Scan barcode
A review by villyidol
Clarkesworld Magazine Issue 149 by Neil Clarke
4.0
***Winner of the 2019 Nebula Award for Best Short Story***
Give the Family My Love by A.T. Greenblatt
Now that one was fun. And confusing. But not because of the tale itself. I’ll come to that later.
First things first. What is it about? Well, that’s pretty straightforward. On a distant planet, we follow an anthropologist on her search for knowledge. While she’s making her way to a gigantic library that is run by an alien life form, that she simply refers to as the Librarians, she is recording voice messages for her brother Saul, back home on earth. What kind of knowledge is she searching for exactly? One that helps us save the planet that we so thoroughly fucked up, of course.
Since the whole story is told through these voice messages, it’s probably best to listen to the audio version of this Nebula nominee for Best Short Story. The narrator has a beautiful voice, I have to say. However, and that’s what I mean with confusing, I did both, read the story and listen to the audio, and it changed the experience significantly.
The premise wasn’t exactly the best thing about this story, to be honest. What I liked best about it was the voice of the first-person narrator. Reading the story myself, I first and foremost appreciated her sarcastic remarks, and mainly thought that she is a funny person I would like to share a laugh with. But I also thought that the story’s ending was missing a proper pay-off. Letting Kate Baker read the story to me, though, it became a more atmospheric tale, which is good. But now I thought the main character was less funny, and almost a bit whiny. On the other hand, for some reason the ending worked way better for me now, and I almost shed a tear. Like I said, confusing. In both cases, though, there is some really cool imagery. That’s the other thing I liked a lot about this story. I want to be in that library. Badly!
Sooo, a bit hard to rate now, for me. I think I go with a 3.5, rounded up to 4. Not sure if having the topic of global warming is enough to earn this an award. It remains mainly on the surface in that regard, and is actually more about relationships. But anyways, so far this is the only short story nominee that I really enjoyed.
Read it (or listen to it, or both) for yourself here: http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/greenblatt_02_19/
_________________
Best Novel
• [b: Marque of Caine|42201629|Marque of Caine (Tales of the Terran Republic, #5)|Charles E. Gannon|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1547943199l/42201629._SY75_.jpg|65814152] by Charles E. Gannon
• [b: The Ten Thousand Doors of January|43521657|The Ten Thousand Doors of January|Alix E. Harrow|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1548174710l/43521657._SY75_.jpg|63516505] by Alix E. Harrow
• A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine
• [b: Gods of Jade and Shadow|36510722|Gods of Jade and Shadow|Silvia Moreno-Garcia|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1543268579l/36510722._SY75_.jpg|58230232] by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
• [b: Gideon the Ninth|42036538|Gideon the Ninth (The Locked Tomb, #1)|Tamsyn Muir|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1546870952l/42036538._SY75_.jpg|60943229] by Tamsyn Muir
• A Song for a New Day by Sarah Pinsker
Best Novella
• Anxiety Is the Dizziness of Freedom by Ted Chiang ([b: Exhalation|41160292|Exhalation Stories|Ted Chiang|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1534388394l/41160292._SX50_.jpg|64336454])
• The Haunting of Tram Car 015 by P. Djèlí Clark
• [b: This Is How You Lose the Time War|43352954|This Is How You Lose the Time War|Amal El-Mohtar|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1545755487l/43352954._SX50_.jpg|58237743] by Amal El-Mohtar & Max Gladstone
• [b: Her Silhouette, Drawn in Water|40939044|Her Silhouette, Drawn in Water|Vylar Kaftan|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1548256640l/40939044._SY75_.jpg|63832458] by Vylar Kaftan
• [b: The Deep|42201962|The Deep|Rivers Solomon|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1549411869l/42201962._SY75_.jpg|64281827] by Rivers Solomon, with Daveed Diggs, William Hutson & Jonathan Snipes
• [b: Catfish Lullaby|45454304|Catfish Lullaby|A.C. Wise|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1557003095l/45454304._SX50_.jpg|70223668] by A.C. Wise
Best Novelette
• A Strange Uncertain Light by G.V. Anderson ([b: The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, July/August 2019|51205594|The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, July/August 2019 (F&SF, #744)|C.C. Finlay|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1561674223l/51205594._SX50_SY75_.jpg|71657053])
• For He Can Creep by Siobhan Carroll
• [b: His Footsteps, Through Darkness and Light|43565763|His Footsteps, Through Darkness and Light|Mimi Mondal|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1548761606l/43565763._SY75_.jpg|67781447] by Mimi Mondal
• The Blur in the Corner of Your Eye by Sarah Pinsker ([b: Uncanny Magazine Issue 29: July/August 2019|52228003|Uncanny Magazine Issue 29 July/August 2019|Lynne M. Thomas|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1562183674l/52228003._SX50_SY75_.jpg|71772498])
• [b: Carpe Glitter|52579998|Carpe Glitter|Cat Rambo|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1570634877l/52579998._SX50_SY75_.jpg|73519447] by Cat Rambo
• The Archronology of Love by Caroline M. Yoachim (Lightspeed Magazine, April 2019)
Best Short Story
• Give the Family My Love by A.T. Greenblatt (Clarkesworld Magazine, Issue 149, February 2019)
• The Dead, In Their Uncontrollable Power by Karen Osborne (Uncanny Magazine Issue 27: March/April 2019)
• And Now His Lordship Is Laughing by Shiv Ramdas (Strange Horizons 9 September 2019)
• Ten Excerpts from an Annotated Bibliography on the Cannibal Women of Ratnabar Island by Nibedita Sen (Nightmare Magazine, Issue 80)
• A Catalog of Storms by Fran Wilde (Uncanny Magazine, Issue 26, January-February 2019)
• How the Trick Is Done by A.C. Wise (Uncanny Magazine Issue 29: July/August 2019)
Andre Norton Nebula Award for Middle Grade and Young Adult Fiction
• [b: Sal and Gabi Break the Universe|36595887|Sal and Gabi Break the Universe (Sal and Gabi, #1)|Carlos Hernandez|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1536087897l/36595887._SY75_.jpg|58346652] by Carlos Hernandez
• [b: Catfishing on CatNet|41556068|Catfishing on CatNet|Naomi Kritzer|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1568119890l/41556068._SY75_.jpg|64836558] by Naomi Kritzer
• [b: Dragon Pearl|34966859|Dragon Pearl|Yoon Ha Lee|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1517413544l/34966859._SX50_.jpg|56241840] by Yoon Ha Lee
• [b: Peasprout Chen: Battle of Champions|36320150|Peasprout Chen Battle of Champions|Henry Lien|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1547747935l/36320150._SX50_.jpg|57994958] by Henry Lien
• [b: Cog|43453676|Cog|Greg Van Eekhout|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1562027659l/43453676._SY75_.jpg|64712441] by Greg van Eekhout
• [b: Riverland|41070150|Riverland|Fran Wilde|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1533879692l/41070150._SY75_.jpg|64154930] by Fran Wilde
Give the Family My Love by A.T. Greenblatt
Now that one was fun. And confusing. But not because of the tale itself. I’ll come to that later.
First things first. What is it about? Well, that’s pretty straightforward. On a distant planet, we follow an anthropologist on her search for knowledge. While she’s making her way to a gigantic library that is run by an alien life form, that she simply refers to as the Librarians, she is recording voice messages for her brother Saul, back home on earth. What kind of knowledge is she searching for exactly? One that helps us save the planet that we so thoroughly fucked up, of course.
Since the whole story is told through these voice messages, it’s probably best to listen to the audio version of this Nebula nominee for Best Short Story. The narrator has a beautiful voice, I have to say. However, and that’s what I mean with confusing, I did both, read the story and listen to the audio, and it changed the experience significantly.
The premise wasn’t exactly the best thing about this story, to be honest. What I liked best about it was the voice of the first-person narrator. Reading the story myself, I first and foremost appreciated her sarcastic remarks, and mainly thought that she is a funny person I would like to share a laugh with. But I also thought that the story’s ending was missing a proper pay-off. Letting Kate Baker read the story to me, though, it became a more atmospheric tale, which is good. But now I thought the main character was less funny, and almost a bit whiny. On the other hand, for some reason the ending worked way better for me now, and I almost shed a tear. Like I said, confusing. In both cases, though, there is some really cool imagery. That’s the other thing I liked a lot about this story. I want to be in that library. Badly!
Sooo, a bit hard to rate now, for me. I think I go with a 3.5, rounded up to 4. Not sure if having the topic of global warming is enough to earn this an award. It remains mainly on the surface in that regard, and is actually more about relationships. But anyways, so far this is the only short story nominee that I really enjoyed.
Read it (or listen to it, or both) for yourself here: http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/greenblatt_02_19/
_________________
2019 Nebula Award Finalists
Best Novel
• [b: Marque of Caine|42201629|Marque of Caine (Tales of the Terran Republic, #5)|Charles E. Gannon|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1547943199l/42201629._SY75_.jpg|65814152] by Charles E. Gannon
• [b: The Ten Thousand Doors of January|43521657|The Ten Thousand Doors of January|Alix E. Harrow|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1548174710l/43521657._SY75_.jpg|63516505] by Alix E. Harrow
• A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine
• [b: Gods of Jade and Shadow|36510722|Gods of Jade and Shadow|Silvia Moreno-Garcia|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1543268579l/36510722._SY75_.jpg|58230232] by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
• [b: Gideon the Ninth|42036538|Gideon the Ninth (The Locked Tomb, #1)|Tamsyn Muir|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1546870952l/42036538._SY75_.jpg|60943229] by Tamsyn Muir
• A Song for a New Day by Sarah Pinsker
Best Novella
• Anxiety Is the Dizziness of Freedom by Ted Chiang ([b: Exhalation|41160292|Exhalation Stories|Ted Chiang|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1534388394l/41160292._SX50_.jpg|64336454])
• The Haunting of Tram Car 015 by P. Djèlí Clark
• [b: This Is How You Lose the Time War|43352954|This Is How You Lose the Time War|Amal El-Mohtar|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1545755487l/43352954._SX50_.jpg|58237743] by Amal El-Mohtar & Max Gladstone
• [b: Her Silhouette, Drawn in Water|40939044|Her Silhouette, Drawn in Water|Vylar Kaftan|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1548256640l/40939044._SY75_.jpg|63832458] by Vylar Kaftan
• [b: The Deep|42201962|The Deep|Rivers Solomon|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1549411869l/42201962._SY75_.jpg|64281827] by Rivers Solomon, with Daveed Diggs, William Hutson & Jonathan Snipes
• [b: Catfish Lullaby|45454304|Catfish Lullaby|A.C. Wise|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1557003095l/45454304._SX50_.jpg|70223668] by A.C. Wise
Best Novelette
• A Strange Uncertain Light by G.V. Anderson ([b: The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, July/August 2019|51205594|The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, July/August 2019 (F&SF, #744)|C.C. Finlay|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1561674223l/51205594._SX50_SY75_.jpg|71657053])
• For He Can Creep by Siobhan Carroll
• [b: His Footsteps, Through Darkness and Light|43565763|His Footsteps, Through Darkness and Light|Mimi Mondal|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1548761606l/43565763._SY75_.jpg|67781447] by Mimi Mondal
• The Blur in the Corner of Your Eye by Sarah Pinsker ([b: Uncanny Magazine Issue 29: July/August 2019|52228003|Uncanny Magazine Issue 29 July/August 2019|Lynne M. Thomas|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1562183674l/52228003._SX50_SY75_.jpg|71772498])
• [b: Carpe Glitter|52579998|Carpe Glitter|Cat Rambo|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1570634877l/52579998._SX50_SY75_.jpg|73519447] by Cat Rambo
• The Archronology of Love by Caroline M. Yoachim (Lightspeed Magazine, April 2019)
Best Short Story
• Give the Family My Love by A.T. Greenblatt (Clarkesworld Magazine, Issue 149, February 2019)
• The Dead, In Their Uncontrollable Power by Karen Osborne (Uncanny Magazine Issue 27: March/April 2019)
• And Now His Lordship Is Laughing by Shiv Ramdas (Strange Horizons 9 September 2019)
• Ten Excerpts from an Annotated Bibliography on the Cannibal Women of Ratnabar Island by Nibedita Sen (Nightmare Magazine, Issue 80)
• A Catalog of Storms by Fran Wilde (Uncanny Magazine, Issue 26, January-February 2019)
• How the Trick Is Done by A.C. Wise (Uncanny Magazine Issue 29: July/August 2019)
Andre Norton Nebula Award for Middle Grade and Young Adult Fiction
• [b: Sal and Gabi Break the Universe|36595887|Sal and Gabi Break the Universe (Sal and Gabi, #1)|Carlos Hernandez|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1536087897l/36595887._SY75_.jpg|58346652] by Carlos Hernandez
• [b: Catfishing on CatNet|41556068|Catfishing on CatNet|Naomi Kritzer|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1568119890l/41556068._SY75_.jpg|64836558] by Naomi Kritzer
• [b: Dragon Pearl|34966859|Dragon Pearl|Yoon Ha Lee|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1517413544l/34966859._SX50_.jpg|56241840] by Yoon Ha Lee
• [b: Peasprout Chen: Battle of Champions|36320150|Peasprout Chen Battle of Champions|Henry Lien|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1547747935l/36320150._SX50_.jpg|57994958] by Henry Lien
• [b: Cog|43453676|Cog|Greg Van Eekhout|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1562027659l/43453676._SY75_.jpg|64712441] by Greg van Eekhout
• [b: Riverland|41070150|Riverland|Fran Wilde|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1533879692l/41070150._SY75_.jpg|64154930] by Fran Wilde