I just finished Vernor Vinge’s book A Deepness in the Sky.  It is a loose prequel to his former novel A Fire Upon The Deep.  Both of these are great science fiction books with characters that you will love.  These people are surrounded by far future technologies, and they are living in the middle of galaxy changing events.

A Deepness in the Sky won the Prometheus Award for best novel.  This award is given out by the Libertarian Futurist Society on a yearly basis.  A major theme of the story involves a main character who struggles against his desire to make a “great society” while at the same time realizing the necessity of freedom for everyone.  This and the many other ideas throughout the book will keep you reading to the end as quicky as possible.