother has passed along - meaning Asimov and Heinlein. I don't think she's read any SF published in her own lifetime.

Obviously this was a public service opportunity I couldn't pass up. I told her I'd pack up a bagful of books published in the last 20 or so years and bring them to church on Sunday.

The unfortunate part is being limited to books we actually own. We haven't bought that many new books in the last few years, except for continuations of series we collect; I do most of my reading from the library. That said, I've put together a good pile for her. Only three of the books were published before she was born in 1991 or 1992.

Lois McMaster Bujold, Shards of Honor and The Warrior's Apprentice.
Emma Bull, Bone Dance
Cory Doctorow, Little Brother
Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett, Good Omens (not SF, but I couldn't resist)
Elizabeth Moon, The Speed of Dark
Audrey Niffenegger, The Time Traveler's Wife
Matt Ruff, Sewer, Gas, & Electric
Charlie Stross, The Family Trade
Michael Swanwick, The Iron Dragon's Daughter
Shari S. Tepper, The Family Tree
Joan D. Vinge, Psion
Connie Willis, The Doomsday Book

The two Bujolds and the Vinge are older than Sarah. But I had to get her started on Bujold, and the Vinge book is such an incredible example of Adolescent Emo that I couldn't resist giving it to a teen.

I really want to add Neal Stephenson's Snow Crash and Kage Baker's In the Garden of Iden, but I can't seem to find our copies anywhere.

Talking it over with lynsaurus and unodelman, we all agreed that Octavia Butler belongs in there, but I read those books from the library. I also realized when talking to them that there needs to be something about the Singularity and posthumans and so forth. I'm not a fan of that side of the genre, but I do have a couple of Ken MacLeod books - The Stone Canal and The Cassini Division - and I could throw in one of them. I'm not sure about whether there needs to be any cyberpunk in there. On the one hand, important subgenre. On the other hand, isn't it an important subgenre that's kind of over?

Michael reminded me that Scott Westerfeld should be represented. I totally agree, but we read it all from the library. I'd like to be able to put in Uglies or Peeps. He also suggested something by John Scalzi - I thought maybe Zoe's Tale - but we don't have a copy of that either. If she likes these books, we can give her a reading list with more. I also need to find out if she likes fantasy.

What would you put in the bag, from your shelves?