Nebula finalists 1983

Discussion:

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James Nicoll

2024-05-13 14:17:03 UTC

Another week, another round of Nebula finalists. This set is from the
1983 Nebula Awards, a year in which most people were blissfully unaware
how badly the Soviets misjudged Able Archer.

Which 1983 Nebula Finalist Novels Have You Read?

No Enemy But Time by Michael Bishop
Foundation's Edge by Isaac Asimov
Friday by Robert A. Heinlein
Helliconia Spring by Brian W. Aldiss
The Sword of the Lictor by Gene Wolfe
The Transmigration of Timothy Archer by Philip K. Dick

All but the PKD.

Which 1983 Nebula Finalist Novellas Have You Read?

Another Orphan by John Kessel
Horrible Imaginings by Fritz Leiber
Moon of Ice by Brad Linaweaver
Souls by Joanna Russ
Unsound Variations by George R. R. Martin

Only the Linaweaver (which I don't recommend unless you're really
desperate for Nazis Win WWII stories) and the Martin.

Which 1983 Nebula Finalist Novelettes Have You Read?

Fire Watch by Connie Willis
Burning Chrome by William Gibson
Myths of the Near Future by J. G. Ballard
Swarm by Bruce Sterling
The Mystery of the Young Gentleman by Joanna Russ
Understanding Human Behavior by Thomas M. Disch

All but the Ballard and the Disch.

Which 1983 Nebula Finalist Short Stories Have You Read?

A Letter from the Clearys by Connie Willis
Corridors by Barry N. Malzberg
God's Hooks! by Howard Waldrop
High Steel by Jack Dann and Jack C. Haldeman, II
Petra by Greg Bear
The Pope of the Chimps by Robert Silverberg

All but the Malzberg, unless fix-ups don't count in which case
technically I didn't read High Steel either. My understanding is
that the short story was an extract from the then unpublished
novel.

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Garrett Wollman

2024-05-13 15:44:58 UTC

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Post by James Nicoll
Which 1983 Nebula Finalist Novels Have You Read?
No Enemy But Time by Michael Bishop
Foundation's Edge by Isaac Asimov
Friday by Robert A. Heinlein
Helliconia Spring by Brian W. Aldiss
The Sword of the Lictor by Gene Wolfe
The Transmigration of Timothy Archer by Philip K. Dick

I read the Asimov and the Heinlein when they were relatively new. The
MMPB of FRIDAY (you know, the one with That Cover) I purchased from my
school book fair (!) and FOUNDATION'S EDGE I borrowed from the public
library. I was at that age where I was vacuuming up all of the Asimov
stuff I could find in the library, whereas FRIDAY was the first
Heinlein I read.

I think FOUNDATION'S EDGE is largely recognized as the turning point
for Late Asimov. He recounted the story elsewhere of being basically
bribed by his Doubleday editor to write it, thirty years after the
last Foundation stories were published, at a time when he wasn't
particularly interested in or invested in that setting. Doubleday
offered him an order-of-magnitude larger advance than was customary,
and without the editorial constraints of serialization he began to
turn out doorstops (including the following year's THE ROBOTS OF DAWN,
another return to an old setting).

-GAWollman

--
Garrett A. Wollman | "Act to avoid constraining the future; if you can,
***@bimajority.org| act to remove constraint from the future. This is
Opinions not shared by| a thing you can do, are able to do, to do together."
my employers. | - Graydon Saunders, _A Succession of Bad Days_ (2015)

Robert Woodward

2024-05-13 17:00:54 UTC

Permalink

Post by James Nicoll
Another week, another round of Nebula finalists. This set is from the
1983 Nebula Awards, a year in which most people were blissfully unaware
how badly the Soviets misjudged Able Archer.
Which 1983 Nebula Finalist Novels Have You Read?
No Enemy But Time by Michael Bishop
Foundation's Edge by Isaac Asimov
Friday by Robert A. Heinlein
Helliconia Spring by Brian W. Aldiss
The Sword of the Lictor by Gene Wolfe
The Transmigration of Timothy Archer by Philip K. Dick
All but the PKD.

Asimov, Heinlein, and Wolfe

Post by James Nicoll
Which 1983 Nebula Finalist Novellas Have You Read?
Another Orphan by John Kessel
Horrible Imaginings by Fritz Leiber
Moon of Ice by Brad Linaweaver
Souls by Joanna Russ
Unsound Variations by George R. R. Martin
Only the Linaweaver (which I don't recommend unless you're really
desperate for Nazis Win WWII stories) and the Martin.

Same for me, I think (though I will point out that Linaweaver had Nazi
victory to be a very ugly thing - BTW, Willy Ley had an article
published in the May 1947 issue of ASF, "Pseuoscience in NaziLand", that
mentioned one crazy who claimed the Moon was covered with ice).

Post by James Nicoll
Which 1983 Nebula Finalist Novelettes Have You Read?
Fire Watch by Connie Willis
Burning Chrome by William Gibson
Myths of the Near Future by J. G. Ballard
Swarm by Bruce Sterling
The Mystery of the Young Gentleman by Joanna Russ
Understanding Human Behavior by Thomas M. Disch
All but the Ballard and the Disch.

IIRC, none (the first year of many in the last 4 decades)

None?

--
"We have advanced to new and surprising levels of bafflement."
Imperial Auditor Miles Vorkosigan describes progress in _Komarr_.
-----------------------------------------------------
Robert Woodward ***@drizzle.com

Chris Buckley

2024-05-13 18:04:30 UTC

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All. Only the Wolfe is a Favorite (and that because of the rest of the series).
_Friday_ was good. The only poor novel (IMO) was the Aldiss; off the top
of my head, I can't think of any Aldiss books I like.

None. I thought I had read the Kessel, but that must have been when I stopped
buying the Tor doubles and I just remember the title.

Just the Gibson.

Post by James Nicoll
Which 1983 Nebula Finalist Short Stories Have You Read?
A Letter from the Clearys by Connie Willis
Corridors by Barry N. Malzberg
God's Hooks! by Howard Waldrop
High Steel by Jack Dann and Jack C. Haldeman, II
Petra by Greg Bear
The Pope of the Chimps by Robert Silverberg
All but the Malzberg, unless fix-ups don't count in which case
technically I didn't read High Steel either. My understanding is
that the short story was an extract from the then unpublished
novel.

Again, none.

Chris

William Hyde

2024-05-13 20:01:06 UTC

Permalink

All but the Bishop, and I really should rectify that.

The PKD is for PKD fans only.

On the whole, a strong year.

The Martin, of course, but also the Leiber.

Only the first three. I cannot recall where I read the Ballard, some UK
anthology, I suspect.

None, alas.

William Hyde

Michael F. Stemper

2024-05-14 00:33:41 UTC

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I bounced hard off of the Aldiss, and struggled through the Wolfe.
On the other hand, I've read the Asimov and the Heinlein repeatedly,
but only picked them up several years after their issue.

--
Michael F. Stemper
Economists have correctly predicted seven of the last three recessions.

Tony Nance

2024-05-18 10:28:33 UTC

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Post by Michael F. Stemper

I bounced hard off of the Aldiss,

Me too - on three different occasions. I haven't tried again in a long
time, but I'm not exactly super eager to do so, either.

Tony

William Hyde

2024-05-18 22:35:30 UTC

Permalink

Post by Tony Nance

Post by Michael F. Stemper

I bounced hard off of the Aldiss,

Me too - on three different occasions. I haven't tried again in a long
time, but I'm not exactly super eager to do so, either.

Alas, I cannot say "just persist and you'll like it" as the series is
largely consistent in tone throughout the first two volumes. As the
world gets warmer, populations rise, and empires form the subject matter
of course alters, but I can't say whether that would be enough to get
you interested.

I've read the series four times, liking it more each time, especially as
on the last occasion I skipped the italicized parts of book three,
which don't really work for me. The third volume is darker (winter is
coming, after all)and slimmer.

Though it is very definitely Aldiss, it is different in tone from most
of his other work, except "The Malacia Tapestry" which has some of the
same feel.

William Hyde

Tony Nance

2024-05-21 18:41:58 UTC

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Post by William Hyde

Post by Tony Nance

Post by Michael F. Stemper

I bounced hard off of the Aldiss,

Me too - on three different occasions. I haven't tried again in a long
time, but I'm not exactly super eager to do so, either.

Alas, I cannot say "just persist and you'll like it" as the series is
largely consistent in tone throughout the first two volumes. As the
world gets warmer, populations rise, and empires form the subject matter
of course alters, but I can't say whether that would be enough to get
you interested.
I've read the series four times, liking it more each time, especially as
on the last occasion I skipped the italicized parts of book three,
which don't really work for me. The third volume is darker (winter is
coming, after all)and slimmer.
Though it is very definitely Aldiss, it is different in tone from most
of his other work, except "The Malacia Tapestry" which has some of the
same feel.

Sounds good - thanks. Although I've been somewhat judicious about which
Aldiss I've read, I've read several and this is the only one I haven't
finished (so far?). It has been at least 15-20 years since I tried it -
maybe some day?

Tony