Hugo and Nebula Readership Podcast

In this episode, the two sisters tackle the nebula award winner from 1972 - A Time of Changes by Robert Silverberg. Our man, a regular World con attendee, and prolific writer created a science fiction piece, and to us - almost a fantasy, while undertaking a personal writing challenge - to create a story without using the word “I”. So did this idea work? We definitely had our own opinions. Here are some time markers to help guide you: 01:42 Book Jacket read (We say the names) 03:57 History Lesson 08:22 Tackling the Big Themes: Struggle bus time 11:31 The concept of writing without using “I” 12:13 Segway into Mindsharing 15:46 The New Wave style of writing 17:42 World Building, but it somehow fades to the background 20:54 Discussion of Bond Brothers/Sisters 24:30 Chosen one vs. the sidekick 25:40 We Segway again - this time into sex and character development 31:25 Earthman = Drug Dealer 33:26 Four questions

In this episode of the Hugo and Nebula Readership Podcast the two sisters are reading To Your Scattered Bodies Go or Riverworld by Philip Jose Farmer. It won the Hugo in 1972. The reason for the double name is that the first book - To your scattered bodies go - is now rarely published by itself but can be more easily found with its series under the series name - Riverworld. In this novel filled with historical characters, we ultimately were awash with questions. Listen and find out why. Here are some time markers for you: 01:24 Book jacket read 03:50 History lesson 10:39 Big Themes 13:10 Other peoples’ reviews - did that help us? 18:44 Protagonist and friends 23:40 Storyline and pacing and world-building, oh my 26:15 Adaptations and games 29:00 Suicide express and characters 31:20 Action writer, pulp writer 34:50 Women Characters - well, it’s a thing 43:40 Four Questions

In this Episode of the Hugo and Nebula Readership Podcast, the two sisters tackle Ringworld by Larry Niven. The book won the Nebula in 1970 and the Hugo in 1971. While highly praised by the SF world it was a bit of a struggle bus for us both. Listen in and find out why. In a skipping mood? Here are some time markers to assist you: 01:15 Book jacket read but we have no book jacket 02:50 History Lesson 06:15 Tackling the Big themes 10:20 Big Science or Plot driven characters - can’t we have both? 18:24 Throwback tropes 20:24 Characters 30:00 Why Alice launches the book across the room 35:40 Other reviews of the book 38:14 The Four Questions

Welcome to the Hugo and Nebula Readership Podcast where two sisters are reading their way through the Hugo and Nebula awarding novels in order. This episode is the highly anticipated Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula Le Guin which won both the Hugo and the Nebula in 1970. It was a big hit with both sisters; we’re singing praises in this rather short episode Would you like to jump around and hit the high points? Here are the time markers to do just that: 01:32 Book Jacket Read 03:13 History Lesson 08:30 Big Themes - Love and Gender 13:14 Pronouns and Gender 17:19 Genly’s perspective and Gender 22:22 Characters and storyline 34:40 Amazing world building 40:00 Four Questions

Sisters Alice and Ann have read all of the novels that won either a Hugo award, a Nebula award, or both in the 1960s. In this episode, they look back on the experience and discuss how they think their readership is progressing. Want to skip to a specific topic? Here are some time stamps to help guide you: 01:10 Lost Episodes - Starship Troopers, Canticle for Lebowitz and Case for Conscience 04:00 We rank our favorites 10:18 Impactful vs. Enjoyable books 12:16 History Lessons 13:16 Myths and Legends 15:19 Women in the 60s 18:10 Aliens in the 60s 19:25 How are we doing with our manifesto and goals? 22:50 New Ideas, new friends 29:24 Looking forward to the 70s

Welcome to the Hugo and Nebula readership podcast where two sisters are reading their way through all - all, I say - the books in chronological order. This episode covers Rite of passage by Alexei Panshin which won the Hugo in 1969. This book is a great example of how two persons never read the same book. Here are some time markers to guide you through the episode 01:02 Book jacket read 02:29 History Lesson 04:39 A Heinlein moment 06:44 Open discussion: another Heinlein moment 10:38 Mia: protagonist, flawed and likable 17:00 Jimmy the boyfriend 20:09 Stories within stories 22:33 The writing and we go back and do a plot summary 26:26 Predetermined endings 29:16 More characters 35:25 The trial 39:59 Four questions 43:31 Side trip: male writers of female characters and visa versa

We're not quite hip enough for hip crime vocab, are you? On this episode of the Hugo and Nebula Readership podcast, the two sisters are reading the groundbreaking dystopia Stand on Zanzibar by John Brunner - it won the Hugo for 1969. Give us a listen. Want to skip a bit or jump to your favorite part? Here are the time markers for this episode: 01:51 Book’s Blurb which has no plot synopsis... 02:48 so we attempt one ourselves 05:40 History Lesson 12:26 General discussion and big theme 17:28 Dystopias and all that 23:50 Donald and/or Norman? 28:02 Chad C. Mulligan and the HipCrime Vocab 29:32 The Shiggies 31:57 … and we circle back to Chad C. Mulligan 34:40 John Brunner and the future 37:50 The Begi stories 41:20 Five Questions Music by Carl Miles

This is the podcast where two sisters are reading their way through the Hugo and Nebula awarding novels in order. La, Lo or Le? In this episode, we discuss The Einstein Intersection by Samuel R. Delany. The Einstein Intersection won the Nebula for 1968. This tale of aliens and tangled human mythology was a challenging read for the two sisters who ultimately found the main character, Lobey, to be the best part. Want to skip a bit or jump to your favorite part? Here are the time markers for this episode: 01:55 Book Jacket Read 05:45 History Lesson 09:01 Big Themes: Deep thinking about otherness 12:00 La, Lo or Le: what does it all mean - a summary of sorts 19:43 Kage: fancy pronunciation rules 23:53 Chapter intros: Why, why, why 28:53 Kid Death and the battle at the end 35:33 Opulent parties (and the Dove) 37:54 Ambiguous ending 40:32 Four Questions Music by Carl Miles

Who is Sam? This is the podcast where two sisters are reading their way through the Hugo and Nebula awarding novels in order. In this episode, they discuss The Lord of Light by Roger Zelazny which won the Hugo award for 1968. The general theme for the discussion will be us questioning everything we think we read in the book. Want to skip a bit or jump to your favorite part? Here are the time markers for this episode: 01:44 Book’s Blurb 04:03 History Lesson 08:47 Big Questions: so many questions 12:54 The Characters: who has what name when 19:00 General confusion: which last a while 25:13 The battles: loops and reincarnations 28:52 Feminist Rant 34:52 Religion: Mix and match parables and accelerationism 42:50 Hellwell 44:00 The Ending: more confusion and potty jokes and murder mysteries 54:24 Four questions Music by Carl Miles

Would you choose to be supersmart? This podcast episode is all about the seminal Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes. If you are of a certain age you undoubtedly had it as required reading. The two sisters cast their minds back and struggle to remember when they actually read the book but are fairly certain they had previously read it in some form or other. The book tied with Babel-17 by Delany for the 1967 Nebula. Want to skip a bit or jump to your favorite part? Here are the time markers for this episode: 01:45 History Lesson 04:15 Okay, did we or didn’t we? 06:14 General Discussion, starting off with the usual - what’s the big theme 10:06 Would you choose to be supersmart? 15:33 We continue our ongoing discussion of the presentation of women characters in Science Fiction in the late 20th century. (We do cover other characters too, to be fair) 23:00 Algernon the foreshadowing mouse 30:07 More character discussion, just to make sure we cover everyone. We’ll get there. 40:55 Four Questions and what did you love about reading this book? Music by Carl Miles

This episode of the podcast covers Samuel R. Delany's Babel-17. A new author for both sisters, Delany’s 1967 Nebula winner was a record-breaker in many ways, have a listen to learn more. Want to skip a bit or jump to your favorite part? Here are the time markers for this episode: 02:04 Book’s blurb 03:13 History lesson 07:47 General discussion of themes working through the plot 31:29 More major themes discussion 38:07 Transport world and Dan 43:24 Our first female protagonist 48:12 Lit Crit hats on 52:44 Space operas 55:52 Could it be a movie? 59:36 Four questions and the best part Music by Carl Miles

In this episode of the podcast, the two sisters discuss the Moon is a Harsh Mistress, the final Hugo Award for Science Fiction Grand Master Robert A. Heinlein. Written in 1966, this is probably one of his more well-known novels for adults, but how did it compare in our opinion? Have a listen. Want to skip a bit or jump to your favorite part? Here are the time markers for this episode: 01:29 Book jacket read 03:16 History lesson 06:45 General discussion: big ideas, main ideas, all that jazz 12:28 Worldbuilding 15:28 We love Mike 23:48 The wise old man 29:31 Wyoh and the Heinleinein archetype 37:25 Line marriages 46:10 Mort the Wart and the second part of the book 53:29 Four Questions and a happy ending Music by Carl Miles

This episode finds the sisters reading ..And Call Me Conrad (also known as This Immortal) by Roger Zelazny. It tied with Dune for the 1966 Hugo. A SF/Mystery/Spy/Classical Mythology story packed with (un)forgettable characters that we have a great time discussing. But did we like the book? Have a listen and find out. Want to skip a bit or jump to your favorite part? Here are the time markers for this episode: 01:50 Book’s Blurb - Actually the inside of the front cover, if you’d like to be technical 04:45 History Lesson 08:27 General Discussion: We tackle the big theme first and give it up quickly 16:00 The “New Wave” writers 20:45 The Character breakdown 39:20 Four Questions 45:35 What’s our favorite thing Music by Carl Miles

In this episode, the two sisters discuss the iconic Dune by Frank Herbert. It won both the Hugo and the Nebula in 1966. Yes, it is the First Nebula award ever given out and both of us agree with the awards committees on this one; Dune is a damn fine book. Want to skip a bit or jump to your favorite part? Here are the time markers for this episode: 01:53 Book Blurb, but not really from the book 03:03 History Lesson 05:43 General Discussion: We start with the big themes 11:27 Worldbuilding 18:32 Side discussion: World religions 19:45 The Ecology of Dune 23:25 Female Power 29:27 The mix of technology and fantasy elements 34:42 Character Breakdown 40:03 Four Questions - our new format Music by Carl Miles

In this rather short episode, the two sisters discuss The Wanderer by Fritz Leiber. Not only did technical problems bring us to an early finish, neither of us could honestly say we liked the book very much. Take a listen to find out why. Want to skip a bit or jump to your favorite part? Here are the time markers for this episode: 01:12 Book Jacket 03:06 History Lesson 05:36 General Discussion: How many story lines can you handle? 10:48 Ann attempts to explain the character breakdown and outline the book 18:13 The Ending - such as it is 20:50 Five Questions 24:45 Background of the upcoming Nebula Awards Music by Carl Miles

This episode the two sisters, Alice and Ann, read Waystation AKA Here Gather the Stars by Clifford D. Simak. The book won the Hugo in 1964 and even though Simak was a new author to both sisters he was a hit. Listen to here about why both sisters enjoyed the read. Want to skip a bit or jump to your favorite part? Here are the time markers for this episode: 01:49 We tweak the podcast format and read the book’s blurb 04:00 The History Lesson 09:27 General Discussion 15:07 The Way Station method of space travel 18:06 Aliens, so many aliens! 20:50 Simak predicts the future 23:38 Simak as a writer and his characters 35:08 Religious discourse and the sisters are a bit confused 43:06 The most confusing characters of the book (lots of confusion here) 49:37 Five Questions Music by Carl Miles

This time the sisters, Ann and Alice, podcast about the Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick now a TV series of the same name on Amazon Prime. Are they the same? Give us a listen and find out. Want to skip a bit or jump to your favorite part? Here are the time markers for this episode: 01:11 History Lesson 08:35 Book’s Blurb 10:09 General Discussion: and we start off with the lessons learned and big ideas 13:21 Alice attempts a better plot summary 18:32 We tackle the book within a book puzzle 24:23 The Mysteries of the I Ching 30:21 The Asian Culture in the book 34:35 Plotting oddities and the character discussion 43:47 The Man in the High Castle v. The Man in the High Castle 46:06 Five Questions 32:35 A most positive ending Music by Carl Miles

In this podcast, the sisters tackle the iconic Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert A. Heinlein. Much discussed by sister Alice in other book groups it is not a fan favorite of either sister but in the end, it has much to offer the serious SF reader. Want to skip a bit or jump to your favorite part? Here are the time markers for this episode: 01:12 History Lesson 09:19 Book’s Blurb 10:08 General Discussion 17:41 A little bit of family history 20:04 Heinlein as a writer 22:55 The Characters 33:54 Twenty-First Century goggles 40:15 Ann cannot pronounce Deus Ex Machina 41:10 Five Questions Music by Carl Miles

The Baker sisters have made it through all the books that have won retro hugos or regular hugos through 1959. They take a break from regular episodes to reflect on their experience of the books of that decade and to check on how they are doing with their goals both on a project and personal level. Time codes: 03:12 Ann provide a synopsis of the failed The Big Time recording 07:27 Order of favorite books 08:27 Top four books discussed 17:12 Manifesto review 21:21 Personal goal review 23:15 Looking forward to the 1960s 29:56 Vocabulary 31:10 Summary review of the era

This is the 8th podcast for the two Baker sisters as they read through the Hugo award winning novels. This time they are reading Heinlein's first official win (not a retro win) Double Star which was first published in 1956. Both sisters enjoyed the novel and did a double take on Heinlein. Ha! You see what I did there? Want to skip a bit or jump to your favorite part? Here are the time markers for this episode: 01:22 History Lesson 03:50 General Discussion 07:20 Alice Reads the Book’s Blurb 08:15 Alice discusses the lessons learned 12:31 Ann and the aliens 21:32 We segue into actors and acting stuff: 27:01 Alice and the Farley File 29:29 We discuss Penny 33:00 Alice reviews the other characters 37:33 Five Questions Music by Carl Miles