I started with Delany's Nova when I was about 12 or 13. What an incredible story! For something published in 1966, it really pushed the boundaries of science fiction not just in terms of topics (race, drugs, society, etc.) but also in terms of bringing literary sensibilities to a genre that many people regarded as imaginative yet immature trash.

Delany was not the only science fiction author doing this during the 60s and 70s, but Nova was so magical and effective. It even stands up today -- I reread it every few years, and it doesn't seem dated (although that comment maybe dates me!)

I have to say, however, that his big novels of the 1970s -- Dhalgren and Triton -- were hard reads. As TFA notes, he kept pushing the boundaries of science fiction, but the boundaries went too far "out there" for me to appreciate. They were long and abstract, and it made me feel bad that I was too obtuse to really get into them.