2011 Nebula Awards nominees announced

The Science Fiction Writers of America have announced the nominees for the 2011 Nebula Awards, which are voted by the community of professional sf/f writers (in contrast to the Hugo awards, which are voted by readers). It's a very strong ballot, and includes two of my favorite books of 2011: Jo Walton's astounding Among Others, and Delia Sherman's brilliant YA novel The Freedom Maze.

Novel
Among Others, Jo Walton (Tor)
Embassytown, China Miéville (Macmillan UK; Del Rey; Subterranean Press)
Firebird, Jack McDevitt (Ace Books)
God's War, Kameron Hurley (Night Shade Books)
Mechanique: A Tale of the Circus Tresaulti, Genevieve Valentine (Prime Books)
The Kingdom of Gods, N.K. Jemisin (Orbit US; Orbit UK)

Novella
"Kiss Me Twice," Mary Robinette Kowal (Asimov's Science Fiction, June 2011)
"Silently and Very Fast," Catherynne M. Valente (WFSA Press; Clarkesworld Magazine, October 2011)
"The Ice Owl," Carolyn Ives Gilman (The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, November/December 2011)
"The Man Who Bridged the Mist," Kij Johnson (Asimov's Science Fiction, October/November 2011)
"The Man Who Ended History: A Documentary," Ken Liu (Panverse Three, Panverse Publishing)
"With Unclean Hands," Adam-Troy Castro (Analog Science Fiction and Fact, November 2011)

Novelette
"Fields of Gold," Rachel Swirsky (Eclipse 4, Night Shade Books)
"Ray of Light," Brad R. Torgersen (Analog Science Fiction and Fact, December 2011)
"Sauerkraut Station," Ferrett Steinmetz (Giganotosaurus, November 2011)
"Six Months, Three Days," Charlie Jane Anders (Tor.com, June 2011)
"The Migratory Pattern of Dancers," Katherine Sparrow (Giganotosaurus, July 2011)
"The Old Equations," Jake Kerr (Lightspeed Magazine, July 2011)
"What We Found," Geoff Ryman (The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, September/October 2011)

Short Story
"Her Husband's Hands," Adam-Troy Castro (Lightspeed Magazine, October 2011)
"Mama, We are Zhenya, Your Son," Tom Crosshill (Lightspeed Magazine, April 2011)
"Movement," Nancy Fulda (Asimov's Science Fiction, March 2011)
"Shipbirth," Aliette de Bodard (Asimov's Science Fiction, February 2011)
"The Axiom of Choice," David W. Goldman (New Haven Review, Winter 2011)
"The Cartographer Wasps and the Anarchist Bees," E. Lily Yu (Clarkesworld Magazine, April 2011)
"The Paper Menagerie," Ken Liu (The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, March/April 2011)

Andre Norton Award for Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy Book
Akata Witch, Nnedi Okorafor (Viking Juvenile)
Chime, Franny Billingsley (Dial Books; Bloomsbury)
Daughter of Smoke and Bone, Laini Taylor (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers; Hodder & Stoughton)
Everybody Sees the Ants, A.S. King (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)
The Boy at the End of the World, Greg van Eekhout (Bloomsbury Children’s Books)
The Freedom Maze, Delia Sherman (Big Mouth House)
The Girl of Fire and Thorns, Rae Carson (Greenwillow Books)
Ultraviolet, R.J. Anderson (Orchard Books; Carolrhoda Books)

Ray Bradbury Award for Outstanding Dramatic Presentation
Attack the Block, Joe Cornish (writer/director) (Optimum Releasing; Screen Gems)
Captain America: The First Avenger, Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely (writers), Joe Johnston (director) (Paramount)
Doctor Who: “The Doctor's Wife,” Neil Gaiman (writer), Richard Clark (director) (BBC Wales)
Hugo, John Logan (writer), Martin Scorsese (director) (Paramount)
Midnight in Paris, Woody Allen (writer/director) (Sony)
Source Code, Ben Ripley (writer), Duncan Jones (director) (Summit)
The Adjustment Bureau, George Nolfi (writer/director) (Universal)

Nebula Awards Nominees

• [Talia]

  I’ve actually read half the novels this year; that’s different. :) Gotta root for ‘Embassytown.’ I loved ‘Among Others,’ too, but ‘Embassytown’ was flat-out remarkable.

  ‘Firebird’ was tremendous fun and McDevitt’s one of my favorite authors, but it’s the least-likely to win, IMHO.

  RE: the short story ‘The Paper Menagerie’ -  a wonderful story, and available for listening in podcast form over at Podcastle for the interested.

  http://podcastle.org/2011/07/12/podcastle-165-the-paper-menagerie/

• [jennybean42]

  There is so much good Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasty. I’m kinda jealous.

  • [mjfgates]

     Psssst…. you’re allowed to claim to be “young at heart.” It really works… the guy at the bookstore lets me buy all the YA I want!

• [Mark Pitcavage]

  Very disappointing to see Embassytown on the nomination list.  Probably the weakest book written by Mieville and just a bad book overall.   But it looks like a weak category generally this year.

• [moonglum]

  I loved both Embassytown, and Mechanique. Because I have been trying for the last 30 years to have read every hugo, nebula, world fantasy award, and bram stoker award winning novel, and have not yet done it, I hope that ‘Kingdom of Gods’ does NOT win. Because then I will have to read 3 new novels (I don’t start trilogies from the 3rd book– its a matter of principle). If Embassytown wins, I can, perhaps if I am brave, try once again to get through Silverbergs ‘A Time of Changes’.

• [Jonathan Colvin]

  Really, Embassytown?  I love practically every one of Mieville’s books (particularly Kraken and the Bas Lag series), but liked Embassytown not at all. Beyond the central conceit it was weak and boring as heck. Conventional sci-fi is not Mieville’s forte.

• [moonglum]

  I actually liked Kraken the least of Mieville’s books. Probably because the genre of urban fantasy doesn’t appeal to me much. I did, however, really like ‘Sandman Slim’ by Richard Kadrey. I guess if a book is punk enough, it can transcend genre. 

  Embassy town has a really smart take on aliens, language, and politics. Its not as awesome as Iron Council, or Perdido Street Station, but it did leave me kind of agape at its ideas.