The stories center around the culture, a postscarcity semianarchist utopia consisting of various humanoid races and managed by very advanced artificial intelligences. Bankss prose is a pleasure to read and is still literary as always. You might want to read the first novel first consider phlebas as an introduction to the culture, but its not strictly. The first book in this series came out in 1987 and is titled consider phlebas. The culture series is a science fiction series written by scottish author iain m. Iain m banks culture series 10 books collection set iain m. The culture series started in 1987 with consider phlebas. Banks made his debut as a published author with the wasp factory in 1984. Personally i would recommend jumping into the series with the player of games. Iain m banks culture series 10 books collection set. Banks is the creator and the author of the culture series.
The culture series or culture cycle refers to a series of novels and short fiction written by. One stream moves backward and is numbered in descending order in roman numerals. There is no reading chronology, or timeline to adhere to, though many people recommend starting with the player of games. It also features a situation where, as is hinted in other books, the culture. What is the best order to start reading iain banks culture series. Since then, there is usually a new book in the series every couple of years with a few gaps here and there. The iain banks culture faq has a tentative, not uptodate timeline. Whilst trundling around the internet i noticed that quite a few people are puzzled over the best reading order or the chronological order of the series, so i set about assembling this guide, with a few notes. The state of the art so that you can understand the cultures relationship to earth. The third book came out in 1990 and is titled use of weapons.
Bankss seminal science fiction series, the culture. Banks the culture books in order of when they were originally published and chronologically. Where should i start with iain banks culture novels. They do not need to be read in order and, while there. He used this as his pen name for science fiction and goes by iain banks for some of his. Reading order of the culture novels updated the wertzone. This is a striking addition to the growing body of culture lore, and adds definition and scale to the. The first culture novel, consider phlebas, describes an episode in the idiran war.
Banks s prose is a pleasure to read and is still literary as always. Consider phlebas introduces readers to the utopian conglomeration of human and alien races that explores the nature of war, morality, and the limitless bounds of mankinds imagination. The stories centre on the culture, a utopian, postscarcity space society of humanoids, aliens, and advanced artificial intelligences living in socialist habitats spread across the milky way galaxy. Consider phlebas is a fair to middling space opera novel and the beginning of. Since that time, he has split his time between his culture books the series started in 87 and standalone novels such as stonemouth. The main theme of the novels is the dilemmas that an idealistic hyperpower faces in dealing with. But theres not much canonical information about this, most books dont contain a date. The culture series or culture cycle refers to a series of novels and short fiction written by scottish author iain banks. The book is a fractured biography of two men and made up of two streams. Consider phlebas is the first novel in the culture series of fictional novels by iain m. Use of weapons was the first culture novel written, but consider phlebas was published first. Banks sudden and untimely death in 20 i took it upon myself to.
Banks s seminal science fiction series, the culture. The state of the art, commonly listed with other works in the series. Unfortunately, while the novel is rife with adventure and mayhem, the reader never gets the grand payoff set up at the beginning of bora horza gobuchuls galactic odyssey. The first culture novel that i read was excession, and i read it at a difficult time in my life. As keeneyed readers may have noticed, i am currently undertaking a readthrough of iain m. The second book came out the year after and is titled the player of games. The hydrogen sonata the last published book in the series, and the last science fiction novel completed before banks untimely death from cancer in 2014, the hydrogen sonata takes aim at the tropes of transhumanist space opera, the very genre the culture books had strong hand in shaping in the first place starting. Use of weapons is the third novel in the the culture series by iain m. Banks is huge but im keen to tackle it where does printsf recommend i start.