Rick,
If you like Robinson's Red Mars series then you might try his "Washington" trilogy starting with "Forty Days of Rain". It's a very near future story of impending global warming disaster and the attempts of scientists and lawmakers to try and reverse it. This isn't as far in the future or out there as some science fiction can get but it's a good thought provoking read. The part of the book where DC is in a "mini ice age" and animals have to be set free from the Zoo in DC for their own survival is great.
From wikipedia :
The
Science in the Capital series encompasses three novels:
Forty Signs of Rain (2004),
Fifty Degrees Below (2005), and
Sixty Days and Counting (2007). This series explores the consequences of
global warming, both on a global level and as it affects the main characters—several employees of the
National Science Foundation and those close to them. A recurring theme of Robinson's that returns in this series is that of
Buddhist
philosophy, which is represented in the series by the agency of
ambassadors from Khembalung, a fictional Buddhist micro-state located
on an offshore island in the
Ganges
delta. Their state is threatened by rising sea levels, and the reaction
of the Khembalis is compared to that of the Washingtonians.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Rick Walker" <looppool@cruzio.com>
To: "LOOPERS DELIGHT (posting)" <Loopers-Delight@loopers-delight.com>
Sent: Sunday, May 24, 2009 1:52:17 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern
Subject: WAY OFF TOPIC: recommendations for great science fiction written in the last 10 years?
I want something to read on my plane ride to Europe on Wednesday.
Can you folks recommend me some really good science fiction
that has been written in the last ten years.
I used to read a lot and have loved Card, Varley, Pohl, Bear,
Robinson, et. al.
I haven't read anything in the past ten years so I don't know who to
go for and google searches only seem to bring up things written at least
20 years ago.
Thanks,
Rick
