News, Reviews, and Commentary on all forms of science fiction, fantasy, and horror audio. Audiobooks, audio drama, podcasts; we discuss all of it here. Mystery, crime, and noir audio are also fair game.
The Words At Large podcast has an episode they are calling “Science And Science Fiction” this week. It features interviews with Daniel H. Wilson, Dava Sobel.
Download the |MP3| direct, or subscribe to the podcast:
http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/wordsatlarge.xml
And of course, Apocalypse Al must be freed!
Audible.com has posted a new FREE audio interview/conversation between audiobook narrator Stefan Rudnicki and SF authors Orson Scott Card and Ben Bova. The talk is predominately about the role and value of audiobooks in the greater reading environment. Also covered is Card’s love of audiobooks (he’s a big big fan), Bova’s role in the creation of the Ender franchise and place of religion is science and Science Fiction. You can get the audio for it right HERE (but of course you’ll need to have an audible account).
Audible also tells us that: “Bova’s new book, The Aftermath (Book Four of The Asteroid Wars), is now available in audio at Audible.” That’s one of the many titles produced by Rudnicki for Audio Renaissance. OSC’s next “Ender” novel, A War of Gifts, will be released through Audio Renaissance and Audble October 30th 2007.
Garret P. Serviss‘ first audiobook has just been posted to LibriVox. Serviss was a popularizer of astronomy and late 19th and early 20th century SF author. His writing is stiff and strangely formal. Still, you may find yourself reminded of Heinlein here and there while listening. The audiobook, completely narrated by the admirable Betsie Bush is 100% free and available for download by several methods. Get a Zipped Folder full of MP3s, each chapter singly in MP3 or OGG Vorbis formats or grab the podcast version.
The Moon Metal
By Garret P. Serviss; Read by Betsie Bush
14 zipped MP3 Files or podcast – 2 Hours 38 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: LibriVox.org
Published: July 31st 2007
The discovery of a vast quantity of gold in Antarctica undermines the world’s economy. This leads to a need for a new precious metal standard – – enter a mysterious scientist, his proposal, and new invention.
You can get the entire novel in podcast form, via this handy url:
http://librivox.org/bookfeeds/moon-metal-by-garrett-p-serviss.xml
This may be a first, at least for a relatively modern Science Fiction novel – there are now TWO unabridged single voiced narrations of Andre Norton’s public domain novel Star Hunter. Both are available for free download. The first one, which we told you about earlier this year was read and archived by Maureen O’Brien of the Maria Lectrix Podcast. That version is available through the Internet Archive. Now, LibriVox narrator Leonie Rose has completed a second version, available for download in a zipped bundle or by podcast feed. And here it is…
Star Hunter
By Andre Norton; Read by Leonie Rose
13 Zipped MP3 Files or Podcast – 3 Hours 33 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: LibriVox.org
Published: Aug. 5th 2007
Somewhere on the jungle world of Jumala hid a man whose mind had been reconditioned with another’s brain pattern. There was a fabulous reward out for him. And so began another-worldly game of hide and seek. Between a man who did not know his own powers and an interstellar safari that sought something no man had a right to find.
You can subscribe to the podcast for this novel with this feed:
http://librivox.org/bookfeeds/star-hunter-by-andre-norton.xml
Now the big question – which version is the better narrated?
Mister Ron thinks we all might enjoy checking out episode number 803 of his podcast, Mister Ron’s Basement — featured is a six minute story called Looking Backward On The Home — In the Year 3000 A.D. by Thomas L. Masson. The tale comes from Masson’s 1921 book titled, Well, Why Not? Ron sez:
“It’s pretty clever and has a laugh or two in it. I can well imagine people in the year 3000 discussing ‘flivvers’ and ‘things called trees.'”
Go have a listen, plug this podcast feed to hear the show:
http://slapcast.com/rss/revry/index.xml
Masters Of Science Fiction aired its first episode last night on ABC stations in the USA. We’ve got all the audio dope on this video program…
HERE‘s an audio recording from NPR and TV critic David Bianculli talking about the show. What makes this series so intriguing is that it is using actual Science Fiction stories (GASP!) for its episodes…
The first tale was based on John Kessel’s A Clean Escape (which was previously adapted into a Seeing Ear Theatre Original Playhouse audio drama (no longer available online). Hardcopies of this audio drama can be found in an out of print collection, available on ABEBooks.com (and one is currently on on ebay.com):
Seeing Ear Theater, Volume 1
By Terry Bisson, Brian Smith, James Patrick Kelly, Allen Steele, John Kessel and Gregory Benford
FULL CAST PRODUCTIONS with introductions by Harlan Ellison
2 Cassettes – Approx 3 hrs. [UNABRIDGED DRAMATIZATIONS]
ISBN: 0787118133
Date Published 1998
Published by Dove Audio
Stories Included:
THREE ODD COMEDIES by Terry Bisson
“They’re Made Out of Meat”
“The Toxic Donut”
“Next”
Into The Sun by Brian Smith
Think Like a Dinosaur by James Patrick Kelly
The Death of Captain Future by Allen Steele
A Clean Escape by John Kessel
The Bigger One by Gregory Benford
Also, BuddyTV.com has an |MP3| interview with Sam Waterson about his role in the Masters Of SF first episode A Clean Escape (and irreverently about his role on Law and Order).
More, WUNC in North Carolina has a terrific radio interview |MP3| with Kessel about the adaptation of his short story A Clean Escape to TV.