And The Nominees Are . . .: As usual, you can find most of this year's Hugo nominees online.

A few years back, they also added a "retro" Hugo category. Done partly to inspire interest in classic SF, and partly to provide a chance for all the people who think all the good stuff was written 50 years ago, the competition is tough and the novels are fantastic. It's partly depressing to look at the list--this year's retro nominees for best novel include The Caves of Steel by Isaac Asimov,
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, and Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clarke. Are we really producing anything that good today?

I think we are. But nostalgia is a tough spice to outflavor, and these stories still have something to them missing today.

As much as we hype nostalgia, though, most fiction quickly stales with age. The fact that these still feel so fresh and revelant--how many of this year's nominees will withstand that test?

(I'm honestly asking--I haven't read them yet. I'll post reviews as I do, though.)

Bradbury will win of course. Clarke will get to take comfort in his "The Nine Billion Names of God" winning in the short story category, though. Check that one out, if you haven't--it really is short.