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

In this episode, the Baker sisters covers the Hugo award winner They’d Rather Be Right by Mark Clifton and Frank Riley. It was serialized in the magazine Astounding and then won the Hugo, yes - we’ve returned to the regular Hugos again, for best novel in 1955.  It was a low point for the sisters who struggled with the whole thing in general, but they did laugh a lot.     Want to skip a bit or jump to your favorite part?  Here are the time markers for this episode:   01:15 History Lesson 03:36 General Discussion  10:20 Alice creates a Book Blurb  11:26 Alice discusses the lessons learned  15:47 We end up discussing the writing and structure of the book  21:47 Alice brings up the problems with the character Joe  25:05 We tackle the ‘science’ in the book  29:43 Ann tries to figure out how the authors choose the title  32:24 Alice does a quick character review  40:03 Five Questions    Music by Carl Miles

In the 6th podcast, the Baker sisters tackle the Hugo award winner Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. A science-fiction futuristic dystopia that was published in 1953 and won a retro Hugo in 2004.  This is a timeless classic which many of a certain generation had to read in high school, including the younger of the two sisters. It held up well, is still a striking ‘any-day-now’ read.     Want to skip a bit or jump to your favorite part?  Here are the time markers for this episode: 01:05 History Lesson  06:58 Ann reads the Book’s Blurb  11:58 General Discussion  12:10 What are the lessons of the book  18:31 We discuss the predictive nature of the book  26:17 Once again we tackle the portrayal of women in this era  33:44 Then we discuss Montag, the main character    Music by Carl Miles

In this episode the Baker sister, they discuss the 1st Hugo awarded ever.  It was given to the book The Demolished Man by Alfred Bester published in 1952 and won the Hugo in 1953. This rather amazing book was enjoyed by both ladies and but the brevity of the book and oddly enough, the likeability of it, made for a shorter podcast.   Want to skip a bit or jump to your favorite part?  Here are the time markers for this episode:   01:50  History Lesson 05:00  We jump right in 06:44  Alice reads the back cover - if you want a synopsis 08:23  Open discussion - starting with “what are the big lessons” 09:08  We talk about telepathy and shape poems 14:15 The Murder Mystery aspect 20:35 The Love story aspect 28:28 The Five Questions   Music by Carl Miles

This is the 4th podcast for the Baker sisters Hugh Project and this is another retro Hugo; Farmer in the Sky by Robert Heinlein.  This young adult science fiction novel was first published in 1950, it won the retro Hugo in 2001 and could be considered a great novel for a boy scout enthusiast. Sadly neither sister are themselves scouting enthusiasts.   Want to skip a bit or jump to your favorite part?  Here are the time markers for this episode: 00:58  History Lesson 05:34  We finally get to the book itself and it’s a book for boy scouts! 10:00  Alice reads the back cover - if you want a synopsis 06:19  Open discussion - starting with “what are the big lessons” 28:31  We talk about some of the science-y ideas 37:59  Coming of Age in SPAACEEE segues into filk singing and back again 41:30  Alien Objects or BDO 47:44 The Five Questions Music by Carl Miles

In the third podcast from the Baker Sisters they discuss another retro Hugo for the novella, or borderline short story The Mule by Isaac Asimov. It was first published in the magazine Astounding in 1942 and then republished in book form as part of the title Foundation and Empire.  It won the a retro Hugo in 1996. Yes, still on retro Hugos. The sisters both decidedly liked the character Ebling Mis but the rest of the book…. Well it wasn’t quite all happy, happy, joy, joy. Want to skip a bit or jump to your favorite part?  Here are the time markers for this episode: 01:39  Spoiler Alert - The twist at the end of the book is a big part of the story so if you don’t want to spoil the surprise - read first - listen later. Copy and paste from otherwhere 02:14  History Lesson 06:19  Open discussion 12:28  We go over the the characters 29:51  Tackling some of the big ideas in the book 46:39  The Five Questions Music by Carl Miles

In this, the second podcast, the Baker sister discuss Slan by A.E. Van Vogt, first published in 1940 and never been out of print since.  It won a retro Hugo in 2016. This madly paced science fiction dystopia won admiration and but did we truly love it? Listen and find out.     Want to skip a bit or jump to your favorite part?  Here are the time markers for this episode: 00:51  History Lesson 03:40  Astounding Magazine 06:19  Open discussion 12:28  We go over the the characters 29:51  Tackling some of the big ideas in the book 46:39  The Five Questions   Music by Carl Miles

In their first episode the Baker sisters discuss The Sword in the Stone written by T.H. White which won a Retro Hugo in 2013 for the year 1939. This Arthurian Fantasy novel involving a very young Arthur and a Merlin who is living backwards in time was a hit with both of them and even though it the first go round for the elder of the two sisters a good time was had by both.     Want to skip a bit or jump ahead? Here are the approximate time markers for this episode: 01:06  History Lesson 06:48  5 Questions 19:30  Open Discussion   Music by Carl Miles

Sisters Alice and Ann introduce themselves and their plans for the podcast. They discuss their hopes and dreams for their journey reading the Hugo and Nebula award winning books and declare their manifesto. Alice is a mother of one who is trying to redevelop a reading habit and credits her sister Ann with her love of the genre. Ann is a mother of two has been a various reader for as long as she can remember who is working on improving her book discussion skills.