Beyond Reality discussion

Hi everyone,

It's time to start taking nominations for our November Books of the Month! As always, you can add 1 SF and/or 1 fantasy nomination, by posting a reply to this post with the title and author of the book(s). Adding a note about why you're nominating the book will help people decide whether they want to read it. Please feel free to re-nominate a book from previous months if it didn't win the polls.

I'll take nominations until August 19th and set up the first round of polls on August 20th.

Stefan

I'd like to nominate Saturn's Children by Charles Stross for science fiction. I've been wanting to read it since it came out, but the hardcover cover was too embarrassing. It's available in paperback now with a less embarrassing cover and I have a Nook, so the cover isn't even an issue.

For fantasy, I'd like to nominate Shades of Milk and Honey by Mary Robinette Kowal. I've read a couple of her short stories and loved them. I hear her interviewed on some podcast recently and she made this book sound absolutely wonderful.

What the heck, I'll try this one again.

Dragon's Egg by Robert L. Forward for Science Fiction.

I'm in the mood for some hard SF.

Random wrote: "What the heck, I'll try this one again.

Dragon's Egg by Robert L. Forward for Science Fiction.

I'm in the mood for some hard SF."

Sounds like a great choice!

Sandi wrote: "I'd like to nominate Saturn's Children by Charles Stross for science fiction."

I'm always up for some Charlie Stross. Not got this one, and would be happy to add to my collection.

For fantasy, May i suggest 'Greenmantle' by Charles de Lint - partly as it's on my re-read list!

Just read the "Currently Reading" thread and Ship of Fools by Richard Paul Russo caught my eye: a Philip K. Dick award winner from 2001, I'll nominate it for scifi.

I haven't read Forward or Russo, and am always up for discovering new (to me) writers.

Oh, I am so fickle...

Okay, well, I was glad to see Sean Stewart's name in the polls again last month. I met him briefly over 10 years ago at a time when I was not reading sci fi at all, and that meeting largely encouraged me to creep slowly back into it, even though most of what Sean writes is fantasy, usually kaleidoscopic in nature and with a keen eye for the mystical.

I'll renominate Resurrection Man by Sean Stewart for fantasy.

For Science Fiction, I would like to nominate The Clockwork Man by William Jablonsky. I learned of this book yesterday via my local library's "New Arrivals" newsletter. I read the Google Books preview from the book's Goodreads page and was hooked.

For Fantasy, I'll nominate The Moon and the Sun by Vonda N. McIntyre. I've been on a "forgotten and/or under-rated Nebula and Hugo winners" kick lately, and this looks like a good read, with a setting one doesn't often encounter in fantasy lit.

I'll put forward two by the same author.

SF: Engine Summer by John Crowley. A beautiful book that should appeal to both hardened Sci-Fi lovers and Fantasy buffs alike, one of my personal favourites.

Fantasy: Little, Big also by John Crowley. Nominated for almost every award going in 1982. Crowley writes beautifully and with character names such as Daily Alice Drinkwater I would just love an excuse to put this one at the top of my to read list. I nominated this last month and still hope it could catch peoples interest this time round.

Richard - I've had Little, Big on my to-read list for ages. I would be very keen to read it now, should it win the vote.

I have been scratching my head for some noms, just too much around me to make a decision

Okay folks, I've just set up the polls, so please go vote! I'm only going to run one round of polls this time because we had just 5 nominations per genre, but if there's a tie at the end of the month I'll set up a quick run-off poll. As always, feel free to campaign for your nomination, either in this thread or in the poll comments. Polls close on August 30th.