Many people view the literary landscape as a hierarchy, you have the classics at the top and then genres like fantasy and science fiction near the bottom. These people are making a grave mistake, and by ignoring such a prestigious genre as science fiction you’re ain’t doing yourself any favors. Here’s the case why science fiction books deserve to be read:
It’s a myth that sci-fi writers are bad writers. Some of the best writers have dabbled in science fiction, Doris Lessing, Iain Banks (Iain M. Banks when he writes sci-fi) to name but two. Much more great writers write mostly sci-fi, leading lights being Philip K. Dick, Arthur C. Clarke, and J. G Ballard.
You’ll probably notice that these last three writers are sadly dead. Don’t worry, and science fiction is perhaps the most lively genre of all. It’s a genre that specifically looks towards the future, and it can never be out of date as a result.
Other kinds of the genre might begin to feel outmoded. Romantic fiction will cease to be relevant when under some future police state our baser urges are genetically engineered out us. Ok, that was a bit sci-fi, seriously though sci-fi is the only kind of fiction that speculates on the possible long term future of mankind.
And as a result it does something really valuable, pre-warning us of any future malaise, inspiring us to take positive steps, to invent innovative technology and directing us to make the right decisions in our own lives. If you love sci-fi (and you really should) you can find lots of used books online.