Nebula Award Stories 8

After a somewhat disappointing Nebula 4 (1968) read, Nebula 8 (1972) is a vast improvement. The 3 winners and 5 runners-up provide some solid reading here. Missing is LeGuin's "The Word For World is Forest" which took the Hugo that year for best novella, although it placed third for the Nebula. I remind myself that the "Science Fiction Writers of America" choose and vote for the Nebulas as opposed to the general reader and fan rabble that is a member of the World Conventions each year that gets to vote for the Hugo. Between the two awards each year most of the very good ones get at least nominated but the "best" each year is always a bit of a gamble. So here are the contents (from ISFDB):

ix • Introduction: So Why Aren't We Rich? show more (1973) • essay by Isaac Asimov
3 • A Meeting With Medusa • (1971) • novella Nebula winner by Arthur C. Clarke
50 • Shaffery Among the Immortals • (1972) • short story by Frederik Pohl
67 • Patron of the Arts • (1972) • novelette by William Rotsler
90 • When It Changed • (1972) • short story Nebula winner by Joanna Russ
100 • On the Downhill Side • (1972) • short story by Harlan Ellison
117 • The Fifth Head of Cerberus • (1972) • novella by Gene Wolfe
181 • When We Went to See the End of the World • (1972) • shortstory by Robert Silverberg
191 • Goat Song • (1972) • novelette Nebula winner by Poul Anderson

Notable among the stories to me were:

Clarke's "A Meeting With Medusa" starts this off very well with a hard science fiction tale of the first manned exploration of Jupiter and the surprising discovery of Jovian life forms. I really liked this one. I've read this story at least once before but long ago so that it was fresh to me. There is a lot of action and excitement in this one. Something that popped out at me was Clarke using the "Prime Directive" and first contact rules when the aliens are encountered and deemed possibly intelligent. As far as I know, the Prime Directive originated in the Star Trek TV series just a few years before this novella.

Russ's "When It Changed" is a powerful story about an all female society that has lived and survived without men for 600 years after a plague that left no men alive. And then men return. I have read this before and was pleased to revisit. Very deserving of the Nebula Award for short story.

In his introduction to Gene Wolfe's now classic "The Fifth Head of Cerebus," Asimov notes that it lost the Nebula by a hair to the Clarke story. I liked Clarke's story but I think this one is superior. Once I started reading I could scarcely put it down. To discuss the story itself would be to really spoil the pleasure in reading it. Broadly it is a future colonial society not on earth. Two brothers are kept apart from almost everything and everyone, but slowly as the years go by they are exposed to more and mysteries are revealed. They have a tutor from whom they learn much in early years. Interesting story.

I didn't really care for Silverberg's "When We Went To See The End of the World." I found each of the other stories interesting, with the singular exception of Pohl's "Shaffery Among the Immortals." show less

* xi • Introduction: So Why Aren't We Rich? • essay by Isaac Asimov
- Asimov having fun exploring an idea.
* 3 • A Meeting With Medusa • (1971) • novelette by Arthur C. Clarke
- Very hard science, with a little bit of a 'character' study about 'what it means to be human'
* 52 • Shaffery Among the Immortals • (1972) • shortstory by Frederik Pohl
- typical Pohl, as it's kinda funny satire, until it's not... almost a shaggy dog story, so watch out
* 70 • Patron of the Arts • (1972) • novelette by William Rotsler - women are only objects of beauty and sexuality; ridiculously offensive
* 95 • When It Changed • (1972) • shortstory by Joanna Russ
- the women were doing just fine; could not Russ have said that the return of show more men would show women prevailing, rather than be victimized yet again?
* 106 • On the Downhill Side • (1972) • shortstory by Harlan Ellison
- experimental-ish writing and a lack of understanding of what 'love' is... sorry if you 'love' this
* 124 • The Fifth Head of Cerberus • (1972) • novella by Gene Wolfe
- ugly content, but often beautiful writing
* 191 • When We Went to See the End of the World • (1972) • shortstory by Robert Silverberg
- relevant right now, as I agree we really are facing 'the end of the world' and ignoring that fact
* 202 • Goat Song • (1972) • novelette by Poul Anderson
- mix of myth and science, eerie, but also sorta inspirational, especially to 12 year-olds*

1.5 stars rounded down... if you rated it higher, you really need to think about what you got out of it, and read other sorts of works.

*"The Golden Age of SF is 12." show less

Indeholder "Isaac Asimov: Introduction. So why aren't we rich?", "Arthur C. Clarke: A Meeting with Medusa", "Frederik Pohl: Shafferty among the immortals", "William Rotssler: Patron of the arts", "Joanna Russ: When it changed", "Harlan Ellison: On the downhill side", "Gene Wolfe: The fifth head of Cerberus", "Robert Silverberg: When we went to see the end of the world", "Poul Anderson: Goat Song", "Award-winning science fiction, 1965-1972", "The Nebula awards", "The Hugo awards".

"Isaac Asimov: Introduction. So why aren't we rich?" handler om ???
"Arthur C. Clarke: A Meeting with Medusa" handler om at et heliumluftskib med fusionsreaktor forulykker, piloten kommer slemt til skade, men bliver genopbygget, styrer den første bemandede sonde show more til Jupiter og møder her kæmpemæssige livsformer.
"Frederik Pohl: Shafferty among the immortals" handler om ???
"William Rotssler: Patron of the arts" handler om ???
"Joanna Russ: When it changed" handler om ???
"Harlan Ellison: On the downhill side" handler om ???
"Gene Wolfe: The fifth head of Cerberus" handler om ???
"Robert Silverberg: When we went to see the end of the world" handler om ???
"Poul Anderson: Goat Song" handler om ???
"Award-winning science fiction, 1965-1972" handler om ???
"The Nebula awards" handler om ???
"The Hugo awards" handler om hvem der har vundet hugo priserne fra og med 1965 til og med 1972.

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