Today is National Science Fiction Day in the US, on which fans both celebrate science fiction in general, and commemorate the birth of of the original grandmaster, Isaac Asimov. Hopefully today is only the first of many this year that we’ll be enjoying a good slice of science fiction, and toward that goal I’ve put together a little something. Welcome, one and all, to Science Fiction Book Bingo!

THE BINGO SHEET

For those who don’t know, Bingo is a game where you cross off boxes on a sheet until you’ve done them all. In order to cross off the boxes on this one, you just have to read books that fit the categories. However, each book can only be counted once, so choose carefully.

Explanations for each box are as follows:

A Ship & A Crew – Any book that is set entirely, or primarily on a spaceship.

All Guns Blazing – Any book that falls under the military SF banner.

All Tied Up – Any book that is part of a larger, shared universe. For example, all Star Wars, Star trek, and Warhammer books.

Another One Bites The Dust – Any book that finishes off a series. You need not have read every prior book.

Beep Boop – Any book that features a robot, artificial intelligence, or sentient spaceship as a major character.

Best Buds – Any book, so long as you read along with someone else. This can be an informal arrangement, or a structured book club.

Better, Together - Any book that has more than one author. Anthologies count, as do co-authored novels.

Bits & Pieces – Any anthology or short story collection. Can be either solo or multi-author.

Cultural Exchange – Any book originally written in another language, translated into a language that you can read.

Centennial – Any book written in or before 1924. The definition of science fiction is left to your discretion.

Four-Legged Friend – Any book in which animals play a large role, be it as an animal companion, or ferocious predators.

FREE SPACE – Any book. Literally any book. You can do it.

Good Things In Small Packages – Any book that is under 200 pages in length. Novellas are perfect for this. (Audio Version: Under 5 hrs)

Masterful – Any book reprinted under the Gollancz/SF Gateway Masterworks banner. You need not read the actual Masterworks version, any edition is fine.

No One Can Hear You Scream – Any book that combines science fiction with horror elements.

Nothing Human – Any book which has an alien as a viewpoint character or protagonist.

Old Timer – Any book published in or before 1974.

Small Beginnings – Any book, so long as you have not read a book in that series before.

Strange New Worlds – Any book that has under one thousand reviews on Goodreads. If you leave a review, all the better.

Supermassive – Any book that is over 500 pages long. (Audio Version: Over 20 hours)

Terra Firma – Any book set on Earth. Past, present, or future is fine, as long as it stays local.

The Popular Kid – Any book that has been nominated for the Hugo Award for Nest Novel. (International Version: You may exchange this for a prestigious award from your homeland if you so choose. e.g. BSFA and Nebula Awards)

Under the Radar – Any book that you first heard of in 2024, regardless of the year it was originally published.

Welcome Aboard – Any book published in 2024 that is the debut work of that author.

You Are Here – Any book that contains a location in its title. Both real and fictional locations count.

There you have it. Twenty-five juicy challenges to fulfil. Don’t worry, you’ve got all year to do it. And if you need any help getting recommendations, that’s what I’m here for.