Nebula Awards Showcase 2005

Science fiction anthology
0-451-46015-4OCLC58045829Preceded byNebula Awards Showcase 2004 Followed byNebula Awards Showcase 2006 

Nebula Awards Showcase 2005 is an anthology of award-winning science fiction short works edited by American writer Jack Dann. It was first published in trade paperback by Roc/New American Library in March 2005.[1]

Summary

The book collects pieces that won or were nominated for the Nebula Awards for best novel, novella, novelette and short story for the year 2004, profiles of 2004 grand master winner Robert Silverberg and 2004 Author Emeritus Charles L. Harness, with representative early stories by both, various other nonfiction pieces related to the awards, and the two Rhysling Award-winning poems for 2003, together with an introduction by the editor. Not all nominees for the various awards are included, and the best novella and best novel are represented by excerpts.

Contents

  • "Introduction" (Jack Dann)
  • "The Mask of the Rex" [Best Novelette nominee, 2004] (Richard Bowes)
  • "The Last of the O-Forms" [Best Short Story nominee, 2004] (James Van Pelt)
  • "Movements in Science Fiction and Fantasy: A Symposium"
    • "Introduction" (Jack Dann)
    • "Deep in the Heart of the State of the Art" [essay] (Bruce Sterling)
    • "New Weird" [essay] (China Miéville)
    • "The New Space Opera" [essay] (Paul McAuley)
    • "The Interstitial Arts Foundation" [essay] (Ellen Kushner)
    • "The Romantic Underground: An Exploration of a Nonexistent and Self-Denying Nonmovement" [essay] (Jeff VanderMeer)
  • "Grandma" [Best Short Story nominee, 2004] (Carol Emshwiller)
  • "Grand Master Robert Silverberg: The Stochastic Writer" [essay] (Barry N. Malzberg)
  • "Sundance" [short story] (Robert Silverberg)
  • "Lambing Season" [Best Short Story nominee, 2004] (Molly Gloss)
  • "0wnz0red" [Best Novelette nominee, 2004] (Cory Doctorow)
  • "Film: The Year in Review" [essay] (Lucius Shepard)
  • "Knapsack Poems" [Best Short Story nominee, 2004] (Eleanor Arnason)
  • Coraline (excerpt) [Best Novella winner, 2004] (Neil Gaiman)
  • "What I Didn't See" [Best Short Story winner, 2004] (Karen Joy Fowler)
  • "Tripping with the Alchemist" [essay] (Barry N. Malzberg)
  • "Author Emeritus Charles L. Harness: Wielder of Light" [essay] (George Zebrowski)
  • "Quarks at Appomattox" [short story] (Charles L. Harness)
  • "Of a Sweet Slow Dance in the Wake of Temporary Dogs" [Best Novelette nominee, 2004] (Adam-Troy Castro)
  • "Potherb Gardening" [Rhysling Award for Short Poem winner, 2003] (Ruth Berman)
  • "Epochs in Exile: A Fantasy Trilogy" [Rhysling Award for Long Poem winner, 2003] (Charles Saplak) and (Mike Allen)
  • "Goodbye to All That" [Best Short Story nominee, 2004] (Harlan Ellison)
  • "The Story Behind the Book: A Personal View" [essay] (Elizabeth Moon)
  • The Speed of Dark (excerpt) [Best Novel winner, 2004] (Elizabeth Moon)
  • "The Empire of Ice Cream" [Best Novelette winner, 2004] (Jeffrey Ford)

Reception

Kirkus Reviews calls the book "another for the fan's bookshelf." After surveying the contents it notes that it "attempts to give a broader picture of the current state of SF" through its conclusion of the film summary, the Rhysling winners and "provocative essays by participants in several current movements in the field." The editor's introduction and story notes are called "knowledgable (sic), graceful and to the point."[2]

Publishers Weekly Notes that the anthology "presents the usual quality mix of literary SF and fantasy with critical essays," briefly noting the contributors and highlighting Shepard's "provocative, witty movie survey."[3]

Carl Hays, writing in Booklist, notes that "[a]ny collection of Nebula winners can be counted on to present the genre's finest literary artisans," and "[t]he 2005 Showcase is no exception." He lists as "[s]tandouts among these standouts" the pieces by Fowler and Doctorow, and also calls attention to the "quintet of insightful essays" and the editor's introductory comments, that "add depth to a superior collection."[4]

Don D'Ammassa in Chronicle feels the anthology is "[n]ot really a best of the year, but contains many of the best stories of the year," stating that with it "[t]he venerable Nebula Awards collection [series] adds another fine book to its resume, mixing some of the best fiction of the past year with several good essays relevant to the field.[5]

The anthology was also reviewed by Sandra Lindow in SFRA Review #263-4, Gary K. Wolfe in Locus, #507, April 2003, and Patrick J. Swenson in Talebones #26, Summer 2003.[1]

Notes

  1. ^ a b Nebula Awards Showcase 2005 title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
  2. ^ Review in Kirkus Reviews, v. 73, iss. 3, February 1, 2005, pp. 154-155.
  3. ^ Review in Publishers Weekly, v. 252, iss. 7, February 14, 2005, p. 58.
  4. ^ Hays, Carl. Review in Booklist, v. 101, iss. 12, February 15, 2005, pp. 2069-2070.
  5. ^ D'Ammassa, Don. Review in Chronicle: SF, Fantasy & Horror's Monthly Trade Journal, v. 27, iss. 3, March 2005, p. 20
  • v
  • t
  • e
  1. Nebula Award Stories 1965 (1966) (Damon Knight)
  2. Nebula Award Stories Two (1967) (Brian W. Aldiss, Harry Harrison)
  3. Nebula Award Stories 3 (1968) (Roger Zelazny)
  4. Nebula Award Stories 4 (1969) (Poul Anderson)
  5. Nebula Award Stories 5 (1970) (James Blish)
  6. Nebula Award Stories 6 (1971) (Clifford D. Simak)
  7. Nebula Award Stories 7 (1972) (Lloyd Biggle, Jr.)
  8. Nebula Award Stories Eight (1973) (Isaac Asimov)
  9. Nebula Award Stories 9 (1974) (Kate Wilhelm)
  10. Nebula Award Stories 10 (1975) (James E. Gunn)
  11. Nebula Award Stories 11 (1976) (Ursula K. Le Guin)
  12. Nebula Winners Twelve (1978) (Gordon R. Dickson)
  13. Nebula Winners Thirteen (1980) (Samuel R. Delany)
  14. Nebula Winners Fourteen (1980) (Frederik Pohl)
  15. Nebula Winners Fifteen (1981) (Frank Herbert)
  16. Nebula Award Stories Sixteen (1982) (Jerry Pournelle, John F. Carr)
  17. Nebula Award Stories Seventeen (1983) (Joe Haldeman)
  18. The Nebula Awards #18 (1983) (Robert Silverberg)
  19. The Nebula Awards #19 (1984) (Marta Randall)
  20. Nebula Awards 20 (1985) (George Zebrowski)
  21. Nebula Awards 21 (1986) (George Zebrowski)
  22. Nebula Awards 22 (1988) (George Zebrowski)
  23. Nebula Awards 23 (1989) (Michael Bishop)
  24. Nebula Awards 24 (1990) (Michael Bishop)
  25. Nebula Awards 25 (1991) (Michael Bishop)
  26. Nebula Awards 26 (1992) (James Morrow)
  27. Nebula Awards 27 (1993) (James Morrow)
  28. Nebula Awards 28 (1994) (James Morrow)
  29. Nebula Awards 29 (1995) (Pamela Sargent)
  30. Nebula Awards 30 (1996) (Pamela Sargent)
  31. Nebula Awards 31 (1997) (Pamela Sargent)
  32. Nebula Awards 32 (1998) (Jack Dann)
  33. Nebula Awards 33 (1999) (Connie Willis)
  34. Nebula Awards Showcase 2000 (2000) (Gregory Benford)
  35. Nebula Awards Showcase 2001 (2001) (Robert Silverberg)
  36. Nebula Awards Showcase 2002 (2002) (Kim Stanley Robinson)
  37. Nebula Awards Showcase 2003 (2003) (Nancy Kress)
  38. Nebula Awards Showcase 2004 (2004) (Vonda N. McIntyre)
  39. Nebula Awards Showcase 2005 (2005) (Jack Dann)
  40. Nebula Awards Showcase 2006 (2006) (Gardner Dozois)
  41. Nebula Awards Showcase 2007 (2007) (Mike Resnick)
  42. Nebula Awards Showcase 2008 (2008) (Ben Bova)
  43. Nebula Awards Showcase 2009 (2009) (Ellen Datlow)
  44. Nebula Awards Showcase 2010 (2010) (Bill Fawcett)
  45. The Nebula Awards Showcase 2011 (2011) (Kevin J. Anderson)
  46. Nebula Awards Showcase 2012 (2012) (James Patrick Kelly, John Kessel)
  47. Nebula Awards Showcase 2013 (2013) (Catherine Asaro)
  48. Nebula Awards Showcase 2014 (2014) (Kij Johnson)
  49. Nebula Awards Showcase 2015 (2015) (Greg Bear)
  50. Nebula Awards Showcase 2016 (2016) (Mercedes Lackey)
  51. Nebula Awards Showcase 2017 (2017) (Julie E. Czerneda)
  52. Nebula Awards Showcase 2018 (2018) (Jane Yolen)
  53. Nebula Awards Showcase 2019 (2019) (Silvia Moreno-Garcia)
  54. Nebula Awards Showcase 54 (2020) (Nibedita Sen)
  55. Nebula Awards Showcase 55 (2021) (Catherynne M. Valente)