Nebula Awards Showcase 2009 (Paperback)

~ (Editor)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Michael Chabon, Michael Moorcock, Karen Joy Fowler, and more: “The pulse of modern science fiction.”(New York Times Book Review)

This annual tradition from the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America collects the best of the year’s stories, as well as essays and commentary on the current state of the genre and predictions of future science fiction and fantasy films, art, and more.

This year’s award-winning authors include Michael Chabon, Karen Joy Fowler, Ted Chiang, and Nancy Kress, plus 2008 Grand Master Michael Moorcock.

About the Author

Ellen Datlow is a multi award-winning editor and anthologist, with a seventeen year stint at Omni magazine. She is co-editor of the annual Year’s Best Fantasy and Horror volumes.

Product Details

• Paperback: 448 pages
• Publisher: Roc Trade; Revised edition edition (April 7, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451462556
• ISBN-13: 978-0451462558
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 5.9 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #413,947 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in this category: (What's this?)

  #20 in

  Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Authors, A-Z > ( D ) > Datlow, Ellen

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Novellas and Short Stories From 2009, October 16, 2009

By	John M. Ford "johnDC" (near DC, MD USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This collection of offerings from the 2009 Nebula Awards speaks well of both the health of the genre and the judgment of the science fiction and fantasy writers who voted for them. The essays are interesting, but demonstrate by comparison the value of selecting good writing by the popular acclaim of other writers. The fiction is the real showcase of this collection. My three favorites use science fiction as a backdrop to tell compelling personal stories. The science fiction flavors human stories that would still be strong in traditional settings.

Lucius Shepard's novella "Stars Seen Through Stone" tells interwoven stories of characters in a small town's music business. The science fiction elements are necessary to the story, but take a back seat to changes, both strange and ordinary, in the lives of the characters.

Kij Johnson's awkwardly-titled novelette, "The Evolution of Trickster Stories Among the Dogs of North Park After the Change" evokes the same bemusement as Terry Bisson's "Bears Discover Fire." The protagonist plays an almost-anthropologist role as she observes gradual changes in relationships between dogs who are learning to talk and their owners.

The Nancy Kress novella "Fountain of Age" tells the life story of Max Feder, surrounded by his family, friends and associates. Like us, he would go to great lengths for someone he loves. Unlike us, he has great wealth and power at his disposal. This one is hands-down my favorite. I am grateful to Nancy for letting me spend part of an afternoon with Max.

The few that don't work so well are exceptions. The excerpt from Michael Chabon's novel "The Yiddish Policemen's Union" both intrigued and mildly irritated. I left it wanting to read the novel, not only because characters and setting piqued my interest, but to give it a more fair chance to please me as a reader than the except did. I originally assumed this to be an effect of the editorial hand, but received a gentle protest from the editor that this was not so. Perhaps it is the purpose of an excerpt to nag at our minds for closure in this way.

I am not much bothered by formatting issues, but readers who find these problems distracting are advised to purchase the paper rather than the Kindle version. The latter's block capital titles, inter-paragraph double-spacing, and intrusive reminders that an important editing event happened in the wee hours of "1/23/09" are annoying. It would be worth a second release to clean the copy up a bit.

The stories themselves are all very good and some are excellent. Reading them is worth your time.