Hey everyone! Currently on the lookout for some new stories, and the current itch I’m looking to scratch is stories of human ingenuity overcoming great odds. A lot of the stuff from the Humanity F&$@ Yeah and Humans Are Space Orcs subreddits are okay, but I’m lookin for longer form stuff. I really enjoyed After It Happened by Devon C. Ford, and recently I’ve loved The Earth Abides on Stan (I’m going to get the book as a result). Similar stories with the last of humanity fighting back from the brink are probably what I’m most keen on.
I’m a big fan of Isekai’s for similar reasons, and a few of the LitRPG style books like Dungeon Crawler Carl and He Who Fights With Monsters have elements of this, but the focus shifts away from unique human knowledge and skills in the first few books towards embracing the alien and magical to win out. Love that too, but not the itch I’m looking to scratch at the moment.
I hope I’m making some semblance of sense, more than happy to answer clarifying questions (I know this might be a super niche request) Thanks in advance!
Edit: Spelling (I do not identify as “advance”)
by TheSarcasticSkater
3 Comments
My preferred answer is The Path Between the Seas: The Creation of the Panama Canal, 1870–1914 by David McCullough. It’s all true and all unbelievable.
The first suggestion I can think of is *The Martian* by Andy Weir, in which a character actually says he needs to “science the sh!t out of this”.
Also on Mars, try *Red Mars* and its sequels by Kim Stanley Robinson.
Lastly: *Seveneves* by Neal Stephenson. The stakes could not be any higher.
Have you tried reading Jules Verne? The Mysterious Island, for example. It’s about a bunch of people who get stranded on a deserted island and build a life there. I read it when I was like 8 so I don’t remember much, but I remember thinking it was clever and liking it a lot. Sorry if it’s not what you’re looking for.