Reading the Campbells

Along with the Hugo and Nebula, the John W. Campbell Memorial Award is considered in some circles as one of the triumvirate of important SF awards. Since I'm tracking my Hugo and Nebula tallies, I figure I should add the Campbell to the list. Here, then, is the list of Campbell nominated works to date; the ones I've read are noted in bold.

1973
Beyond Apollo, Barry N. Malzberg
The Listeners, James E. Gunn
Darkening Island, Christopher Priest

1974 (two winners)
Rendezvous with Rama, Arthur C. Clarke
Malevil, Robert Merle
The Embedding, Ian Watson
The Green Gene, Peter Dickinson

1975
Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said, Philip K. Dick
The Dispossesed, Ursula K. LeGuin

1976 (no winner; special award presented to The Year of the Quiet Sun, Wilson Tucker)
The Stochastic Man, Robert Silverberg
Orbitsville, Bob Shaw

1977
The Alteration, Kingsley Amis
Man Plus, Frederik Pohl
Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang, Katherine Wilhelm

1978
Gateway, Frederik Pohl
Roadside Picnic and Tale of the Troika, Arkady and Boris Strugatsky
A Scanner Darkly, Philip K. Dick

1979
Goriana, Michael Moorcock
Altered States, Paddy Chayefsky
And Having Writ..., Donald R. Bensen

1980
On Wings of Song, Thomas M. Disch
Engine Summer, John Crowley
The Unlimited Dream Company, J. G. Ballard

1981
Timescape, Gregory Benford
The Dreaming Dragons, Damien Broderick
The Shadow of the Torturer, Gene Wolfe

1982
Riddley Walker, Russell Hoban

1983
Helliconia Spring, Brian W. Aldiss
No Enemy But Time, Michael Bishop

1984
The Citadel of the Autarch, Gene Wolfe
The Birth of the People's Republic of Antarctica, John Batchelor
Tik-Tok, John Thomas Sladek

1985
The Years of the City, Frederick Pohl
Green Eyes, Lucius Shepherd
Neuromancer, William Gibson

1986
The Postman, David Brin
Galapagos, Kurt Vonnegut
Blood Music, Greg Bear
Kiteworld, Keith Roberts

1987
A Door into Ocean, Joan Slonczewski
The is the Way the World Ends, James K. Morrow
Speaker for the Dead, Orson Scott Card

1988
Lincoln's Dreams, Connie Willis
The Sea and Summer, George Turner
The Unconquered Country, Geoff Ryman

1989
Islands in the Net, Bruce Sterling
The Gold Coast, Kim Stanley Robinson
Dragonsdawn, Anne McCaffrey

1990
The Child Garden, Geoff Ryman
Farewell Horizontal, K.W. Jeter
Good News from Outer Space, John Kessel

1991
Pacific Edge, Kim Stanley Robinson
Queen of Angels, Greg Bear
Only Begotten Daughter, James K. Morrow

1992
Buddy Holly is Alive and Well on Ganymede, Bradley Denton
The Difference Engine, William Gibson and Bruce Sterling
The Silicon Man, Charles Platt
Stations of the Tide, Michael Swanwick

1993
Brother to Dragons, Charles Sheffield
Sideshow, Sherri S. Tepper
A Fire Upon the Deep, Vernor Vinge

1994 (no award)
Beggars in Spain, Nancy Kress
Moving Mars, Greg Bear

1995
Permutation City, Greg Egan
Brittle Innings, Michael Bishop

1996
The Time Ships, Stephen Baxter
The Diamond Age, Neal Stephenson
Chaga, Ian McDonald

1997
Fairyland, Paul J. McAuley
Blue Mars, Kim Stanley Robinson
The Sparrow, Mary Doria Russell

1998
Forever Peace, Joe Haldeman
Slant, Greg Bear
Secret Passages, Paul Preuss

1999
Brute Orbits, George Zebrowski
Starfarers, Poul Anderson
Distraction, Bruce Sterling

2000
A Deepness in the Sky, Vernor Vinge
Darwin's Radio, Greg Bear
Greenhouse Summer, Norman Spinrad
The Silicon Dagger, Jack Williamson
Starfish, Peter Watts

2001
Genesis, Poul Anderson
Ash: A Secret History, Mary Gentle
Calculating God, Robert J. Sawyer
Infinity Beach, Jack McDevitt
The Fresco, Sherri S. Tepper

2002 (two winners)
The Chronoliths, Robert Charles Wilson
Terraforming Earth, Jack Williamson
Probability Sun, Nancy Kress
Dark Light, Ken MacLeod
Deepsix, Jack McDevitt
Fallen Dragon, Peter F. Hamilton
Hammerfall, C.J. Cherryh
The House of Dust, Paul Johnston
The Meek, Scott Mackay
Nekropolis, Maureen F. McHugh
Pashazade: The First Arabesk, Jon Courtenay Grimwood
Passage, Connie Willis

2003
Probability Space, Nancy Kress
Kiln People, David Brin
Hominids, Robert J. Sawyer
Bones of the Earth, Michael Swanwick
Dark Ararat, Brian Stableford
The Golden Age, John C. Wright
Lion's Blood, Steven Barnes
The Separation, Christopher Priest
The Visitor, Sherri S. Tepper
Vitals, Greg Bear

2004
Omega, Jack McDevitt
Natural History, Justina Robson
The X President, Philip Baruth
The Braided World, Kay Kenyon
The Changeling Plague, Syne Mitchell
The Companions, Sherri S. Tepper
Darwin's Children, Greg Bear
Jennifer Government, Max Barry
Memory, Linda Nagata
Red Thunder, John Varley
Sister Alice, Robert Reed
Star Dragon, Mike Brotherton
Storyteller, Amy Thomson
Untied Kingdom, James Lovegrove
The Wreck of the River of Stars, Michael F. Flynn

2005
Market Forces, Richard Morgan
Air, Geoff Ryman
The Time Traveler's Wife, Audrey Niffenegger
The Boy Who Would Live Forever, Frederick Pohl
The Child Goddess, Louise Marley
City of Pearl, Karen Traviss
Gaudeamus, John Barnes
Newton's Wake, Ken MacLeod
The Plot Against America, Philip Roth
The Rebel, Jack Dann
The Well of Stars, Robert Reed
White Devils, Paul J. McAuley

2006
Mindscan, Robert J. Sawyer
Spin, Robert Charles Wilson
The Summer Isles, Ian R. MacLeod
Accelerando, Charles Stross
Child of Earth, David Gerrold
Counting Heads, David Marusek
Learning the World, Ken MacLeod
The Meq, Steve Cash
Mind's Eye, Paul J. McAuley
Seeker, Jack McDevitt
Transcendent, Stephen Baxter
The World Before, Karen Traviss

2007
Titan, Ben Bova
The Last Witchfinder, James K. Morrow
Blindsight, Peter Watts
Farthing, Jo Walton
Dry, Barbara Sapergia
Glasshouse, Charles Stross
Infoquake, David Louis Edelman
Living Next Door to the God of Love, Justina Robson
Nova Swing, M. John Harrison
Odyssey, Jack McDevitt
Rainbows End, Vernor Vinge
A Small and Remarkable Life, Nick DeChario
Sun of Suns, Karl Schroeder

2008
In War Times, Kathleen Ann Goonan
The Yiddish Policeman's Union, Michael Chabon
The Execution Channel, Ken MacLeod
Axis, Robert Charles Wilson
Bad Monkeys, Matt Ruff
Brasyl, Ian McDonald
Deadstock, Jeffrey Thomas
HARM, Brian W. Aldiss
Mainspring, Jay Lake
The Margarets, Sherri S. Tepper
The New Moon's Arms, Nalo Hopkinson
Rollback, Robert J. Sawyer
Time's Child, Rebecca Ore
Zig Zag, Jose Carlos Somoza

2009 (two winners)
Little Brother, Cory Doctorow
Song of Time, Ian R. MacLeod
The Philosopher's Apprentice, James K. Morrow
Anathem, Neal Stephenson
City at the End of Time, Greg Bear
Valley of Day-Glo, Nick DiChario

2010
The Windup girl, Paolo Bacigalupi
Julian Comstock: A Story of 22nd Century America, Robert Charles Wilson
The City & the City, China Mieville
The Caryatids, Bruce Sterling
Galileo's Dream, Kim Stanley Robinson
Gardens of the Sun, Paul J. McAuley
Makers, Cory Doctorow
Steal Across the Sky, Nancy Kress
Transition, Ian M. Banks
Wake, Robert J. Sawyer
The Year of the Flood, Margaret Atwood
Yellow Blue Tibia, Adam Roberts

2011
The Dervish House, Ian McDonald
How to Live Safety in a Science Fictional Universe, Charles Yu
The Quantum Thief, Hannu Rajaniemi
Anthill, E.O. Wilson
Aurorarama, Jean-Chrisophe Valtat
Blackout/All Clear, Connie Willis
C, Tom McCarthy
Hull Zero Three, Greg Bear
New Model Army, Adam Roberts
Veteran, Gavin Smith
The Waters Rising, Sherri S. Tepper
Yarn, Jon Armstrong
Zero History, William Gibson

2012 (two winners)
The Islanders, Christopher Priest
The Highest Frontier, John Slonczewski
Embassytown, China Mieville
Osama, Lavie Tidhar
Ready Player One, Ernest Cline
This Shared Dream, Kathleen Ann Goonan
Soft Apocalypse, Will McIntosh
Dancing with Bears, Michael Swanwick
Robopocalypse, Daniel H. Wilson
Home Fires, Gene Wolfe
Seed, Rob Ziegler

2013
Jack Glass: The Story of a Murderer, Adam Roberts
The Hydrogen Sonata, Ian M. Banks
Any Day Now, Terry Bisson
Existence, David Brin
The Rapture of the Nerds, Cory Doctorow and Charles Stross
Empty Space, M. John Harrison
Intrusion, Ken MacLeod
Railsea, China Mieville
The Fractal Prince, Hannu Rajaniemi
Blue Remembered Earth, Alastair Reynolds
2312, Kim Stanley Robinson
Slow Apocalypse, John Varley
Alif the Unseen, G. Willow Wilson

2014
Strange Bodies, Marcel Theroux
Lexicon, Max Barry
Proxima, Stephen Baxter
The Circle, Dave Eggers
We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves, Karen Joy Fowler
Hild, Nicola Griffith
The Cusanus Game, Wolfgang Jeschke
Ancillary Justice, Ann Leckie
The Disestablishment of Paradise, Phillip Mann
Evening's Empires, Paul J. McAuley
The Red: First Light, Linda Nagata
The Adjacent, Christopher Priest
On the Steel Breeze, Alastair Reynolds
Shaman, Kim Stanley Robinson
Neptune's Brood, Charles Stross

2015
The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August, Claire North
The Race, Nina Allan
A Darkling Sea, James L. Cambias
The Peripheral, William Gibson
Afterparty, Daryl Gregory
Europe in Autumn, Dave Hutchinson
Wolves, Simon Ings
The Three-Body Problem, Cixin Liu
Station Eleven, Emily St. John Mandel
Defenders, Will McIntosh
The Bees, Laline Paull
Bete, Adam Roberts
Lock In, John Scalzi
The Martian, Andy Weir
Annihilation, Jeff VanderMeer
Echopraxia, Peter Watts

To date, I have read 82 of 261 Campbell winners and nominees. That amounts to about 32 percent of the list. 

The Campbell lists seem a little more eclectic to me than the Hugos or the Nebulas, and while there is some overlap with the other major awards, on the whole the Campbells have a more cosmopolitan flavour, with what seems to me a good balance between popular, literate and weird choices - not that any of those are mutually exclusive. Perhaps that's because the Campbells are judged by a select group of jurors, rather than by fan vote (the Hugos) or the wider membership of the Science Fiction Writers of America (the Nebulas). 

Aside from recognizing good work, the chief benefit of literary awards is their ability to provide curious readers with lists of new books to read. Certainly in putting together this list I find myself curious about a number of writers that are new to me. These lists are also handy for carrying with you at used bookstores! 

Reading the Nebula Nominees

Since 1966, 296 novels have been nominated for the Nebula Award for Best Novel. Nebula awards are administered, judged and granted by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, making this a peer, rather than a popular, award. 

I'm reasonably well read, particularly in this genre, but as I've written before when presenting other pop culture lists, it's very difficult for any one person to read or see everything given our limited lifetimes and the sheer amount of work available. For fun, I tallied up all of the Nebula nominees and winners, and discovered to my shock that I've only read 86 of them, or around 29 percent of the list. Luckily many of the unread winners and nominees already exist in my collection, so I can probably complete about half the list without even leaving the house.

I've marked the winners and nominees I've read in bold. Winners are listed first on this list; note that in 1967, Babel-17 and Flowers for Algernon tied to win the award.

Nebula Award for Best Novel

1966

Dune, Frank Herbert

All Flesh is Grass, Clifford D. Simak

The Clone, Theodore L. Thomas and Kate Wilhelm

Dr. Bloodmoney, or How We Got Along After the Bomb, Philip K. Dick

The Escape Orbit, James White

The Genocides, Thomas M. Disch

Nova Express, William S. Burroughs

A Plague of Demons, Keith Laumer

Rogue Dragon, Avram Davidson

The Ship That Sailed the Time Stream, G.C. Edmondson

The Star Fox, Poul Anderson

The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch, Philip K. Dick

1967

Babel-17, Samuel R. Delany

Flowers for Algernon, Daniel Keyes

The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Robert A. Heinlein

1968

The Einstein Intersection, Samuel R. Delany

Chthon, Piers Anthony

The Eskimo Invasion, Hayden Howard

Lord of Light, Roger Zelazny

Thorns, Robert Silverberg

1969

Rite of Passage, Alexi Panshin

Black Easter, James Blish

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Philip K. Dick

The Masks of Time, Robert Silverberg

Past Master, R.A. Lafferty

Picnic on Paradise, Joanna Russ

Stand on Zanzibar, John Brunner

1970

The Left Hand of Darkness, Ursula K. LeGuin

Bug Jack Barron, Norman Spinrad

Isle of the Dead, Roger Zelazny

The Jagged Orbit, John Brunner

Slaughterhouse-Five, Kurt Vonnegut

Up the Line, Robert Silverberg

1971

Ringworld, Larry Niven

And Chaos Died, Joanna Russ

Fourth Mansions, R.A. Lafferty

The Steel Crocodile, David G. Compton

Tower of Glass, Robert Silverberg

The Year of the Quiet Sun, Wilson Tucker

1972

A Time of Changes, Robert Silverberg

The Byworlder, Poul Anderson

The Devil is Dead, R.A. Lafferty

Half Past Human, T.J. Bass

The Lathe of Heaven, Ursula K. LeGuin

Margaret and I, Kate Wilhelm

1973

The Gods Themselves, Isaac Asimov

The Book of Skulls, Robert Silverberg

Dying Inside, Robert Silverberg

The Iron Dream, Norman Spinrad

The Sheep Look Up, John Brunner

What Entropy Means to Me, George Alec Effinger

When H.A.R.L.I.E. Was One, David Gerrold

1974

Rendezvous with Rama, Arthur C. Clarke

Gravity’s Rainbow, Thomas Pynchon

The Man Who Folded Himself, David Gerrold

The People of the Wind, Poul Anderson

Time Enough for Love, Robert A. Heinlein

1975

The Dispossessed, Ursula K. LeGuin

334, Thomas M. Disch

Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said, Philip K. Dick

The Godwhale, T.J. Bass

1976

The Forever War, Joe Haldeman

Autumn Angels, Arthur Byron Cover

The Birthgrave, Tanith Lee

The Computer Connection, Alfred Bester

Dhalgren, Samuel R. Delany

Doorways in the Sand, Roger Zelazny

The Embedding, Ian Watson

The Exile Waiting, Vonda N. McIntyre

The Female Man, Joanna Russ

A Funeral for the Eyes of Fire, Michal Bishop

Guernica Night, Barry N. Malzberg

The Heritage of Hastur, Marion Zimmer Bradley

Invisible Cities, Italo Calvino

A Midsummer Tempest, Poul Anderson

The Missing Man, Katherine MacLean

The Mote in God’s Eye, Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle

Ragtime, E.L. Doctorow

The Stochastic Man, Robert Silverberg

1977

Man Plus, Frederik Pohl

Inferno, Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle

Islands, Marta Randall

Shadrach in the Furnace, Robert Silverberg

Triton, Samuel R. Delany

Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang, Kate Wilhelm

1978

Gateway, Frederik Pohl

Cirque, Terry Carr

In the Ocean of Night, Gregory Benford

Moonstar Odyssey, David Gerrold

Sword of Demon, Richard A. Lupoff

1979

Dreamsnake, Vonda McIntyre

Blind Voices, Tom Reamy

The Faded Sun: Kesrith, C.J. Cherryh

Kalki, Gore Vidal

Strangers, Gardner Dozois

1980

The Fountains of Paradise, Arthur C. Clarke

Jem, Frederik Pohl

Juniper Time, Kate Wilhelm

On Wings of Song, Thomas M. Disch

The Road to Corlay, Richard Cowper

Titan, John Varley

1981

Timescape, Gregory Benford

Beyond the Blue Event Horizon, Frederik Pohl

Mockingbird, Walter Tevis

The Orphan, Robert Stallman

The Shadow of the Torturer, Gene Wolfe

The Snow Queen, Joan D. Vinge

1982

The Claw of the Conciliator, Gene Wolfe

Little, Big, John Crowley

The Many-Colored Land, Julian May

Radix, A.A. Attanasio

Riddley Walker, Russell Hoban

The Vampire Tapestry, Suzy McKee Charnas

1983

No Enemy But Time, Michael Bishop

Foundation’s Edge, Isaac Asimov

Friday, Robert A. Heinlein

Helliconia Spring, Brian Aldiss

The Sword of the Lictor, Gene Wolfe

The Transmigration of Timothy Archer, Philip K. Dick

1984

Startide Rising, David Brin

Against Infinity, Gregory Benford

The Citadel of the Autarch, Gene Wolfe

Lyonesse, Jack Vance

Tea with the Black Dragon, R.A. MacAvoy

The Void Captain’s Tale, Norman Spinrad

1985

Neuromancer, William Gibson

Frontera, Lewish Shiner

The Integral Trees, Larry Niven

Job: A Comedy of Justice, Robert A. Heinlein

The Man Who Melted, Jack Dann

The Wild Shore, Kim Stanley Robinson

1986

Ender’s Game, Orson Scott Card

Blood Music, Greg Bear

Dinner at Deviant’s Palace, Tim Powers

Helliconia Winter, Brian Aldiss

The Postman, David Brin

The Remaking of Sigmund Freud, Barry N. Malzberg

Schismatrix, Bruce Sterling

1987

Speaker for the Dead, Orson Scott Card

Count Zero, William Gibson

Free Live Free, Gene Wolfe

The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood

The Journal of Nicholas the American, Leigh Kennedy

The is the Way the World Ends, James K. Morrow

1988

The Falling Woman, Pat Murphy

The Forge of God, Greg Bear

Soldier of the Mist, Gene Wolfe

The Uplift War, David Brin

Vergil in Averno, Avram Davidson

When Gravity Fails, George Alec Effinger

1989

Falling Free, Lois McMaster Bujold

Deserted Cities of the Heart, Lewis Shiner

Drowning Towers, George Turner

Great Sky River, Gregory Benford

Mona Lisa Overdrive, William Gibson

Red Prophet, Orson Scott Card

The Urth of the New Sun, Gene Wolfe

1990

The Healer’s War, Elizabeth Anne Scarborough

The Boat of a Million Years, Poul Anderson

Prentice Alvin, Orson Scott Card

Good News From Outer Space, John Kessel

Ivory: A Legend of Past and Future, Mike Resnick

Sister Light, Sister Dark, Jane Yolen

1991

Tehanu: The Last Book of Earthsea, Ursula K. LeGuin

Mary Reilly, Valerie Martin

Only Begotten Daughter, James K. Morrow

The Fall of Hyperion, Dan Simmons

Redshift Rendezvous, John E. Stith

White Jenna, Jane Yolen

1992

Stations of the Tide, Michael Swanwick

Orbital Resonance, John Barnes

Barrayar, Lois McMaster Bujold

Bone Dance, Emma Bull

Synners, Pat Cadigan

The Difference Engine, Bruce Sterling and William Gibson

1993

Doomsday Book, Connie Willis

A Million Open Doors, John Barnes

Sarah Canary, Karen Joy Fowler

China Mountain Zhang, Maureen F. McHugh

A Fire Upon the Deep, Vernor Vinge

Briar Rose, Jane Yolen

1994

Red Mars, Kim Stanley Robinson

Assemblers of Infinity, Kevin J. Anderson and Doug Beason

Hard Landing, Algis Budrys

Beggars in Spain, Nancy Kress

Nightside the Long Sun, Gene Wolfe

1995

Moving Mars, Greg Bear

Parable of the Sower, Octavia E. Butler

Gun, with Occasional Music, Jonathan Lethem

Towing Jehovah, James K. Morrow

Temporary Agency, Rachel Pollack

Green Mars, Kim Stanley Robinson

A Night in the Lonesome October, Roger Zelazny

1996

The Terminal Experiment, Robert J. Sawyer

Mother of Storms, John Barnes

Beggars and Choosers, Nancy Kress

Celestis, Paul Park

Metropolitan, Walter Jon Williams

Calde of the Long Sun, Gene Wolfe

1997

Slow River, Nicola Griffith

The Silent Strength of Stones, Nina Kiriki Hoffman

Winter Rose, Patricia A. McKillip

Expiration Date, Tim Powers

Starplex, Robert J. Sawyer

The Diamond Age, Neal Stephenson

1998

The Moon and the Sun, Vonda N. McIntyre

Memory, Lois McMaster Bujold

King’s Dragon, Kate Elliot

A Game of Thrones, George R.R. Martin

Ancient Shores, Jack McDevitt

City on Fire, Walter Jon Williams

Bellwether, Connie Willis

1999

Forever Peace, Joe Haldeman

The Last Hawk, Catherine Asaro

Moonfall, Jack McDevitt

How Few Remain, Harry Turtledove

Death of the Necromancer, Martha Wells

To Say Nothing of the Dog, Connie Willis

2000

Parable of the Talents, Octavia E. Butler

The Cassini Division, Ken MacLeod

A Clash of Kings, George R.R. Martin

Mission Child, Maureen F. McHugh

Mockingbird, Sean Stewart

A Deepness in the Sky, Vernor Vinge

2001

Darwin’s Radio, Greg Bear

A Civil Campaign, Lois McMaster Bujold

Crescent City Rhapsody, Kathleen Ann Goonan

Midnight Robber, Nalo Hopkinson

Infinity Beach, Jack McDevitt

Forests of the Heart, Charles de Lint

2002

The Quantum Rose, Catherine Asaro

Eternity’s End, Jeffrey Carver

Mars Crossing, Geoffrey A. Landis

A Storm of Swords, George R.R. Martin

The Collapsium, Wil McCarthy

The Tower at Stony Wood, Patricia A. McKillip

Declare, Tim Powers

Passage, Connie Willis

2003

American Gods, Neil Gaiman

Solitaire, Kelley Eskridge

The Other Wind, Ursula K. LeGuin

Picoverse, Robert A. Metzger

Perdido Street Station, China Mieville

Bones of the Earth, Michael Swanwick

2004

The Speed of Dark, Elizabeth Moon

Diplomatic Immunity, Lois McMaster Bujold

The Mount, Carol Emshwiller

Light Music, Kathleen Ann Goonan

The Salt Roads, Nalo Hopkinson

Chindi, Jack McDevitt

2005

Paladin of Souls, Lois McMaster Bujold

Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom, Cory Doctorow

Omega, Jack McDevitt

Cloud Atlas, David Mitchell

Perfect Circle, Sean Stewart

The Knight, Gene Wolfe

2006

Camouflage, Joe Haldeman

Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, Susanna Clarke

Polaris, Jack McDevitt

Going Postal, Terry Pratchett

Air, Geoff Ryman

Orphans of Chaos, John C. Wright

2007

Seeker, Jack McDevitt

The Privilege of the Sword, Ellen Kushner

The Girl in the Glass, Jeffrey Ford

Farthing, Jo Walton

From the Files of the Time Rangers, Richard Bowes

To Crush the Moon, Wil McCarthy

2008

The Yiddish Policeman’s Union, Michael Chabon

Odyssey, Jack McDevitt

The Accidental Time Machine, Joe Haldeman

The New Moon’s Arms, Nalo Hopkinson

Ragamuffin, Tobias S. Buckell

2009

Powers, Ursula K. LeGuin

Little Brother, Cory Doctorow

Cauldron, Jack McDevitt

Brasyl, Ian McDonald

Making Money, Terry Pratchett

Superpowers, David J. Schwartz

2010

The Windup Girl, Paolo Bacigalupi

The Love We Share Without Knowing, Christopher Barzak

The City & The City, China Mieville

Boneshaker, Cherie Priest

Finch, Jeff VanderMeer

2011

Blackout/All Clear, Connie Willis

The Native Star, M.K. Hobson

The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, N.K. Jemisin

Shades of Milk and Honey, Mary Robinette Kowal

Echo, Jack McDevitt

Who Fears Death, Nnedi Okorafor

2012

Among Others, Jo Walton

Embassytown, China Mieville

Firebird, Jack McDevitt

God’s War, Kameron Hurley

Mechanique: A Tale of the Circus Tresaulti

The Kingdom of Gods, N.K. Jemisin

Sweeping Generalizations

The Barefoot Sweeper

Saturday night the gang gathered at Pete's place for our second round of the Serenity roleplaying game. The common theme that night was spillage and cleanup. As seen here, Mike was so disturbed by Pete's filthy back deck that he felt compelled to sweep up. Later in the evening, Steve dropped his Brute on Pete's shiny hardwood floor(the sandwich, not his actual brute, not that he has one or anything that I know of) and promptly wiped up the mess. This prompted some gentle ribbing and reminded us of the night, not long ago, that Jeff spilled Pete's expensive port all over Pete's expensive table. The mess was promptly cleaned up.

According to a common stereotype, men don't enjoy cleaning. But among my particular tribe of geek friends, cleanliness is clearly a virtue.

Stealing a line from my friend Leslie...

What I'm reading: Cloud Atlas, by David Mitchell. Unusual and compelling, despite being a finalist for the Man Booker prize (rimshot!).

Speaking of awards, I found out today that E.L. Doctorow's Ragtime, which I have always assumed is a mainstream novel, was nominated for the Nebula award - an SF prize. I haven't read Ragtime - anyone know if it has any speculative content? (Some of you may remember the story from the film adaptation - widely publicized as James Cagney's last film.)