The SFFaudio Podcast #088

Podcast

The SFFaudio PodcastThe SFFaudio Podcast #088 – Scott and Jesse talk about audiobooks, the recent arrivals and the new releases.

Talked about on today’s show:
Why was Scott gone?, Scott fought off a zombie apocalypse, an angry letter to Santa, Last Call by Tim Powers, Subterranean Press, On Stranger Tides, Bronson Pinchot, “gritty magic realism”, Scott likes lists, top 10 best horror novels, Ghost Story, The Stand, divinationary tarot cards, The Fisher King, “blended weirdness”, StarStruck, The Audio Comics Company, Starstruck’s Wikipedia entry, William Dufris, Simon Vance, Portland (Maine), Simon Vance’s YouTube, Infinivox, Starship Vectors, Stephen Baxter, Elizabeth Bear, Sarah Monette, Charles Coleman Findlay, Gwenyth Jones, Nancy Kress, Robert Reed, “spacey Science Fiction is very refreshing”, BoingBoing’s “The Beginning Of The End Of A Trend” post – is the death of Paranormal Romance approaching?, Brilliance Audio, The God Engines by John Scalzi, The Geek’s Guide To The Galaxy podcast, The Android’s Dream (as read by Wil Wheaton), Audible.com, Debt Of Bones by Terry Goodkind, the Legends anthology, Frank Muller, The Hedge Knight by George R.R. Martin, The Hedge Knight II, Legends II, Dreamsongs, Pump Six And Other Stories by Paulo Bacigalupi, The Fluted Girl, biopunk, Lord Of The Changing Winds: The Griffin Mage Book One by Rachel Neumeier, epic fantasy, Griffins, hard-boiled YA?, noir YA?, The Stainless Steel Rat Wants You by Harry Harrison, Gregg Margarite, the Stainless Steel rat is wry and slick and rascally, well written candy, West Of Eden, prehistorical Science Fiction, alternate history, Catalyst by Anne McCaffrey and Elizabeth Ann Scarborough, barking cats?, Scott is a cat person, Parasite Rex by Carl Zimmer, “Mood-altering cat parasites make women friendly and men into jerks”, fantasy, The Runelords: Book Four: The Lair Of Bones by David Farland, Shadowheart by Tad Williams, Dick Hill, The Habitation Of The Blessed by Catherynne M. Valente, Prester John, immortality, She: Who Must Be Obeyed by H. Rider Haggard, “the literal tree of knowledge”, A Dirge For Prester John, Patient Zero by Jonathan Maberry, “the fate of the world is always hanging in the balance” ,The Walking Dead TV vs. The Walking Dead comic, “a zombie movie that never ends”, Robert Kirkman‘s plan, reading contest, Robert Kirkman’s Invincible, upcoming readalongs: Gulliver’s Travels and Oath Of Fealty, Alas, Babylon by Pat Frank, On The Beach by Nevil Shute, Wil Patton, Neon Rain by James Lee Burke, Heart Of Darkness, Sherlock Holmes vs. Jack The Ripper, Time For The Stars, Will Patton, Richard Matheson, Somewhere In Time, Ross Macdonald, The New Adventures Of Mike Hammer, Stacey Keach, Max Allan Collins, SS-GB by Len Deighton, Fatherland, Eric S. Rabkin, “I don’t want to say I like Nazis”.

Posted by Jesse Willis

SciFiFest 2010: Olympia Timberland Library, October 23

SFFaudio News

Timberland Regional LibraryLibrarian Kelsey Smith sez:

“SciFi fans, please join us for our second annual SciFiFest! Hugo & Nebula award winning authors Ted Chiang and Nancy Kress will read their work, answer questions, and challenge you to a SciFi trivia throwdown. Spiritual Successor (featuring the infamous Zach Mandeville) will lull you with tunes about suicidal superheroes, terminally ill space babies, and moon janitors. Local heroes Mutoid Men will close out the evening with their special brand of ‘particle-accelerated, Moog synthesized, scientific rock’n’roll.’ Come in costume and win a prize! The library is normally closed at this time and is only open for the program. This event is sponsored by the Friends of the Olympia Timberland Library.”

This event is FREE and open to the public.

SciFiFest 2010
Date: Saturday, October 23, 7:30pm
Location:
Olympia Timberland Library
313 8th Ave SE
Olympia, WA
Phone: 360-352-0595

As a special SFFaudio bonus, the first five attendees to send me (by email) a photograph (or suitable hand drawn facsimile) of themselves and Ted Chiang together at the October 23rd event will receive, by mail, his or her choice of one of the following unabridged audiobooks:

Carnival by Elizabeth Bear (Recorded Books, 11 CDs)
On Stranger Tides by Tim Powers (Blackstone Audio, 10 CDs)
The Caves Of Steel by Isaac Asimov (Tantor Media, 6 CDs)
The Speed Of Dark by Elizabeth Moon (Brilliance Audio, 12 CDs)
Zero History by William Gibson (Penguin Audio, 11 CDs)

To be eligible the emailed images must be received no later than 11:59 pm on October 31, 2010. Prizes shall be awarded in order of their receipt by email. The suitability of any hand drawn entries shall be determined by me. Please title your emailed entries “SciFiFest 2010”.

Posted by Jesse Willis

Seeing Ear Theatre: Nancy Kress and Bruce Holland Rogers

SFFaudio Online Audio

Here are two more releases from the long deleted Seeing Ear Theatre collection. They were lovingly uploaded to Archive.org and they shall be just as lovingly added to our master list of Seeing Ear Theatre‘s goodness.

Seeing Ear Theatre - ReadingsUnto The Daughters and Margin Of Error
By Nancy Kress; Read by Nancy Kress
1 |MP3| – Approx. 30 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Seeing Ear Theatre
Published: 1999
Provider: Archive.org
Recorded at the 1998 Baltimore WorldCon.

Seeing Ear Theatre - ReadingsThe Goblin King and The Dead Boy At Your Window
By Bruce Holland Rogers; Read by Bruce Holland Rogers
1 |MP3| – Approx. 11 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Seeing Ear Theatre
Published: 1999
Provider: Archive.org

[You’re indispensable Roy. Thanks!]

Posted by Jesse Willis

Review of Aliens Rule, ed by Allan Kaster

SFFaudio Review

Science Fiction Audiobook - Aliens Rule, ed. by Allan KasterAliens Rule
Edited by Allan Kaster
Stories by James van Pelt, Carolyn Ives Gilman, and Nancy Kress
Read by Vanessa Hart and Tom Dheere
3 CDs – 244 minutes – [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Infinivox
Published: 2009
ISBN: 9781884612879
Themes: / Science Fiction / Aliens / Junior High School / Relocation / Dogs / Survival / Invasion /

From Allan Kaster and Infinivox, a collection of three stories in which aliens are in control:

“How Music Begins” by James van Pelt
I’ve enjoyed James van Pelt ever since reading his collection Strangers and Beggars, which I highly recommend. He’s a high school teacher as well as a writer, and as such school and teaching are elements that he returns to often. In this story, a teacher and his junior high music class are held by aliens who observe them while they rehearse. The teacher knows that perfection is elusive, and has to deal with the kids and their emotions on what seems to him to be an endless road trip. I loved the story — it rang true on every level.

“Okanoggan Falls” by Carolyn Ives Gilman
This is the story of a woman who, while the rest of the town she lives in is protesting a forced relocation, takes a different approach. She decides to try to get to know one of the aliens, and learns some surprising things.

“Laws of Survival” by Nancy Kress
This story, the longest of the three, is a gem. A young girl, scavenging for food, ends up in an alien oppressor’s ship. She’s given the opportunity there to train dogs in exchange for survival. She struggles to understand what the aliens are telling her and also struggles with the dogs, who had long since grown wild. Another great story from Nancy Kress.

Tom Dheere and Vanessa Hart narrate, and no complaints from me. Vanessa Hart’s was exceptional with “Laws of Survival”.

Allan Kaster, the editor, told us that Infinivox will be publishing more collections in the future (as opposed to the single story releases they’ve done in the past), and I for one couldn’t be more pleased. This collection is well worth your time.

Check out The SFFaudio Podcast #036, which contains an interview of Allan Kaster, editor of the Infinivox line of science fiction audiobooks.

Posted by Scott D. Danielson

Recent Arrival: Aliens Rule, ed by Allan Kaster

SFFaudio Recent Arrivals

Science Fiction Audiobook - Aliens Rule, ed. by Allan KasterAliens Rule
Edited by Allan Kaster
Stories by James van Pelt, Carolyn Ives Gilman, and Nancy Kress
Read by Vanessa Hart and Tom Dheere
3 CDs – 244 minutes – [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Infinivox
Published: 2009
ISBN: 9781884612879

From Allan Kaster and Infinivox!

This collection of unabridged readings chronicles the lives of people striving to survive as aliens rule Earth. In James Van Pelt’s “How Music Begins,” a junior high school band director struggles to keep the band members’ spirits up after they’ve been shanghaied, by unknown and unseen aliens, and confined to a dormitory and practice auditorium. In “Okanoggan Falls,” by Carolyn Ives Gilman, a housewife subtly resists the forceable relocation of her townspeople by an alien military captain. Finally, in order to stay alive, a woman must make dogs act correctly for aliens in “Laws of Survival” by Nancy Kress. Read by Vanessa Hart and Tom Dheere.

Posted by Scott D. Danielson

The SFFaudio Podcast #036

Podcast

The SFFaudio PodcastThe SFFaudio Podcast #036 – Jesse and Scott are joined by Julie of Forgotten Classics to talk with Allan Kaster, the editor of Infinivox’s new audiobook anthology: The Year’s Top Ten Tales Of Science Fiction! We discuss this terrific audiobook, in depth, as well as a few other new releases and recent arrivals.

Talked about on today’s show:
Infinivox (an imprint of Audiotext), biology, study guides, chemistry, Great Science Fiction Stories, Bioware (from medical software to video games), Mass Effect, The Year’s Top Ten Tales Of Science Fiction, A Walk In The Sun by Geoffrey A. Landis |READ OUR REVIEW|, Guest Of Honor by Robert Reed, The Shobies’ Story by Ursula K. Le Guin, Hollywood Kremlin by Bruce Sterling, immortality, Hard SF, Robert Reed, vampires are rather liberal (for being immortal), Five Thrillers by Robert Reed, sociopathy, Ted Chiang, StarShipSofa’s (#88) interview with Ted Chiang, Exhalation by Ted Chiang, consciousness, souls, religion, transcendence, Ray Gun: A Love Story by James Alan Gardner, meta-science fictional stories, “ray guns and spaceships”, Adrift by Scott D. Danielson, World Of The Ptavvs by Larry Niven, Star Trek Animated Series (The Slaver Weapon), “The Soft Weapon” by Larry Niven, romance, Galileo’s Children: Tales of Science vs. Superstition edited by Gardner Dozois, The Dream Of Reason by Jeffrey Ford, The Empire Of Ice Cream by Jeffrey Ford, The Dreaming Wind by Jeffrey Ford (on StarShipSofa AD #75), sense of wonder, 26 Monkeys, Also The Abyss by Kij Johnson, Fantasy vs. Science Fiction, Mini-Masterpieces Of Science Fiction, The Gambler by Paolo Bacigalupi, Fast Forward 2, Fencon 2009 (Dallas, TX), Aliens Rule edited by Alan Kaster, How Music Begins by James Van Pelt, Carolyn Ives Gilman, Laws Of Survival by Nancy Kress, City Of The Dead by Paul McAuley, Shoggoths In Bloom by Elizabeth Bear, H.P. Lovecraft, lovecraftian homage, we need an audio collection of stories inspired by H.P. Lovecraft, frontier, space western, archaeology, aliens, Ray Bradbury, Mrs. Carstairs And The Merman by Delia Sherman, Dercum Audio, 1930s, 19th century, sea creatures, squids, Greg Egan, Peter Watts, The Art of Alchemy by Ted Kosmatka, industrial espionage, The N Word by Ted Kosmatka, Seeds Of Change edited by John Joseph Adams, future releases from Infinivox, Infinivox on Audible.com, Mike Resnick’s Kirinyaga cycle, Guest Law by John C. Wright, Beggars In Spain by Nancy Kress, physics, pirates, Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, On Stranger Tides by Tim Powers, Charles Stross, Antibodies, Lobsters, A Colder War, The Chief Designer by Andy Duncan |READ OUR REVIEW|, Michael Swanwick, The Edge Of The World by Michael Swanwick, The Griffin’s Egg by Michael Swanwick, the state of the magazine industry, Fast Forward 2, Sidewise In Time, Eclipse 2, Extraordinary Engines, Penguin Audio, Level 26: Dark Origins by Anthony E. Zuiker and Duane Swierczynski, Brilliance Audio, The Beastmaster by Andre Norton, Richard J. Brewer, Audible Frontiers, The Short Victorious War by David Weber, The Rise Of Endymion by Dan Simmons, caterbury tales in space, Luke Burrage’s SFBRP on the Hyperion series, Kick-Ass Mystic Ninjas on Simmons’ Hyperion series, Ilium by Dan Simmons, The Terror by Dan Simmons, novella length stories, Escape Route by Peter F. Hamilton, a recent interview with Audible’s founder, The Law Of Nines by Terry Goodkind, Mark Deakins, Rammer by Larry Niven, narrator Pat Bottino, the MP3-CD format vs the CD format, The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury, Gateway by Frederik Pohl, Robert J. Sawyer, Man Plus by Frederik Pohl

Posted by Jesse Willis