"When completed, Walmart’s solar commitment in California is expected to generate up to 70 million kilowatt hours of clean, renewable energy per year, which is equal to powering more than 5,400 homes. It will also avoid producing more than 21,700 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year, which is equal to 4,100 cars off the road and provide 20 to 30 percent of each facility’s total electric needs." So, does that mean that a Walmart uses as much energy as 27,000 homes? That, even after the solar panels are installed, there are still 86,800 metric tons of CO2 being pumped into the atmosphere from each and every Walmart? Please, enlighten, if that's not the case, but it seems to me the greener choice would be to shut them down all together.

If Foundation is too dry, "I, Robot" should be a fun read.

Anne McCaffrey is all right, but her books tend more towards fantasy than science fiction (especially the Dragonriders of Pern).

And, I have to admit, I was in love with the Animorphs series when I was in middle school (even though the ending sucked).

Finally, some of the earlier Star Wars books by Timothy Zahn, Micheal Stackpole and Aaron Allston. The X-Wing series, especially so, since the authors' original characters actually occasionally get to die and such.