SF Mavens: Your Favorite Book Among the Hugo Winners?

[chomiji]

James Nicoll wants to know.

C.J. Cherry's Cyteen. Because that's the one that can still get me involved after more than a dozen re-reads.

(It's not my favorite CJC, though. That would be Hellburner.)

Comments

[despina_moon]

Oh, man, that's tough. I loved Neuromancer with the heat of a thousand suns when I first read it. Until Hyperion came alone, but Simmons' is currently in my doghouse of writers so I can't pick that one. I also loved both Orson Scott Card books when I first read them but he's on my "don't give that asshole another dime" list so those are out. The Snow Queen was fabulous, but I actually enjoyed The Summer Queen more. The Forever War was amazing, but not my favorite. And To Say Nothing of the Dog. And, and, and ...

Honestly, I'm getting close to reading The City & the City and I expect that to be the (current) winner when I do!

[chomiji]

He did a later post with tickyboxen, so you could choose more than one!

[yhlee]

That reminds me, I never wrote up Cyteen and Regenesis in 2013 because I didn't *kof* want anyone to guess I was writing it for Yuletide...

[chomiji]

LOL! I didn't blog that I was re-reading the Chanur series, for the same reason!

I wonder when CJC is going to write some more Reseune. Foreigner obviously pays her bills, leaving little time for other things. *sigh* The only parts of Regenesis I really liked were the domestic aspects of the new wing, and what everyone's apartments were like. Sometimes I want a tremendously rich and powerful friend to design a new living space just for me, too!

[yhlee]

Yeah, Regenesis hit my fantasy dream house daydreaming spot too, but I didn't think it was terribly good.

I gave up on Foreigner years ago. I can't keep a series that long in my head anymore whether it's good or not. :-/

[lawless523]

I haven't read many of these, and of those I have, I wasn't all that impressed with two -- Stranger in a Strange Land, the plot of which I don't even remember, and Left Hand of Darkness. I would pick Foundation's Edge except it's not even my favorite Isaac Asimov sci fi novel; I like his Elijah Baley/R. Daneel Olivaw series better than the Foundation series. I like Dune, and it's pioneering, but some of it is also dull, dated, or pretentious.

Of all of them, the book I most enjoyed reading is Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, and though I'm in the middle of reading Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norell, I don't think I'm going to wind up enjoying it more. So do I plump for Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell because it's more cleverly written, Foundation's Edge because it's more intellectual, Dune because it's pioneering and (for this group) somewhat unique, or Goblet of Fire because it was the most enjoyable? IDK.

[chomiji]

Awww, I love Left Hand of Darkness, even if it isn't my favorite. James did a later version of the poll with tickyboxen, so you could pick more than one thing, and I picked LHOD there, along with American Gods and several others.

The poll does specify your favorite, rather than the one you think is the best book. I was very pleased that many of the commenters had the same reaction that I did, which was that picking a favorite was an emotionally stressful thing. (And commenters whom I know are male said that as often as ones I know are female, which made me happy too.)

[lawless523]

Then my choice would be Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Also, is the Hugo a SF award or a SFF award? Because I consider the Harry Potter books and Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell to be fantasy (or alternative history/urban fantasy, in the case of Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell), not sci fi.

As for Left Hand of Darkness, I didn't connect with it emotionally and I didn't find the political infighting as clever or convincing as, say, Dune.

[kikyo]

Hm. I've never actually felt like books that won awards were necessarily the best. (Don't get me started on the Pulitzer..) I haven't read many on this list, but the ones I that did haven't really stood out. For example, I think Chronicles of Amber is faaaaaar superior to Lord of Light. Why did he win for the latter and not Amber? It's a mystery.

And I personally hated To Say Nothing of the Dog. Doomsday Book was better, but at least that got some recognition.

[chomiji]

Well, to be fair, all James asked for each commenter's favorite book among this list of books, really: he didn't ask whether the commenters thought these were the best books written in those years.

I mean, it's like going to a steak place on someone else's nickel and having the host ask you to pick your favorite thing on the menu. You may actually prefer sushi and think that steak is over-rated, but that doesn't mean the host has offered an invalid choice or something.

I don't find Connie Willis all that interesting, although my sister (who is also one fo my best friends) likes her a lot.

I think a lot of SF fans automatically find nihilistic or trippy SF superior to fantasy, even fantasy as noir-ish as Amber. I enjoyed the hell out of the first Amber book (although in retrospect I find the stereotyped roles of the female characters a bit grating), but I got tired of it a couple of books in, and I never bothered with the second series at all.

James did a later poll with tickies instead so you could pick more than one work.

[cordialcount]

AAAH. Too many choices, I've read 80% of the pre-2006 part of this list. My heart can't choose between Cyteen and Barrayar (still not comprehending why The Vor Game won its year and Memory, which afaik is universally considered the better book, didn't), and if it weren't for OSC's recent dive into lunacy I'd have to give credit to Ender's Game as the book that hooked me and many people I knew on sf and imprinted me on intelligent assholes.

Metagaming-- Cyteen because 1. it has a chance of leading the polls, 2. it's the most distinctly sfnal of the books I'd want to vote for, and 3. we share an interest, and let it not be said I am unbiased by fannish communities.

[chomiji]

>>because ... we share an interest, and let it not be said I am unbiased by fannish communities<<

*laughs*

*huggles you*