10 Terrific Transhumanist Sci-Fi Books

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The lad of a librarian, Chris M. Arnone's emotion of books was arsenic inevitable arsenic gravity. He holds an MFA successful Creative Writing from the University of Missouri - Kansas City. His novel, The Hermes Protocol, was published by Castle Bridge Media successful 2023 and the adjacent publication successful that bid is owed retired successful wintertime 2024. His enactment tin besides beryllium recovered successful Adelaide Literary Magazine and FEED Lit Mag. You tin find him penning much books, poetry, and acting successful Kansas City. You tin besides travel him connected societal media (Facebook, Goodreads, Instagram, Twitter, website).

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What is transhumanism? To enactment it simply, it’s the usage of exertion to augment oregon modify the quality experience. In galore ways, our precise world is transhumanist. I’m penning this nonfiction connected my laptop. My smartphone is nearby. My astute ticker is connected my wrist. Many radical deterioration glasses, which is simply a technology. Clothes are a signifier of technology, though they whitethorn not look that mode anymore.

But erstwhile we’re talking astir transhumanist fiction, we’re mostly talking astir subject fiction. We’re not talking astir the mundane ways successful which exertion enhances our lives, but successful the far-flung and inventive ways that authors ideate exertion changing our lives. Bodily autonomy is simply a halfway theme. Metaphors for transgender struggles abound. In transhumanist sci-fi books, the assemblage is conscionable different happening that you own, different happening for you to alteration arsenic you spot fit. Your assemblage does not specify you.

If this sounds similar cyberpunk, you’re not wrong. I’ve written astir the best cyberpunk novels of each time. There is surely a batch of overlap, though cyberpunk requires a “high technology, debased life” theme. To beryllium clear, each cyberpunk books are transhumanist, but not each transhumanist books are cyberpunk. As a result, I’ll effort to support the cyberpunk to a minimum connected this list.

Keeping that successful mind, present are 10 terrific transhumanist sci-fi books to adhd to your TBR.

Accelerando by Charles Stross

This publication is similar each transhumanist saltation blended into 1 fascinating novel. AI has surpassed quality intelligence. Biotechnological beings mean humans are yesterday’s news. This communicative focuses connected 3 humans struggling to past successful this universe; each the while, thing is trying to instrumentality our star strategy apart.

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Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

That’s right, the precise archetypal subject fabrication caller is besides a enactment of transhumanism, though I’m not definite Mary Shelley would person utilized the term. After all, the monster wouldn’t adjacent beryllium without technology. So adjacent the earliest sci-fi caller was trying to pass america astir the dangers exertion poses to our humanity.

Dawn by Octavia E. Butler

Lilith has been dormant aboard an alien vessel for centuries. She didn’t cognize until she’d woken that the aliens saved humanity, curing diseases and strengthening us. Now, they’re waking humanity up, but their salvation has a steep cost. As always, Butler explores contention and sex successful this unthinkable transhumanist sci-fi book.

Memory by Linda Nagata

Jubilee lives connected an artificial satellite that is regularly swept by floods of “silver.” This metallic takes radical distant and takes memories. Everyone knows that cipher comes backmost from the silver. But erstwhile a mysterious alien comes asking aft Jubilee’s mislaid brother, she sets disconnected to find him. She conscionable mightiness observe her ain memories on the way.

Nexus by Ramez Naam

This near-future transhumanist sci-fi publication focuses connected a cause called Nexus that allows humans to nexus minds. Some radical privation it gone; others privation to exploit it. When 1 idiosyncratic works to amended it, helium abruptly finds himself successful implicit his caput with governmental machinations and planetary intrigue.

Noor by Nnedi Okorafor

I couldn’t marque this database without including astatine slightest a small cyberpunk, right? Noor leans truly hard into the transhumanist elements with the disabled protagonist who uses exertion to crook disabilities into advantages. This publication is simply a truly amusive and high-octane adventure, too.

Queen City Jazz by Kathleen Ann Goonan

Verity lives successful a satellite decimated by nanotech plagues. So she lives retired connected a farm, acold from the worst of the plague. But erstwhile her champion person is changeable and thrown into a nanotech cocoon, Verity volition person to task into adjacent Cincinnati to prevention him. What she finds determination is much than she’d bargained for, and she’ll request to regularisation this metropolis if she wants to past it.

Revelation Space by Alastair Reynolds

Dan is simply a idiosyncratic trying to observe wherefore an past civilization was wiped retired conscionable earlier they discovered abstraction flight. He forms an uneasy confederation with a cyborg spaceship unit to find the truth, but idiosyncratic is trying to termination Dan. That past civilization was destroyed for a reason, and that crushed is simply a concealed that immoderate are consenting to termination for.

Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang

Ted Chiang often writes astir transhumanist themes, and this postulation of his abbreviated fabrication shows conscionable however heavy Chiang goes. These stories often absorption connected abrupt changes, usually of the transhumanist variety, that marque america question everything we cognize astir humanity. “Story of Your Life,” the rubric story, was the ground for the movie Arrival.

The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi

Okay, 1 much large cyberpunk caller for the list. And erstwhile again, it’s 1 that leans heavy into the transhumanist themes with bioengineered crops, nutrient shortages, and androids trying to find a amended spot successful society. This caller is high-stakes and afloat of fascinating governmental intrigue alongside profoundly idiosyncratic stories.

What are immoderate of your favourite transhumanist sci-fi books? Anything successful the post-cyberpunk oregon different non-cyberpunk varieties? I’m ever connected the lookout for more.

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