Nebula Awards Showcase 2001: The Year's Best SF and Fantasy Chosen by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (Hardcover)

~ Robert Silverberg (Editor)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Celebrating its 35th year with Showcase 2001, the Nebula Awards anthology series once again offers a fine snapshot of the world of science fiction. Edited by former Nebula Award winner Robert Silverberg, the anthology mixes stories, excerpts, and poetry with essays from speculative fiction notables. Silverberg introduces the collection with a hazy nonexplanation of why works from both 1998 and 1999 are considered for the 1999 Nebula Awards, along with the story of Damon Knight, how SFWA began, and what happened during that first Nebula banquet.

Of course, the reason for the anthology is the winning stories, and they are on display with nice introductions from Silverberg and a bit from each writer on how the story came to be. Featured stories include Ted Chiang's "Story of Your Life" (best novella), Mary A. Turzillo's "Mars Is No Place for Children" (best novelette), Leslie What's "The Cost of Doing Business" (best short story), and an excerpt from Octavia E. Butler's Parable of the Talents (best novel). Other stories include two nominees, David Marusek's "The Wedding Album" and Michael Swanwick's "Radiant Doors," as well as 2000 Grand Master Brain W. Aldiss's 1958 story "Judas Danced."

The most notable essay in the Nebula Showcase comes from Gary K. Wolfe, who examines the field of science fiction and publishing from several different angles, although Wolfe's take on SF movies seems to be thrown in as an afterthought. Winding up the anthology is a thoughtful and enlightening excerpt from Author Emeritus 2000 Daniel Keyes's memoir, Algernon, Charlie, and I: A Writer's Journey, which is about how he wrote Flowers for Algernon, and poetry from Rhysling Award Winners Bruce Boston and Laurel Winter.

For anyone serious about science fiction, the Nebula Awards Showcase 2001 provides an invaluable look at how the professionals view their field. --Kathie Huddleston

From Library Journal

Presented annually by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA), the Nebula Awards highlight the year's best contributions to the genre. Selections include Ted Chiang's novella Story of Your Life, Mary A. Turzillo's novelette "Mars Is No Place for Children," an excerpt from Octavia Butler's novel Parable of the Talents, and other award-winning stories as well as essays on the state of the genre and an appendix of past winners of the Nebula Awards. A good addition to most libraries' sf collections.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Harcourt (April 26, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0151005818
• ISBN-13: 978-0151005819
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #3,099,891 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Collection of Short Fiction, April 5, 2001

By	John C. Snider (Atlanta, GA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Nebula Awards Showcase 2001: The Year's Best SF and Fantasy Chosen by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (Paperback)

Celebrating their 35th anniversary, the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) collect the final award-winning short fiction of the old millennium in Nebula Awards Showcase 2001, edited by SF legend Robert Silverberg. This volume gathers together the winning short story, novella, and novellette - plus selected runners-up and non-fiction commentaries. Highlights include:

"Story of Your Life" by Ted Chiang (Best Novella), in which a woman learns to break away from her time-constrained thinking while deciphering the language of visiting aliens.

"Mars is No Place for Children" by Mary A. Turzillo (Best Novellette), the heart-rending tale of a young girl growing up on Mars, where the ever-present solar radiation is tragically lethal to kids.

"The Cost of Doing Business" by Leslie What (Best Short Story), telling of a future where "surrogates" agree to act as stand-ins, enduring whatever unpleasantness their wealthy employers wish to avoid.

Two excellent runners-up are included: David Marusek's "The Wedding Album," a story told from the point of view of holographic simulacrums who experience a virtual revolt against their flesh-and-blood progenitors; and Michael Swanwick's "Radiant Doors," set in a huge refugee camp which exists as the result of a time-war.

The anthology also includes the epilogue from Octavia E. Butler's Nebula-winning novel Parable of the Talents, an early short story from Brian W. Aldiss (who was proclaimed a Grand Master last year), and an excerpt from Daniel Keyes's Charlie, Algernon and I, his non-fiction account of how the much-celebrated novella Flowers for Algernon came to be.

The fiction in this collection is truly first-class (as one would expect). Some of the non-fiction, with the exception of Keyes's entry, is of little interest to anyone but SFWA insiders and hardcore followers.

All in all, this is an excellent continuation of the fine tradition of the Nebula Awards.

4.0 out of 5 stars Not Free SF Reader, May 27, 2009

By	Blue Tyson "- http://freesf.blogspot.com" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Nebula Awards Showcase 2001: The Year's Best SF and Fantasy Chosen by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (Paperback)

There's a year in SF etc. roundup, pieces from Daniel Keyes, a list of previous winners and current winners, and a little more. Story from the grandmaster is rubbish, though. Pretty poor at those these anthologies, it seems.

Standout work from Ted Chiang and Michael Swanwick, though.

A 3.57 average, with the added material, enough to make this a 4.

Nebula Awards Showcase 2001 : Story of Your Life - Ted Chiang
Nebula Awards Showcase 2001 : Mars Is No Place for Children - Mary A. Turzillo
Nebula Awards Showcase 2001 : The Cost of Doing Business - Leslie What
Nebula Awards Showcase 2001 : Epilogue from Parable of the Talents - Octavia E. Butler
Nebula Awards Showcase 2001 : The Wedding Album - David Marusek
Nebula Awards Showcase 2001 : Radiant Doors - Michael Swanwick
Nebula Awards Showcase 2001 : Judas Danced - Brian W. Aldiss


Predicting language.

4.5 out of 5


Sick girl trouble fraternal correspondence dowsing sojourn.

3.5 out of 5


Professional victim.

4 out of 5


'She never stopped working. For Earthseed, she used herself up several times over, speaking, haining, politicking, writing, establishing schools that boarded and educated promising students, rich and poor alike. She raised money and directed it into areas of study that she believed would bring fulfillment of the Earthseed Destiny closer. She sent students to universities and helped ihem to fulfill whatever potential she saw in them.'

3 out of 5


If you think the only intelligent conversation you can get is talking to yourself, Sim Polis is the place for you.

3 out of 5


Future Ownership fightback.

4.5 out of 5


Caesar Cheezer.

2.5 out of 5

3 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Nothing but doom and gloom, April 15, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Nebula Awards Showcase 2001: The Year's Best SF and Fantasy Chosen by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (Paperback)

I remember earlier sci fi collections having stories with a variety of outcomes; positive and negative. There's nothing uplifting in this collection. Makes me wonder if the the writers and the judges are all a bunch of depressed souls. Unless you're looking for that last book to read before you off yourself, I'd skip this one.