Science fiction · Similar reads
Books like Contact
The best books like Contact are Cosmos, Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space, and A Brief History of Time. Contact by Carl Sagan is about science and faith, first contact, political power. If that's what drew you in, here are 12 books that share its DNA — each summarized on Superbook, and ready to chat with in the app.
- Cosmos
01
Carl Sagan · Science
Cosmos is Carl Sagan's attempt to tell the full story of the universe and humanity's place in it — from the Big Bang to the origins of life to the rise of science as a way of knowing.
A kindred science fiction read.
Read the summary → - Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space
02
Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space
Carl Sagan · Science
Pale Blue Dot takes its title from a photograph taken by Voyager 1 in 1990, as it left the solar system, at Sagan's request.
A kindred science fiction read.
Read the summary → - A Brief History of Time
03
Stephen Hawking · Science
A Brief History of Time is Stephen Hawking's attempt to explain the biggest questions in physics — where the universe came from, how it behaves, and where it might be going — to readers with no scientific training.
A kindred science fiction read.
Read the summary → - The Demon-Haunted World
04
Carl Sagan · Science
The Demon-Haunted World is Carl Sagan's argument that science is not just a body of knowledge but a way of thinking — one that humanity needs badly and uses far too rarely.
A kindred science fiction read.
Read the summary → - Astrophysics for People in a Hurry
05
Astrophysics for People in a Hurry
Neil deGrasse Tyson · Science
Astrophysics for People in a Hurry is Neil deGrasse Tyson's deliberately compact introduction to the biggest ideas in modern astrophysics.
A kindred science fiction read.
Read the summary → - 2001: A Space Odyssey
06
Arthur C. Clarke · Science fiction
2001: A Space Odyssey begins with prehistoric man-apes encountering a featureless black monolith that somehow catalyzes their cognitive leap from prey to hunter.
Both dig into first contact.
Read the summary → - Blindsight
07
Peter Watts · Science fiction
Blindsight follows a crew of post-human specialists sent to intercept an alien object at the edge of the solar system in 2082.
Both dig into first contact.
Read the summary → - Leviathan Wakes
08
James S.A. Corey · Science fiction
Two hundred years from now, humanity has colonized Mars and the asteroid belt, and the political fault lines between Earth, Mars, and the Belters — the third-generation descendants of asteroid miners — are the dominant tension in the solar system.
Both dig into first contact.
Read the summary → - Sphere
09
Michael Crichton · Science fiction
Sphere begins with psychologist Harry Adams being called to a remote location in the Pacific Ocean, where the Navy has discovered a massive spacecraft buried under 300 years of coral growth on the ocean floor.
Both dig into first contact.
Read the summary → - The Left Hand of Darkness
10
Ursula K. Le Guin · Science fiction
The Left Hand of Darkness follows Genly Ai, an envoy from a loose interstellar federation called the Ekumen, who has been sent alone to the planet Gethen — also called Winter — to persuade its nations to join.
Both dig into political power.
Read the summary → - Elantris
11
Brandon Sanderson · Fantasy
Elantris was once a city of gods — a place where ordinary people were spontaneously transformed into magical beings of light and power, capable of healing and creation.
Both dig into political power.
Read the summary → - Master of the Senate: The Years of Lyndon Johnson, Volume III
12
Master of the Senate: The Years of Lyndon Johnson, Volume III
Robert A. Caro · Biography
Master of the Senate is the third volume of Robert Caro's biography of Lyndon Johnson and covers his years as a senator from 1949 through 1958, culminating in the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1957.
Both dig into political power.
Read the summary →
Books like Contact: quick answers
What are the best books like Contact?
The best books like Contact by Carl Sagan are Cosmos by Carl Sagan, Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space by Carl Sagan, A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking, The Demon-Haunted World by Carl Sagan, Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil deGrasse Tyson, plus 7 more below. Each was chosen for themes it shares with Contact, such as science and faith, first contact, political power.
What should I read after Contact?
A natural next read after Contact is Cosmos by Carl Sagan. A kindred science fiction read. Other strong choices are Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space by Carl Sagan, A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking, The Demon-Haunted World by Carl Sagan.
What books are similar to Contact by Carl Sagan?
Contact centers on science and faith, first contact, political power. Books with a similar feel include Cosmos by Carl Sagan, Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space by Carl Sagan, A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking, The Demon-Haunted World by Carl Sagan, Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil deGrasse Tyson, 2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke — all free to read and chat with on Superbook.
