1.) "Majestic" by Whitley Strieber. An improbable-seeming choice, "Majestic" nonetheless ranks among the most authentic and spooky of "first contact" tales. Based on the premise that an alien spacecraft indeed crashed near Roswell, New Mexico in the summer of 1947, Strieber's novel unfolds with intelligence and a rare sense of verisimilitude. Much of the novel's originality stems from its publication before "Roswell" became a household word; Strieber takes the idea of crashed flying saucers and alien bodies in unexpected directions that remain intriguing twenty years since the book's original appearance.

2.) "Childhood's End" by Arthur C. Clarke. Clarke's vision of enigmatic alien "Overlords" and the metamorphosis of human consciousness transcends the usual trappings of genre science fiction. Many intelligent writers have attempted to depict alien contact in the decades since Clarke's seminal novel hit bookshelves, but few have managed to craft novels that are as good or as philosophically expansive.

3.) "Calculating God" by Robert J. Sawyer. An alien craft lands in Toronto. Its pilot takes immediate interest in all things relating to paleontology. As the main human character soon learns, even ETs are preoccupied by theology; the only difference is that the alien "god" just might be demonstrably real.

4.) "Blood Music" by Greg Bear. Not a "first contact" novel, per se, Bear's lavish tale depicts the utter redefinition of our species through the application of unanticipated future technology. In the case of "Blood Music," the human landscape is reshaped by self-replicating "noocytes" that herald the end of humanity and the stirrings of an intelligence not so much "better" than simply (and deliciously) alien. Bear's novel is both scientifically astute and reassuringly human.

5.) "Blind Lake" by Robert Charles Wilson. One of my favorite science fiction authors, Wilson conjures scenarios that take brave conceptual leaps while remaining true to his characters' humanity. "Blind Lake," one of his best, depicts a near-future quantum breakthrough that allows human observers to eavesdrop on denizens of an alien planet. Refreshingly, Wilson refuses to let matters end there: "Blind Lake" is a deeply affecting novel that leaves readers with a wonderfully precipitous sense of our role in the cosmic drama.

6.) "Blindsight" by Peter Watts. Very simply, Watts is one of the best science fiction novelists of the 21st century. "Blindsight," his first novel to (mostly) take place in deep space, is every bit as challenging as it is exciting, laced with insight and, best of all, serious questions SETI researchers would be well-served to contemplate. In particular, Watts levels his sights on the phenomenon we casually dub "consciousness" and explores its evolutionary ramifications. Is self-awareness something we even need? Could aliens be intelligent yet wholly devoid of a sense of self? "Blindsight's" central triumph is its refusal to cling to threadbare conceits, raising the bar for tales of interstellar conflict. Even better, Watts accomplishes the singularly difficult task of making this look easy.