I am looking for scifi novels based on real scientific concepts, but with easy to follow plots and characters.

My English level is proficient in a professional setting, and I have no problem reading academic, medical or scientific articles in English.

I love watching documentaries on BBC, but I sometimes struggle watching dramas and sitcoms without subtitles.

I am mainly trying to find audio books that I can listen to while driving. I am half way through listening to Carl Sagan’s Contact on audio, it is great and not too difficult because I’ve already watched the movie many times.

    • Cloudless ☼@feddit.ukOPEnglish
      3·
      10 months ago

      Thanks. I have watched The Martian movie already and I would prefer something new (The Martian is less exciting when you already know the ending). What other books by Andy Weir would you recommend?

      • Vex_Detrause@lemmy.ca
        3·
        10 months ago

        Oh there are so much that the movie didn’t show that Watney did in the book. It’s like the movie put glasses on Watney to show he is a nerd BUT in the book, Watney is a nerd and shows you why he is a very smart guy.

        • Cloudless ☼@feddit.ukOPEnglish
          1·
          10 months ago

          You are right. I am reading Contact for the same reason, trying to see more details as intended by Carl Sagan. (And Contact is my favourite scifi film of all time.)

          I should probably give The Martian book a try. Just trying to decide between so many great suggestions here.

      • jqubed@lemmy.world
        2·
        10 months ago

        I would say the book is still better; plot points that are quickly passed in the movie are better-explained in the book, and I seem to recall one or two plot lines that were basically skipped entirely in the movie.

  • pocopene@lemmy.world
    9·
    10 months ago

    I’d say anything by Asimov. He had a clear, simple style that makes it the perfect author for the no native English reader.

  • grasshopper_mouse@lemmy.world
    6·
    10 months ago

    The Expanse series by James S A Corey (also made into an excellent TV show). All the books are a very quick read, the pacing is fast but totally comprehensive. If you can get through medical texts and academic papers, these books will be no problem.

  • jawsua
    5·
    10 months ago

    Anything by Andy Weir, he’s basically juvenile fiction with really good ideas and research

    • Scrof@sopuli.xyz
      3·
      10 months ago

      Yeah he’s a very light read and a good intro to sci-fi. Although I personally didn’t start with light reads.

  • intensely_human@lemm.ee
    3·
    10 months ago

    I don’t think simple plots and characters are connected with easy to understand language.

    I think you should get a kindle so you can look up words on the fly, and then read good sci fi.

    To that end, I recommend The Expanse series, starting with Leviathan Rising.

    • Cloudless ☼@feddit.ukOPEnglish
      2·
      10 months ago

      I’ve got a Kindle but I read too slowly, and most of the time I would “fall back” to watching videos and playing games.

      But when I am driving, I can listen to audio books and there are no other distractions for me except for podcasts.

      Thanks for your suggestions.

  • OhmsLawn@lemmy.world
    3·
    10 months ago

    Try the Vorkosigan Saga by Lois McMaster Bujold. The English is outstandingly well written, but not particularly difficult. Outside of a few basic weapons and ship types, most of the jargon is military or biological, and pretty well explained.

    The audiobooks are extremely well narrated with distinct, entering voices.

    There’s also, like, a million of them.

    All available for free on hoopla.

    Edit: I just read the rest of your post about real scientific concepts and struggling with narrative elements. Try it anyway! It’s free and wonderful.

  • Dagwood222@lemm.ee
    3·
    10 months ago

    Delta V by Daniel Suarez is about asteroid mining in the near future.

    Old time writer Poul Anderson has dozens of alien races and space merchants. “The War Of The Wing Men.”

    Robert A. Heinlein wrote a lot of YA novels that still hold up as stories. Obviously, there are going to be a lot of details he missed, but “Between Planets” is a good adventure story and “Tunnel In the Sky” is the original version of The Hunger Games.

  • vrek@programming.devEnglish
    3·
    10 months ago

    You might like “the old man’s war” series by John Scalzi. Basically aliens came to earth gave us technology and we created an earth defense army in space to fight the other aliens, but to join the army you must be 70 years old.

    Another good series is expeditionary force. Aliens attack earth and one guy takes the fight to the aliens and with the help of a sentient super fast intelligent Ai captains a spaceship fighting aliens. This one is good but after the first few books the story beats and jokes start to repeat. The author should of stopped in my opinion around book 5 but he kept going with the same stories.

  • Sentient Loom@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
    2·
    10 months ago

    Greg Egan’s book “Schild’s Ladder” is hard sci fi but digestible language. Some of his other books are more technical but this one is more straight-forward.

    Perihelion Summer is another good one by the same author. Not as far out.

    • ripcord@lemmy.world
      3·
      10 months ago

      Eh, I think the Planiverse is an easier read (and with more pictures!) than Flatland. And a better story IMO.

  • ImGonnaTryScience@lemmy.world
    2·
    10 months ago

    A bit unconventional, but I recommend Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut. It’s a thematically complex book, but not a difficult one to read or listen to, or to even follow. I listened to it in audiobook format, and it instantly became my favourite book ever.