Hugo Award

The 2009 Hugo Awards were presented on August 9, 2009. The Hugo Awards are awards for excellence in the field of science fiction and fantasy. They were first awarded in 1953, and have been awarded every year since 1955. The awards are run by and voted on by fans.

Best Novel Award went to Neil Gaiman for The Graveyard Book (Find this book in our catalog).

We also have this title in Harford County Public Library in large print , as a digital audiobook, and as an audiobook on CDs. This is what it says about the book in our catalog notes: "Nobody Owens, known to his friends as Bod, is a normal boy. He would be completely normal if he didn't live in a sprawling graveyard, being raised and educated by ghosts, with a solitary guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor of the dead. There are dangers and adventures in the graveyard for a boy-an ancient Indigo Man beneath the hill, a gateway to a desert leading to an abandoned city of ghouls, the strange and terrible menace of the Sleer. But if Bod leaves the graveyard, then he will come under attack from the man Jack--who has already killed Bod's family. . . . Beloved master storyteller Neil Gaiman returns with a luminous new novel for the audience that embraced his "New York Times" bestselling modern classic coraline. Magical, terrifying, and filled with breathtaking adventures, the graveyard book is sure to enthrall readers of all ages."

The Graveyard Book also won the Newbery Award for most distinguished contribution to American literature for children; so, it would be an excellent choice for cross-generational book groups or for families to read together.

Awards round-up August

Hugo Awards - according to Library Journal, 8/12/2008, the Hugo Awards were presented August 9 as part of the Denvention 3 World Science Fiction Convention in Denver. Awards were presented in 15 categories encompassing fiction, nonfiction, novels, short stories, art, and more. The winners are:
Best Novel: The Yiddish Policemen’s Union by Michael Chabon
Best Novella: “All Seated on the Ground” by Connie Willis
Best Novelette: “The Merchant and the Alchemist’s Gate” by Ted Chiang
Best Short Story: “Tideline” by Elizabeth Bear
Best Related Book: Brave New Words: The Oxford Dictionary of Science Fiction by Jeff Prucher
Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form: Stardust, written by Jane Goldman and Matthew Vaughn, based on the novel by Neil Gaiman, illustrated by Charles Vess ,directed by Matthew Vaughn
Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form: Doctor Who “Blink,” written by Steven Moffat, directed by Hettie Macdonald
Best Editor, Long Form: David G. Hartwell
Best Editor, Short Form: Gordon Van Gelder
Best Professional Artist: Stephan Martiniere
Best Semiprozine: Locus
Best Fanzine: File 770
Best Fan Writer: John Scalzi
Best Fan Artist: Brad Foster
Mary Robinette Kowal additionally took the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer, sponsored by Dell Magazines and administered on its behalf by the World Science Fiction Society.

The Romance Writers of America® The 2008 RITA®’s went to the following:
Contemporary Series Romance: Snowbound by Janice Kay Johnson
Contemporary Series Romance: Suspense/Adventure: Treasure by Helen Brenna
Young Adult Romance: Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr
Historical Romance: Lessons of Desire by Madeline Hunter
Regency Historical Romance: The Secret Diaries of Miss Miranda Cheever by Julia Quinn
Inspirational Romance: A Touch of Grace by Linda Goodnight
Romance Novella: “Born in My Heart” by Jennifer Greene in Like Mother, Like Daughter
Paranormal Romance: Lover Revealed by J.R. Ward
Novel with Strong Romantic Elements: Silent in the Grave by Deanna Raybourn
Romantic Suspense: Ice Blue by Anne Stuart
Best First Book: Dead Girls Are Easy by Terri Garey
Contemporary Single Title Romance: Catch of the Day by Kristan Higgins

NAIBA's Books of the Year - The winners in the adult categories of the NAIBA Book of the Year Awards, sponsored by the New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association are:
* Fiction: Mudbound by Hillary Jordan
* Nonfiction: The Year of Living Biblically by A.J. Jacobs
* Special Interest: Bronx Noir edited by S.J. Rozan

Science fiction news

I was reading Locus, the magazine of the science fiction and fantasy field, for April 2008, when I noticed one or two bits of awards news that might be of interest (awards lists are great sources of books to be put on your personal "to be read" list).

John Harrison's Nova Swing won the 2008 Philip K. Dick Award, given for distinguished science fiction published in the US as a paperback original in 2007. The announcement was made March 21, 2008 at Norwescon 31, the convention of the Northwest Science Fiction Society in Seattle. Find this book in our catalog.


The Hugo Awards nominations have been announced as reported by me in this blog on March 24. Now click here for the official Hugo blog, where you can find out how to become eligible to vote on your favorite and also receive free books.



The Nebula Awards, administered, voted and presented by the Science Fiction Writers of America (SFWA) to acknowledge excellence in science fiction writing, will be awarded at the convention April 25-27, 2008 at Houston, TX. Click here to see the final ballot.