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Hugo nominees: Best Short Story
1. "The Paper Menagerie" by Ken Liu
I hate magical realism, and I'd already read this story once before, but I still choked up when I re-read it today. It's not fun to read something so relentlessly, senselessly painful-- but it has stayed with me. It's beautiful. And the Hugo is for fantasy, too.
2. "The Cartographer Wasps and the Anarchist Bees" by E. Lily Yu
I'm not sure yet how I feel about this one. The world is almost unbelievably inventive, and incredibly compelling. And we get a few hints of characters, and something of a narrative arc-- but less than I usually prefer. And yet, I don't think they were trying to convey a singular narrative. I definitely like it! I just think I'll have to mull it over for a while. Which is a good thing, really.
3. "Movement" by Nancy Fulda
Beautiful, with a neatly-executed story arc. Despite its seeming meandering, it really does have a laser focus, something I appreciate in a story-- it's hard to keep everything so unified. But it almost might have wrapped up too neatly; as fascinating as it was to visit this world, I'm not sure it will stay with me the way others have. Still. Impeccably executed.
4. No Award
"Shadow War of the Night Dragons: Book One: The Dead City: Prologue" by John Scalzi
I read this, and loved it, when it first came out. I've read this, and loved it, several times since then. It makes me laugh every time! It does take skill to write funny stories, and also to write "bad" stories in a way that isn't actually bad. But, when I'm not reading it, I'm not thinking about it. Just not quite Hugo material.
"The Homecoming" by Mike Resnick
It's a great concept, and one that ought to have resonated deeply with me, what with the whole my-parents-hate-my-physical-transformation thing, but somehow it just didn't have the emotion. The fighting dragged on repetitively, which is accurate to how these fights always go, except that they also degenerate as each person is in more pain. The ending was believable but somehow unearned; every little detail we get about the father is about how he prefers to be surrounded by things that are exactly as they've always been. He doesn't do minor household repairs because he prefers the familiar reminders. I'm not sure exotic wonder would have such a strong, immediate effect on him. I enjoyed watching the story and relationships unfold, but I think I require perfect execution of my Hugo nominees, and this could have used another couple rounds of edits.
I hate magical realism, and I'd already read this story once before, but I still choked up when I re-read it today. It's not fun to read something so relentlessly, senselessly painful-- but it has stayed with me. It's beautiful. And the Hugo is for fantasy, too.
2. "The Cartographer Wasps and the Anarchist Bees" by E. Lily Yu
I'm not sure yet how I feel about this one. The world is almost unbelievably inventive, and incredibly compelling. And we get a few hints of characters, and something of a narrative arc-- but less than I usually prefer. And yet, I don't think they were trying to convey a singular narrative. I definitely like it! I just think I'll have to mull it over for a while. Which is a good thing, really.
3. "Movement" by Nancy Fulda
Beautiful, with a neatly-executed story arc. Despite its seeming meandering, it really does have a laser focus, something I appreciate in a story-- it's hard to keep everything so unified. But it almost might have wrapped up too neatly; as fascinating as it was to visit this world, I'm not sure it will stay with me the way others have. Still. Impeccably executed.
4. No Award
"Shadow War of the Night Dragons: Book One: The Dead City: Prologue" by John Scalzi
I read this, and loved it, when it first came out. I've read this, and loved it, several times since then. It makes me laugh every time! It does take skill to write funny stories, and also to write "bad" stories in a way that isn't actually bad. But, when I'm not reading it, I'm not thinking about it. Just not quite Hugo material.
"The Homecoming" by Mike Resnick
It's a great concept, and one that ought to have resonated deeply with me, what with the whole my-parents-hate-my-physical-transformation thing, but somehow it just didn't have the emotion. The fighting dragged on repetitively, which is accurate to how these fights always go, except that they also degenerate as each person is in more pain. The ending was believable but somehow unearned; every little detail we get about the father is about how he prefers to be surrounded by things that are exactly as they've always been. He doesn't do minor household repairs because he prefers the familiar reminders. I'm not sure exotic wonder would have such a strong, immediate effect on him. I enjoyed watching the story and relationships unfold, but I think I require perfect execution of my Hugo nominees, and this could have used another couple rounds of edits.