Tag: Neil Gaiman

The Hugo Awards were given yesterday (September 4,…

Scott D.

SFFaudio News

The Hugo Awards were given yesterday (September 4, 2004) and here are the results:

Best Novel: Paladin of Souls by Lois McMaster Bujold

Best Novella: “The Cookie Monster” by Vernor Vinge

Best Novelette: “Legions in Time” by Michael Swanwick

Best Short Story: “A Study in Emerald” by Neil air jordan 4 retro red thunder Gaiman

Best Related Book: The Chesley Awards for Science Fiction and Fantasy Art: A Retrospective by John Grant, Elizabeth L. Humphrey, and Pamela D. Scoville

Best Dramatic Presentation, short form: Gollum’s Acceptance Speech at the 2003 MTV Movie Awards

Best Dramatic Presentation, long form: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Best Professional Editor: Gardner Dozois

Best Professional Artist: Bob Eggleton

Best Semiprozine: Locus, Charles N. Brown, Jennifer A. Hall, and Kirsten Gong-Wong, eds.

Best Fanzine: Emerald City, Cheryl Morgan, ed.

Best Fan Writer: Dave Langford

Best Fan Artist: Frank Wu

A big surprise to me was that Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form award. Gollum’s Acceptance Speech? Come on, people. The Firefly episode Paul Pierce giving his Nike Max P2 V away entitled “The Message” was deserving of the award. If you get a chance to see that series, do! You won’t be disappointed – it’s excellent, and available on DVD. A feature film is in the works.

The only item here represented on audio (or about to be represented on audio) is Lois McMaster Bujold’s Paladin of Souls. Blackstone Audio has published the first volume in that series, entitled The Curse of Chalion, and will publish Paladin of Souls soon.

Congratulations to all the nominees and award winners!

Posted by Scott D. Danielson

Review of Catskin by Kelly Link

Jesse Willis

Catskin
By Kelly Link; Read by Kelly Link
|REALAUDIO|* – Approx. 56 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Broadcaster: WNYC
Broadcast: Nov. 1st 2002
Themes: / Fantasy / Horror / Magic / Witchcraft / Cats /

This short story by Nebula, World Fantasy, and James Tiptree Jr. Award winning author Kelly Link can be heard by listening to this archived radio show.

This is an unusual tale of the death of a lonely witch whose magical family must deal with the death of their mother. Frightening mental images and an unconventional approach to traditional horror and fantasy marks much of Kelly Link’s work . Like Neil Gaiman, Link is working with traditional themes, but overturning our expectations and that’s a good thing. Unfortunately, Link reads this tale very matter-of-factly, something all too common with author-performed stories and of course this adds nothing to an otherwise interesting tale. Link’s reading is also accompanied by a constant tinkling and trumpeting musical background – if it merely introduced and concluded the reading it would be great but because it doesn’t it simply distracts from the telling. One other minor issue is the long pauses up to six seconds. Such pauses make the listener think the reading has concluded prematurely. Despite these audio production problems, Catskin makes for a chilling Halloween themed listen.

*Be sure to zip all the way to the end of the first hour of the show and then to the 2 minute mark of the second hour of the show.

Posted by Jesse Willis

The Science Fiction Writers of America (SFWA), ann…

Scott D.

SFFaudio News

The Science Fiction Writers of America (SFWA), announced the winners of the 2003 Nebula Awards for best science fiction or fantasy this weekend.

Best Novel of 2003

The Speed of Dark by Elizabeth Moon

Best Novella of 2003

“Coraline ” by Neil Gaiman

Best Novelette of 2003

“The Empire of Ice Cream” by Jeffrey Ford

Best Short Story of 2003

“What I Didn’t See” by Karen Joy Fowler

Best Script – The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Stephen Sinclair & Peter Jackson

The Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master Award was presented to renowned science fiction and fantasy writer Robert Silverberg for lifetime achievement in the field.

A very interesting thing to note is that both “The Empire of Ice Cream” and “What I Didn’t See” were published in the free on-line magazine, SCI FICTION. The times, they are a-changin.

On audio, there’s a very nice version of “Coraline”, read by Neil Gaiman, available from Harper Audio.

And what can be said about Robert Silverberg? A well-deserved award, to be sure. He’s had some stuff produced for audio, but I still consider him largely untapped. Check Blackstone Audio and Fantastic Audio (whose website has not been updated for a long while) for the most recently released titles.

Congratulations to the award winners and the nominees!

Posted by Scott D. Danielson

Review of Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman

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Fantasy Audiobooks - Neverwhere by Neil GaimanNeverwhere
By Neil Gaiman; Read by Gary Bakewell
2 Cassettes; 2 hours [ABRIDGED]
Publisher: Highbridge Company
Published: 1997
ISBN: 1565112318
Themes: / Fantasy / London Underground / Magic / Urban Legend /

Neil Gaiman is certainly one of the most decorated storytellers at work today – his books seem to be on the final ballot for every conceivable award, and rightly so. His work is unique and fantastic (in both senses of the word).

Neverwhere follows part of the life of Richard Mayhew, a young businessman who lives in London. He lives a dreary life full of accounting books and deadlines, and is engaged to Jessica, who works in the art industry. His life is changed completely when he stops to help Door, a young woman he finds injured on the sidewalk. Unwittingly, he is introduced to a world he never knew existed – that of London Below. There, beneath the city, Door is not only Door, she is “Lady” Door. And an entire population lives down there, living lives unknown to those who live in London Above. Mayhew quickly finds himself hip deep in her problems as she runs from Croup and Vandemar (a pair of serial killers) and tries to solve the mystery of the murder of Door’s whole family. With them travels the Marquis of Carabas, a man willing to do much for a favor, and the famous Hunter, a female bodyguard. London Below is filled with interesting characters and more than a touch of magic.

Gary Bakewell (who plays Richard Mayhew in the BBC television series) does an excellent job with the narration. His voice drew me quickly into the wonderful strangeness. The sound effects and editing mimicked that of the television series. But, this was an abridgement. In this case, that means that the ending was rushed as events were crammed into that last quarter to make the 2-hour cut.

Having seen and enjoyed the BBC TV series, I can say that the parts that were missed along the way in this story are very worthwhile, and an unabridged version of Gaiman’s novel would be welcome. But this abridged audiobook captures the flavor of the story well. Even with the skipped events and rushed ending, the story makes sense, and it’s worth a listen.

posted by Scott D. Danielson

NPR’s Neal Conan, of Talk of the Nation, interview…

admin

SFFaudio Online Audio

NPR‘s Neal Conan, of Talk of the Nation, interviewed Neil Gaiman on September 18th. Find the show here.

Sept. 18, 2003

The Sandman isn’t your typical comic book. It’s dark, geared towards adults and praised by the likes of Norman Mailer and Stephen King. Neil Gaiman, the comic book’s creator, joins host Neal Conan for a discussion on gods, myths and dreams.

Posted by Jesse Willis

Congratulations Hugo winners! The Hugo Awards f…

Scott D.

SFFaudio News

Congratulations Hugo winners!

The Hugo Awards for best science fiction works in 2002 were presented Saturday, August 30 at the 61th World Science Fiction Convention, Torcon 3, in Toronto, Ontario.

Best Novel: Hominids by Robert J. Sawyer (Analog 1-4/02; Tor)

Best Novella: Coraline by Neil Gaiman (HarperCollins)

Best Novelette: “Slow Life” by Michael Swanwick (Analog 12/02)

Best Short Story Category: “Falling Onto Mars” by Geoffrey A. Landis (Analog 7-8/02)

Best Related Book: Better to Have Loved: The Life of Judith Merril, Judith Merril and Emily Pohl-Weary

Best Dramatic Presentation: “Conversations With Dead People” (20th Century Fox Television/Mutant Enemy Inc.)Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form Category: The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (New Line Cinema)

Best Professional Editor: Gardner Dozois

Best Professional Artist: Bob Eggleton

Best Semiprozine: Locus edited by Charles N. Brown, Jennifer A. Hall, and Kirsten Gong-Wong

Best Fanzine: Mimosa edited by Rich and Nicki Lynch

Best Fan Writer: Dave Langford

Best Fan Artist: Sue Mason

On audio, Gaiman’s Coraline, read by the author, is available from Harper Audio and Swanwick’s “Slow Life” is included in Audible.com‘s The Best of Analog Science Fiction and Fact Magazine 2002.

Posted by Scott D. Danielson