Escape Your Orbit: Books to Celebrate Science Fiction Month

As the weather turns colder and I spend more time indoors, I always start feeling a bit restless. One thing that can help with that is reading about people and worlds that are completely different from my own. Science fiction is one of my favorite genres so it's hard to pick just a few, but I hope these books help get you out of your winter slump and into something spectacular.

Light From Uncommon Stars was my favorite book of 2021. It's got everything: deals with the devil, violin prodigies, finding yourself, finding family, aliens running a donut shop and a weird and adorable love story. It might be hard to explain, but it's beyond easy to fall right into.

If you're looking for something more cozy and lower stakes, you should try A Psalm for the Wild-Built. It's a lovely little novella about a non-binary tea monk, whose job is to travel the countryside making tea for people and being a counselor for their issues. Imagine a mobile therapist, but with tea. Most of the book is about them finding a robot who wants to better understand humans and their travels together.

The Future of Another Timeline is the perfect book for fans of sci-fi and Chicago history. In an alternate present, a group of time travelers is fighting to stop the destruction of their world by dangerous extremists attempting to change history for the worst. Much of that fight revolves around the Columbian Exposition, which you might know better as the World's Fair, famously portrayed in Devil in the White City. This book is the perfect way to gain a new appreciation and understanding of what our city was, is and could be.

What sci-fi books would you recommend?