Anderson,
Kevin & Beason, Doug "Reflections in a Magnetic Mirror" in
Full Spectrum, ed. L. Aronica & S. McCarthy (1988,
Bantam). A plasma physicist and science writer explore a life-form
that can exist within plasma anomalies, but on a different time-scale.
Baxter,
Stephen "Cilia-of-Gold" in Dozois, W. & Williams, S., eds.
Isaac Asimov’s Solar System. 1999, Ace (and in Vacuum
Diagrams, 1997, Harper Prism). Suggests a very clever ancient
form of life that adapted (after crashing there) to live on Mercury.
Baxter,
Stephen "Sunpeople" in Vacuum Diagrams. 1997, Harper Prism.
A human expedition on a Kuiper Belt object finds a life-form made
of ice with liquid helium for circulation.
Baxter,
Stephen "Gossamer" in Vacuum Diagrams. 1997, HarperCollins.
Suggests a life form that can thrive on and go between Pluto and
Charon at perihelion.
Benford,
Gregory In the Oceans of Night. 1977, Dell. Physicist
Benford postulates a universe in which advanced machine intelligences
confront (and often overwhelm) organic life. The story continues
in Across the Sea of Suns (1984, Bantam) and in his novels
that take place at the galactic center (Great Sky River, 1987,
Bantam; Tides of Light, 1989, Bantam; Furious Gulf;
1994, Bantam; Sailing Bright Eternity, 1995, Bantam.)
Benford,
Gregory "Dance to Strange Musics" in Year’s Best Science
Fiction 4, ed. David Hartwell. 1999, Eos/HarperCollins. First
expedition to Alpha Centauri finds a planet-wide, collective life
form that takes energy from pizo-electric effects enhanced by
tidal stresses.
Clement,
Hal Mission of Gravity. 1962, Pyramid. Life
on a massive, rapidly rotating planet. Clement is a high-school
science teacher. (A new edition of all his stories about this
planet was issued in 2002 by TOR, under the title Heavy Planet.)
Clement,
Hal "Uncommon Sense" in Space Lash. 1966,
Dell. About life‑forms with liquid metal blood that
"see" by smell.
Crichton,
Michael The Andromeda Strain. 1969, Dell. Doctors &
scientists battle an extra-terrestrial microorganism; by a doctor.
Hoyle,
Fred The Black Cloud. 1957, Signet. Intelligence
develops in interstellar dust clouds which can move from star
to star.
LeGuin,
Ursula The Left Hand of Darkness. 1969, Ace. Award-winning
story of contact with aliens who are alternately one sex and then
the other.
Reynolds,
Alastair Pushing Ice. 2005, Ace. Complex novel that includes
a huge interstellar zoo that captures intelligent species; describes
several intriguing alien races. The zoo, the story, suggests exists
because its ancient builders, finding intelligent life rare and
fragile, wanted to find an artificial way of bringing civilizations
together.
Sawyer,
Robert Calculating God. 2000, Tor. Suggests that most alien
species will choose to upload themselves into a computer reality
rather than deal with their own hostility and the isolation of
the universe.
Sawyer,
Robert Illegal Alien. 1997, Ace. Aliens with quadrilateral
symmetry and the ability to hibernate for very long times come
to Earth, to wipe out any threat to them while they sleep for
400,000 years.
Sheckley,
Robert "Specialist" in Keyes, N., ed. Contact.
1963, Paperback Library. Proposes the idea that life in the universe
is all specialized by function, except on Earth.
Sheffield,
Charles Between the Strokes of Night. 1985, Baen Books.
Proposes a life-form that can thrive in intergalactic space.
Stewart,
Ian & Cohen, Jack Wheelers. 2000, Aspect/Warner. A
mathematician and a biologist have written a novel that suggests
an intelligent life form that can live in Jupiter’s atmosphere.
Swanwick,
Michael "Slow Life" in Hartwell, D, ed. Best SF 8.
2003, Eos. Suggests a form of life that can survive deep under
Titan’s seas.
Tiptree,
James "Love is the Plan the Plan is Death" in Goldin,
Stephen, ed. The Alien Condition. 1973, Ballantine. Haunting,
complex story of a truly alien life‑form.
Varley,
John The Ophiuchi Hotline. 1977, Dell. Ambitious novel
about interstellar communication and the idea of a struggle between
life-forms that develop on terrestrial and jovian planets throughout
the universe.
Aldiss,
Brian "The Difficulties Involved in Photographing Nix Olympica"
in Dozois, Gardner & Williams, Sheila, eds. Isaac Asimov’s
Solar System. 1999, Ace. A poignant little story about a
future army sergeant who longs to take Ansel Adams-like photos
of Olympus Mons.
Anderson,
Kevin Climbing Olympus. 1994, Warner Books. A novel about
Mars in the midst of being terraformed.
Bova,
Ben "Olympus Mons" in Hartwell, David & Cramer,
Kathryn, eds. The Hard SF Renaissance. 2002, Orb/TOR. Astronauts
explore the caldera of the giant volcano and make a surprising
discovery about microscopic life on Mars. Has lots of realistic
detail.
Bova,
Ben Mars. 1993, Bantam. Features scientifically realistic
Mars exploration.
Hartmann,
William Mars Underground. 1997, TOR Books. Exploration
of Mars in the next century, by a noted planetary astronomer.
Hipolito,
Jane & McNelly, Willis, eds. Mars, We Love You.
1971, Pyramid. Eclectic collection of fiction & nonfiction
about Mars, some based on current science, some not.
Landis,
Geoffrey Mars Crossing. 2000, Tor Books. A trek across
the martian surface, written by a NASA scientist.
Pesek,
Ludek The Earth is Near. 1970, Dell. About a realistic
expedition to Mars and the problems they face.
Pohl,
Fred Man Plus. 1976, Bantam. Humans biologically
engineered to survive on Mars.
Pohl,
Fred Mining the Oort. 1992, Ballantine. The Oort cloud
of comets is mined for material to terraform Mars.
Reynolds,
Alastair "Angel of Ashes" in Zima Blue and Other
Stories. 2006, Night Shade Press. A terraformed Mars with
an atmosphere is the setting for a novel about a religion based
on a supernova and a neutron star.
Robinson,
Kim Red Mars. 1992, Bantam. Green Mars. 1993, Bantam.
Blue Mars. 1995, Bantam. Complex story involving a Mars
of the future which is being made ready for increased human habitation.
Sparhawk,
Bud "Olympus Mons" in Dancing with Dragons.
2001, Wildside Press. About a race down the flanks of the giant
martian volcano.
Varley,
John "In the Hall of the Mountain King" in The Persistence
of Vision. 1978, Dell. Ingenious story about Mars adapting
to Earth colonists.
