This is topic Winners of the Hugo and Nebula in forum Open Discussions About Writing at Hatrack River Writers Workshop.


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Posted by Balthasar (Member # 5399) on :
 
As a corollary to the other thread I started--Do You Study Your Genre?--I thought I'd repost these lists. Again, how many of you have consciously made the effor to work your way through these novels?

Just wondering.

Hugo and Nebula Award Winners

Hugo Award Winners

Nebula Award Winners


[This message has been edited by Balthasar (edited June 14, 2004).]
 

Posted by EricJamesStone (Member # 1681) on :
 
Conscious effort? I've read one book from those lists because of trying to broaden my knowledge of the genre by reading award-winning novels. I tried to read another, and couldn't get past the first chapter. I've bought a third, but haven't started it yet.

However, that doesn't mean I've only read one of the books on the lists.

I've read 9 of the 17 on the dual list.

I've read 25 of the 52 on the Hugo list.

I've read 12 of the 40 on the Nebula list.
 

Posted by cvgurau (Member # 1345) on :
 
Harry Potter? Seriously? Huh.

CVG

PS--A reading list! Yes!
 

Posted by EricJamesStone (Member # 1681) on :
 
Remember the distinction between the Hugo award and the Nebula award.

The Hugo award is voted on by fans, while the Nebula is voted on by writers.
 

Posted by Doc Brown (Member # 1118) on :
 
I've read seven of them, six of which appear on the "both awards" list. I've also read the original Foundation Trilogy, which won a special Hugo and is not listed.

It's surprising that Ringworld won both awards but The Mote in God's Eye won neither. I love Niven's work, Ringworld was a disappointment. The Mote in God's Eye (co-written by Jerry Pournell) is vastly superior, both in its science and in its storytelling.

[This message has been edited by Doc Brown (edited June 14, 2004).]
 

Posted by Balthasar (Member # 5399) on :
 
Thanks, Eric, for distinguishing between the Hugo and Nebula. I wasn't aware of that.
 
Posted by EricJamesStone (Member # 1681) on :
 
> I've also read the original Foundation
> Trilogy, which won a special Hugo and is
> not listed.

The Mule, which is on the Hugo list, is part of the Foundation trilogy. (Specifically, it's part of the second volume, Foundation and Empire.)
 

Posted by EricJamesStone (Member # 1681) on :
 
Interesting thing I just found out: The 1946 Hugo for The Mule is actually a "Retro" Hugo, which was awarded in 1996. The 1951 Hugo for Farmer in the Sky is also a Retro Hugo, awarded in 1951. The Hugos themselves didn't begin until 1953.
 
Posted by Jules (Member # 1658) on :
 
Let me see. I'll look at these in chronological rather than reverse-chronological order, so as to get any that are in series in the right order

Of those that have won both, I have read:

* Dune by Frank Herbert - didn't know it had won the awards when I read it*
* Ringworld by Larry Niven - purchased because of the awards. Incidentally, am I the only one here who enjoyed it? Got to agree about 'mote', though, it is much better.
* Rendezvous with Rama - another didn't know
* The Fountains of Paradise - on my bookshelf, waiting for me to get to it. I would have bought it anyway (I tend to buy most Clarke books I see available 2nd hand), but has made its way up the list faster than it otherwise would have done
* Neuromancer - read it because of the awards; don't otherwise like the subgenre
* Ender's Game - read it because of the awards
* Speaker for the Dead - read it because of how much I enjoyed Ender's Game

Of the others:
* various Foundation stories - read because I read anything by Asimov whenever I can get my hands on it.
* Stranger in a Strange Land - read because of critical acclaim, not directly due to the awards, but probably related
* A Canticle for Leibowitz - read because the short story version was in an anthology I was reading

So, of the 75 (?) I have read 11, of which 5 were influenced by the awards, or general praise which probably is influenced indirectly by the awards.
 

Posted by Rahl22 (Member # 1411) on :
 
I bought and read American Gods because of the awards, and thought it was Lame (note capital "L"). I've shied away from lists since then. Now I'm concentrating on first novels from new authors. Kind of more telling, I think, for those of us trying to get into the field.
 
Posted by Silver6 (Member # 1415) on :
 

Eighteen on the hugo awards.
Ten on the nebula awards.
Six on both lists.
Ok, I'm not that good a reader...
 
Posted by Balthasar (Member # 5399) on :
 
I just put down AMERICAN GODS, around page 90, because the story just fizzled out for me. This hasn't kept me away from lists, however. As David Hartwell points out, unless your reading tastes are particularly catholic you probably won't enjoy all of the books on any list. But I do think its important to at least try all of these novels--espeically the most recent winners--since it's an easy way to trace the movement within the genre.

And I certainly agree with you, Rahl, reading first-time novels is a rather important endeavor to undertake. Doesn't both the Hugo and Nebula give awards to best first-time novels. If one were to read those--along with those that were nominated--you'd probably read between 8 and 10 of the most important first-time novels a year.

So much to read, so little time . . . .
 

Posted by Eric Sherman (Member # 2007) on :
 
Intresting, many of the books I've read fall under the both category. I guess i just have good taste.
 
Posted by Kathleen Dalton Woodbury (Member # 59) on :
 
Well, I tried AMERICAN GODS, too, and quit it fairly early in.

And I've read

13 on the both list

38 on the Hugo list

28 on the Nebula list

for whatever that may be worth.

I've also read many other books by many of these same authors.
 

Posted by rickfisher (Member # 1214) on :
 
The Big Time by Fritz Leiber won the Hugo in 1958.

I've read:
15 on the Both list,
37 on the Hugo list (39 counting the retros),
20 on the Nebula list.

Forever Peace is on the floor in my room. The Big Time is on a shelf. I haven't read either, though I started both, and can't say I had a good reason for stopping. Just got distracted.

In general, I find I'm more likely to like a Hugo winner than a Nebula winner, although at the same time I think the Hugos vary more widely. Probably because they're voted on by a constantly changing group of people (and in recent years, the number of voters has continued to drop). The Locus awards actually get a lot more voter input than the Hugos.
 

Posted by reid (Member # 1425) on :
 
Does anyone here subscribe to Locus? Should I?

Brian
 

Posted by rickfisher (Member # 1214) on :
 
If you want to keep up with the field, then yes, you should read either Locus or SF Chronicle. Subscribe or borrow, it doesn't matter. Locus has more in depth book reviews written by more people, SF Chronicle has more readable font and some other advantages. Locus is probably more complete. But if you're interested in publishing anything, you ought to find out who else is, and what agents are doing, and so forth. All that stuff is in those mags.
 


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