Hugo Nominations 2009

Mar 21, 2009 by donny

The Hugo Nominations are now out!  Here’s are the nominees for Best Novel:

• Anathem by Neal Stephenson (Morrow; Atlantic UK)
• The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (HarperCollins; Bloomsbury UK)
• Little Brother by Cory Doctorow (Tor Teen; HarperVoyager UK) – you can also download this book for free here (it’s made available for free by Doctorow himself; all his books are freely available for download)
• Saturn’s Children by Charles Stross (Ace; Orbit UK)
• Zoe’s Tale by John Scalzi (Tor)

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Scalzi speaks!

Mar 19, 2009 by donny

Want to hear what an author sounds like?  Sure you do, but unfortunately I only have John Scalzi’s, and only for 12 minutes.  John Scalzi is best known for his Hugo Award-nominated science fiction novel Old Man’s War, and have written many scifi and non-fiction books.  He’s one of my recent favourites, having just finished the last book set in the Old Man’s War universe, the Last Colony.

Recently he got to recording his responses to the questions his fans have asked him via Twitter (you know, the most recent Web 2.0 tech buzzword that has people all over traditional media all a-twitter). 

Go check that out which is posted in his blog here.

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Bookbabble Episode 26: Remember the time you read…?

Feb 14, 2009 by donny

Bookbabble Episode 26: Remember the time you read…?
Recorded 15 Feb 2009

Babblers: Bjorn, Gem, Renee, Donny

Synopsis:
After a 2 month break, the babblers are back, joined by Renee once again as they catch up on the recent happenings in the book scene.  But first up, the babblers talk about whether they remember the countless books that they have read, whether that’s important in the first place, and what some of us do to make the books stay with us as we journey on in our reading life.  Also, the effects of the current economic climate on readers, Updike’s passing, feedback on Stephen King’s assessment of Stephenie Meyer’s writing, why you shouldn’t be reading Nora Roberts and Bjorn does a funny limerick.

Show Length: 77:52 mins

Links:

• Finnegan’s Wake – James Joyce
• Short Stories of Honore de Balzac – Honore de Balzac
• The Diary of a Nobody – George Grossmith
• The Sorrows of an American: A Novel – Siri Hustvedt
• Imaginary Maps – Mahasweta Devi
• Naked – David Sedaris
• The Last Colony – John Scalzi

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