My prompt, incidentally:

I need you to recommend me some books to read. I liked:

- The Vorkosigan saga by Bujold
- The Discworld books
- The online fiction Worm
- Worth the Candle
- Mother of Learning
- The fanfic Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality
- Dungeon Crawler Carl
- A Memory Called Empire (especially for the prose)
- The Magicians trilogy by Grossman
- Children of Time and Children of Ruin
- The online fiction Mother of Learning
- The Steerswoman series
- Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke
- The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

I did not particularly like:
- Unsouled / the Cradle series by Will Wight. Actually the first book in the series, where he had to figure out how to be clever to overcome his weakness, was fine; later in the series, when he is just overpowered, is less fun
- A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers (too little plot)
- This Is How You Lose the Time War (too much romance)
- Ancillary Justice (just not that enjoyable to read)
- the Broken Earth series

I have already read (so please don't re-recommend any of these, or anything else in their series):
- Mistborn
- The Expanse
- Murderbot Diaries
- The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet
- The Culture
- Dresden Files
- Old Man's War
- Ninefox Gambit
- The Lies of Locke Lamora

I also don't enjoy books which are "preachy".

And o3's response:

Based on the mix of witty space opera, clever fantasy, inventive worldbuilding, and high-stakes plotting you’ve enjoyed, here are several recommendations that might hit the sweet spot:

1. Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams
• Why? If you love the absurdity and clever humor of Hitchhiker’s Guide, Adams’s quirky detective romp—with its odd cases, mind-bending coincidences, and irreverent tone—should feel right at home.

2. Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett
• Why? Combining Gaiman’s dark, imaginative storytelling with Pratchett’s comedic flair, this apocalyptic tale provides a mix of clever satire and engaging character interplay that you might appreciate given your love for Discworld’s spirit.

3. Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir
• Why? With its genre-blending take on necromancy, locked-room mystery, and sardonic humor, this novel’s intricate puzzles and offbeat narrative should appeal if you enjoyed layered stories like Worm and Mother of Learning.

4. The Rook by Daniel O’Malley
• Why? This debut blends mystery, supernatural intrigue, and a wry protagonist who’s thrust into a dizzying world of secret organizations—much like the engaging, plot-driven adventures you’ve enjoyed in other series.

5. Soon I Will Be Invincible by Austin Grossman
• Why? If you liked modern, inventive hero/villain narratives (as seen in Dungeon Crawler Carl and Worm), this novel’s fresh take on superhero tropes—alternating between a quirky hero and a conflicted villain—should provide plenty of entertaining twists without any heavy-handed moralizing.

6. Redshirts by John Scalzi
• Why? For fans of sci‑fi humor and meta‑narratives, this novel’s irreverent take on classic space operas (in the spirit of Hitchhiker’s Guide but with a tongue‑in‑cheek nod to Star Trek tropes) delivers clever commentary and plenty of plot surprises.

7. The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde
• Why? If you’re drawn to inventive worldbuilding and stories that play with genre conventions, this literary/mystery hybrid set in an alternate reality full of literary in-jokes and puzzles might resonate—it's smart and playful without feeling “preachy.”

Each of these books emphasizes engaging plots, strong prose, or a uniquely off-kilter narrative style that avoids overt moralizing, much like the works you’ve loved. Happy reading!

(I've read and enjoyed Dirk Gently, Good Omens, Soon I Will Be Invincible, Redshirts, and The Eyre Affair.

On a completely different dimension, GPT4.5 is also the best at writing poetry of any model I've tried. I give models Afton Water and ask them to

> write a few more stanzas suitable for an urban environment. Be sure to preserve the rhyme scheme and pay attention to the scansion. After writing, analyze how you did on rhyme and rhythm and make modifications (potentially substantial modifications) as necessary, and repeat. It's OK for your response to be very long, with multiple iterations - that's how writing goes for humans too.

Thus far, all attempts from other models have failed to scan. The previous ChatGPT gave me "Ye sighing train-whistles from side-streets that flow / Soft rustling branches in sycamores fair" for example. This is kind of unfair because scansion is very hard to derive for a model which is trained on text, but it's still something I care about. GPT4.5 pretty much nails the scansion except in one place ("lamps casting" is two stressed syllables in a row), and the imagery is better too. Also it made it about the flow of a city instead of the flow of a river, which works way better in an urban setting.

> Flow softly, fair city, beneath starlit skies,
> Where towers of silver and glass gently rise;
> My Mary's asleep by thy lantern's calm beam—
> Flow softly, dear city, disturb not her dream.
>
> Ye engines that murmur through streets in the night,
> Soft glow of the lamps casting mellowing light;
> Thou bell from the chapel, be quiet this hour,
> Disturb not my Mary asleep in her bower.
>
> How graceful thy buildings, illumined and clear,
> That glisten past twilight as evening draws near;
> There daily I wander down avenues fair,
> My Mary's dear dwelling my joy and my care.
>
> How lovely thy parks as they stretch far below,
> With lilacs and roses that softly do grow;
> There oft at the dusk I sit calm and carefree,
> On elm-shaded benches, my Mary and me.
>
> Thy streets and thy alleys, how gently they wind,
> Beyond glowing windows where Mary reclined;
> The city sleeps quiet, my footsteps are light,
> To guard gently Mary, asleep through the night.