thinking about Hugo nominations, II
Since the last time I'd written about the Hugo awards I've been catching up. So, putting together a list of all my 2010 novels read, my nominations as of right now look something like:
1. Super Sad True Love Story, Gary Shteyngart
2. Surface Detail, Banks
3. Terminal World, Alastair Reynolds
4-5: Still Deciding...[possibly The Magicians [edit: 2009 book, nominating for the Campbell], Lev Grossman; Feed, Mira Grant]
Campbell award: Lev Grossman
Based on how well the world and the characters have stuck with me.
Super Sad still tops my list. It has flaws of the "science fiction written by a non-science-fiction author" type [although Shteyngart actually did read a decent amount of SF in his teens, so the is he/isn't he familiar with SF questions gets a bit Victor/Victoria]. But it still feels, several months on, True. The Otter, the äppärät, the Onion Skins... I can't disbelieve in them, even if today they're just Gate Pat-Downs, Facebook and iDevices.
Pulled from this list
SF
Super Sad True Love Story, Gary Shteyngart
Surface Detail, Banks
Terminal World, Alastair Reynolds
Feed, Mira Grant
For the Win, Cory Doctorow
Zendegi, Greg Egan
Blackout/ All Clear, Willis
CryoBurn, Lois McMaster Bujold
Hull Zero Three, Greg Bear
The Passage, Justin Cronin
F
The Magicians, Lev Grossman
The Fuller Memorandum, Charlie Stross
The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, N.K. Jemisin
The Bird of the River, Kage Baker
The Dream of Perpetual Motion, Dexter Palmer
1. Super Sad True Love Story, Gary Shteyngart
2. Surface Detail, Banks
3. Terminal World, Alastair Reynolds
4-5: Still Deciding...[possibly The Magicians [edit: 2009 book, nominating for the Campbell], Lev Grossman; Feed, Mira Grant]
Campbell award: Lev Grossman
Based on how well the world and the characters have stuck with me.
Super Sad still tops my list. It has flaws of the "science fiction written by a non-science-fiction author" type [although Shteyngart actually did read a decent amount of SF in his teens, so the is he/isn't he familiar with SF questions gets a bit Victor/Victoria]. But it still feels, several months on, True. The Otter, the äppärät, the Onion Skins... I can't disbelieve in them, even if today they're just Gate Pat-Downs, Facebook and iDevices.
Pulled from this list
SF
Super Sad True Love Story, Gary Shteyngart
Surface Detail, Banks
Terminal World, Alastair Reynolds
Feed, Mira Grant
For the Win, Cory Doctorow
Zendegi, Greg Egan
Blackout/ All Clear, Willis
CryoBurn, Lois McMaster Bujold
Hull Zero Three, Greg Bear
The Passage, Justin Cronin
F
The Magicians, Lev Grossman
The Fuller Memorandum, Charlie Stross
The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, N.K. Jemisin
The Bird of the River, Kage Baker
The Dream of Perpetual Motion, Dexter Palmer