Compiling a Reading List

[akirlu]

We are back home after a really lovely week in New England, meeting some of Hal's extended family for the first time and hanging out and catching up with one of my oldest and dearest friends. Among the promises made in passing was that I promised Hal's nephew's wife Alma some suggestions of good Science Fiction authors. I'm not at all sure what Alma's reading tastes are, other than that she gave us a copy of collected Borges to read. That doesn't actually tell me much since I've yet to read any Borges. But stumbling blindly into the vast tarpit that is recommending SF/F to non-SF readers I go, nonetheless. Below is the list I have so far, but I welcome suggestions.

Jo Walton: The Small Change Trilogy
Octavia Butler: Kindred
Ellen Klages: The Green Glass Sea
Vonda McIntyre: The Moon and the Sun
Connie Willis: Passage
Matt Ruff: Bad Monkeys
Will Shetterly: Dogland
Margaret Atwood: The Handmaid's Tale

Insofar as it matters, Alma's first language is Spanish, and she's not totally confident in spoken English, so books available in translation may be particularly helpful. Any thoughts, O Internets?