Thursday, April 14, 2011

Confident daughters

So do I. Perhaps I'll try to make them tactful as well.


This post's theme word is asperity, "harshness or roughness."

Sunday, April 10, 2011

2011 Hugo nominees

Nominees for the excellent Hugo awards have been announced. Another great crop of books.

Best Novel:
  • Blackout/All Clear by Connie Willis
  • Cryoburn by Lois McMaster Bujold
  • The Dervish House by Ian McDonald
  • Feed by Mira Grant
  • The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin
Best Novella:
  • “The Lady Who Plucked Red Flowers beneath the Queen’s Window” by Rachel Swirsky
  • The Lifecycle of Software Objects by Ted Chiang
  • “The Maiden Flight of McCauley’s Bellerophon” by Elizabeth Hand
  • “The Sultan of the Clouds” by Geoffrey A. Landis
  • “Troika” by Alastair Reynolds
Best Novelette:
  • “Eight Miles” by Sean McMullen
  • “The Emperor of Mars” by Allen M. Steele
  • “The Jaguar House, in Shadow” by Aliette de Bodard
  • “Plus or Minus” by James Patrick Kelly
  • “That Leviathan, Whom Thou Hast Made” by Eric James Stone
Best Short Story:
  • “Amaryllis” by Carrie Vaughn
  • “For Want of a Nail” by Mary Robinette Kowal
  • “Ponies” by Kij Johnson
  • “The Things” by Peter Watts


This post's theme word is argosy, "a large ship, or a fleet of ships, especially one carrying valuable cargo" or "a rich source or supply". The Hugo nominee list is an argosy for [certain] genre readers.