Why do we love tales of fantasy and science fiction?

Magical multiverses. Time Travel. Mythical Creatures. For all the books out there, fantasy and science fiction make up a large portion of the existing and upcoming works of fiction that are exciting readers today, and there are hundreds of reasons as to why we so readily consume these genres. So, what is it about otherworldly fantasy and sci fi that appeal to us as readers, as individuals and as a society?

An article on Edge of a Story holds similar views to my own as to why we chose to read science fiction tales. We often read these types of stories to escape from the difficulties or routine of our own lives, but these stories can also help us “to get a better understanding” of our feelings, actions and lives too.

Fantasy stories, in particular, can “allow us to look at ideas in new ways and can help spread those ideas”. Whilst science fiction stories are based on fear and hope. Edge of a Story suggest that“we don’t necessarily know what will come next. We want to prepare for the worst and also be ready for the good things that may come.”

These tales of the scientific and the fantastical can allow us to experience, relate, affirm, and view our own feelings and actions in the characters, in a new world that greatly differs from that of our own. It can also help us to do this by allowing us to escape for a little while in an adventurous world of science and magic.

In a fictional world where good triumphs evil. World building, characters and plot twists provide the much-needed escapism. It’s also these elements that make reading science fiction and fantasy-based stories so enjoyable, they have more room to imagine and explore the possible and the impossible, whether it’s rooted in logic or not.

There’s plenty of stories out there for everyone from A Court of Thorns and Roses to Ready Player One. Our love of science fiction and fantasy stories means titles like the ones listed above are sure to fill bookshelves and reading lists for years to come.