Hugo Awards 2008 – the winners
Via SF Signal, here are the winners of this year’s Hugo Awards:
- BEST NOVEL: The Yiddish Policeman’s Union by Michael Chabon (HarperCollins, Fourth Estate)
- BEST NOVELLA: “All Seated on the Ground” by Connie Willis (Asimov’s Dec. 2007, Subterranean Press)
- BEST NOVELETTE: “The Merchant and the Alchemist’s Gate” by Ted Chiang (F&SF Sept. 2007)
- BEST SHORT STORY: “Tideline” by Elizabeth Bear (Asimov’s June 2007)
- BEST RELATED BOOK: Brave New Words: The Oxford Dictionary of Science Fiction by Jeff Prucher (Oxford University Press)
- BEST DRAMATIC PRESENTATION, LONG FORM: Stardust Written by Jane Goldman & Matthew Vaughn; based on the novel by Neil Gaiman; directed by Matthew Vaughn (Paramount Pictures)
- BEST DRAMATIC PRESENTATION, SHORT FORM: Doctor Who “Blink”; written by Stephen Moffat; directed by Hettie Macdonald (BBC)
- BEST PROFESSIONAL EDITOR, SHORT FORM: Gordon Van Gelder
- BEST PROFESSIONAL EDITOR, LONG FORM: David G. Hartwell
- BEST PROFESSIONAL ARTIST: Stephan Martiniere
- BEST SEMIPROZINE: Locus
- BEST FANZINE: File 770 edited by Mike Glyer
- BEST FAN WRITER: John Scalzi
- BEST FAN ARTIST: Brad Foster
- JOHN W. CAMPBELL AWARD FOR BEST NEW WRITER: Mary Robinette Kowal
Very few surprises there, I think it’s safe to say. Ted Chiang’s victory was a given long before the nominations were announced, for example; Van Gelder is a shoo-in based on subscriber figures alone, and likewise Scalzi.
The only vague surprise is Chabon taking the Best Novel – not because it’s an undeserving book, as I’m assured it’s excellent, but because its definition as sf has been such a controversial issue elsewhere.
How would you rewrite this list if you had control of sf fandom for the day?
August 10th, 2008 at 4:08 am
I’m happy with the novel award, although I’d like to have seen Brasyl do better. But the novella is a joke – the Willis is one of her twee Christmas stories, and more skiffy than science fiction. The best of the bunch, the Shepard, came last. Novelette – that one actually seems to have gone right, even down to the final order. Short story – thought it was a weak category, but I’d have preferred Steve Baxter to take it.
Still, 745 ballots counted for Best novel. Out of 5,000 – 6,000 attendees?
August 11th, 2008 at 3:49 pm
I haven’t read the Chabon novel yet, and very few of the other winners (I did see Stardust), but I will say that Brasyl is an incredibly brilliant novel, with great ideas and great characters. I can’t recommend it highly enough to serious readers of sf.