Tuesday, March 15, 2016

Dispatches from the Border: March 2016

DISPATCHES FROM THE BORDER
Events and News From Borderlands Books
MARCH 2016

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Upcoming Events
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Pwning Tomorrow, Today! at the Internet Archive (300 Funston Avenue  San Francisco  CA) with authors Cory Doctorow, Eileen Gunn, Carolyn Jewel, Ramez Naam, Annalee Newitz, Hannu Ranjaniemi, and Rudy Rucker on Saturday, March 19th at 2:00 pm

Glen Hirshberg, GOOD GIRLS (Tor Books, Hardcover, $26.99) on Saturday, March 26th at 3:00 pm

Brian Staveley, THE LAST MORTAL BOND (Tor Books, Hardcover, $28.99) on Tuesday, March 29th at 7:00 pm

Marie Brennan, IN THE LABYRINTH OF DRAKES (Tor Books, Hardcover, $25.99) on Saturday, April 9th at 3:00 pm

SF in SF with authors Peter S. Beagle and Carter Scholz (American Bookbinders Museum, 355 Clementina, San Francisco, CA) on Sunday, April 17th at 6:30 pm

InsideStorytime SUPERPOWERS at The Make Out Room (3225 22nd St.  San Francisco CA) with Charlie Jane Anders, Elwin Cotman, Daryl Gregory, guest MC Dhaya Lakshminarayanan, Jessica May Lin, and Seanan McGuire on Thursday, April 21st at 7:00 pm

Paolo Bacigalupi, THE WATER KNIFE (Vintage, Trade Paperback, $16.00) on Friday, April 22nd at 7:00 pm

Seanan McGuire, EVERY HEART A DOORWAY (Tor.com, Hardcover, $17.99) on Saturday, April 23rd at 6:00 pm

Richard Kadrey, THE EVERYTHING BOX (Harper Voyager, Hardcover, $24.99) on Sunday, April 24th at 3:00 pm

(for more information check the end of this newsletter)

And coming up in the summer, we'll welcome Mary Robinette Kowal, Charles Stross, and many, many others!

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News
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* Harper Lee, author of the classic novel TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD and the related work GO SET A WATCHMAN has passed away: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/20/arts/harper-lee-dies.html

* In other sad news, Umberto Eco, the Italian novelist whose career spanned almost every genre, has also passed away.  Although he was most famous for the historical mystery THE NAME OF THE ROSE, his work included fiction, essays, art criticism and more.
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/feb/20/italian-author-umberto-eco-dies-aged-84

* Local author and Borderlands favorite Seanan McGuire had an adventure with an owl that is completely hilarious and could only happen to her.  Read the Storify of her amazing Tweets here: https://storify.com/lilrongal/seanan-s-epic-owl-adventure .  Caution: not-safe-for-work language.

* A recent episode of Wired’s Geek’s Guide to the Galaxy podcast interviewed authors Nisi Shawl, Nalo Hopkinson and Sunil Patel about diversity in speculative fiction: http://www.wired.com/2016/02/geeks-guide-diversity-destroy-scifi/

* For those of us who have always longed to summon the Elder Gods through our laptops, there is now a font exclusively for that! http://www.neatorama.com/neatogeek/2014/05/12/A-Cthulhuian-Font-You-Can-Download-And-Use-To-Summon-Strange-Beings/

* Congratulations to C.J. Cherryh, whose writing career has spanned almost four decades, multiple subgenres, and numerous awards -- she has been named a SFWA grand master! http://www.sfwa.org/2016/02/35732/

* In, WHAT THE!? . . . okay? . . . news: The movie crossover plan you thought was just a joke is moving forward; merging the Men In Black movie franchise with the 21 Jump Street movie franchise.  Is it just us, or does this sound like it might actually work?  http://variety.com/2016/film/news/23-jump-street-men-in-black-james-bobin-1201715020/

* The short post-apocalyptic film "King Ripple" is a gorgeous and terrifying tale penned by science fiction scribe Josh Malerman and directed by Luke Jaden: http://blogs.indiewire.com/shadowandact/watch-post-apocalyptic-short-film-king-ripple-with-keith-stanfield-20160303

* Teleportation may be here soon(ish)!  No news on if the method will just kill you and create a identical copy at your destination like many theorize; I’m sure they’ll mention it when you get there.   http://zeenews.india.com/news/science/star-trek-science-fiction-turns-science-fact_1862604.html

* In sad news for critics and reviewers (and also Torrenters worldwide), HBO has decided that no one will be seeing any of Game of Thrones season 6 until the premiere date.  Collider breaks it down: http://collider.com/game-of-thrones-season-6-premiere-screeners/

* A lovely article on the first science fiction author to win a MacArthur Genius Grant -- Octavia Butler.  It contains some history about her and a link to Clockshop, which is the non-profit doing a year-long retrospective on this shy and hugely talented author: http://www.scpr.org/programs/offramp/2016/03/03/46914/remembering-unsung-science-fiction-hero-genius-gra/

* N.K. Jemisin provides some great reviews for the New York Times, including one of Sofia Samatar’s new novel: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/28/books/review/on-the-edge-of-gone-by-corinne-duyvis-and-more.html?_r=0

* Joseph Gordon-Levitt has been championing the adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s "Sandman" into a film for years.  He brought in Gaiman as executive producer and seemed to be a real fan of the graphic novels.  His stepping away from the project does not feel like a good thing.  Read his whole statement: http://sciencefiction.com/2016/03/06/joseph-gordon-levitt-departs-sandman/

* For a couple years now there’s been talk of bringing Joe Lansdale’s classic Hap & Leonard to the small screen, and it’s finally happened on Sundance!  Starring James Purefoy, Michael K. Williams, and Christina Hendricks in a six-episode miniseries, you can catch the first two episodes online for free: http://www.sundance.tv/series/hap-and-leonard

* Inverse has an interesting theory that very soon the superhero genre will be consumed whole by the science-fiction genre, as real-life fears begin to parallel those themes more than the military imbalance that fuels superhero themes.  https://www.inverse.com/article/12012-science-fiction-will-consume-the-superhero-industry-and-become-the-genre-to-beat

* Filmmakers around the world survive without the movie industry of Hollywood, or even the other revenue streams that exist for indie films, and they do this through determination and hustling.  That is how Nicholas Attin completed what he calls Trinidad & Tobago’s first science fiction thriller film: "Tomb".  Read about what it took to get it made and check out the first trailer here: http://blogs.indiewire.com/shadowandact/watch-trailer-for-tomb-a-rare-sci-fi-thriller-feature-film-from-trinidad-tobago-20160304

* Speaking of resourceful filmmakers, congratulations to Arwen Curry, creator of the documentary "The Worlds of Ursula K. LeGuin," which has been fully funded by a combination of a hugely successful Kickstarter and a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.  We're anxiously looking forward to the finished film!  [Assistant Editor's Note: In an amusing bonus, Borderlands' newsletter editor Na'amen Tilahun has a tiny appearance in the film of which he wasn't even aware.]

* J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series has achieved a level of success rarely seen -- movies, plays, encyclopedias, theme parks, and even more to come.  Newsweek takes a look at how Rowling kept the "cult" of Harry Potter alive: http://www.newsweek.com/how-jk-rowling-kept-potter-cult-alive-433628

* An NPR piece from January focuses on Finnish authors who are finally having some of their works translated into English.  These include Johanna Sinisalo, whose novel THE CORE OF THE SUN was published in Finland over three years ago.  http://www.npr.org/2016/01/24/463878369/finnish-authors-heat-up-the-speculative-fiction-world

* The Daily Beast has an in-depth interview with Samuel Delany on the subject of art, specifically cover art.  He discusses his own covers, his favorite Tolkien covers, and how much cover art matters (or doesn’t) in speculative fiction.  http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/03/05/sci-fi-hero-samuel-delany-s-outsider-art.html

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Award News
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* The 2015 Nebula Award nominees have been announced.  Check out the full list here: https://www.sfwa.org/2016/02/2015-nebula-awards-nominees-announced/

* The Horror Writers' Association has decided to honor both Alan Moore and George A. Romero with Lifetime Achievement Awards.  More information here: http://horror.org/hwa-names-alan-moore-george-a-romero-as-2016-lifetime-achievement-award-winners/

* The Kitschies, which celebrate progressive, intelligent, and entertaining speculative fiction, have announced their nominees:
http://www.thekitschies.com/the-kitschies-2015-shortlists-revealed/

* The 23rd Annual Spectrum Award nominations (with the artwork!) are available to look at here: http://fleskpublications.com/blog/2016/02/29/spectrum-23-awards-nominations/

* The Bram Stoker Awards final ballot has been announced.  The full list is here: http://horror.org/the-bram-stoker-awards-final-ballot/

* The Norma K. Hemming Award (which is given every year to a work that explores themes of race, gender, sexuality, class, and disability in speculative fiction first published in Australia or by an Australian citizen,) has announced its shortlist: http://www.asff.org.au/hemming-award-2016-shortlist.htm

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From The Office
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Hi Folks.  This month I was going to give an in-depth explanation about our long-term plans for the businesses, especially focusing on the possible purchase of a building to house the store.  However, I have spent the last week out sick with the worst cold I have ever had the misfortune to experience.  I'm back now, mostly recovered, but I've so much pressing work to take care of due to my absence that I'm not going to have time to write much of anything.  Rather than delaying this newsletter even further, I'm going to postpone that explanation for a month.  So, look for that in the April newsletter, and wish me luck trying to get caught up between now and then.

All Best,
Alan

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Best Sellers
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Borderlands Best-Selling Titles for February, 2016:

Hardcovers
1. ALL THE BIRDS IN THE SKY by Charlie Jane Anders
2. A GATHERING OF SHADOWS by V.E. Schwab
3. GENTLEMAN JOLE AND THE RED QUEEN by Lois McMaster Bujold
4. LOVECRAFT COUNTRY by Matt Ruff
5. MORNING STAR by Pierce Brown
6. BANDS OF MOURNING by Brandon Sanderson
7. KINGFISHER by Patricia A. McKillip
8. BIGFOOTLOOSE AND FINN FANCY FREE by Randy Henderson
9. POSEIDON’S WAKE by Alastair Reynolds
10. CALAMITY by Brandon Sanderson

Mass Market Paperbacks
1. THE MARTIAN by Andy Weir
2. INTO THE MAELSTROM by David Drake & John Lambshead
3. THE GOBLIN EMPEROR by Katherine Addison
4. THE THOUSAND NAMES by Django Wexler
5. FLASH - ARCHFORM: BEAUTY VOL. 2 by L.E. Modesitt Jr.
6. THE TERRANS by Jean Johnson
7. THE CUSTODIAN OF MARVELS by Rod Duncan
8. THE LONG UTOPIA by Terry Pratchett
9. STEAL THE SKY by Megan E. O’Keefe
10. MIDNIGHT TAXI TANGO by Daniel Jose Older

Trade Paperbacks
1. THE THREE BODY PROBLEM by Cixin Liu
2. A DARKER SHADE OF MAGIC by V.E. Schwab
3. CITY OF BLADES by Robert Jackson Bennett
4. VICIOUS by V.E. Schwab
5. INDEXING: REFLECTIONS by Seanan McGuire

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Book Club Information
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The QSF&F Book Club will meet on Sunday, April 10th, at 5 pm to discuss THE MOTE IN GOD'S EYE by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle.  The book for May will be THE PERIPHERAL by William Gibson.  Please contact the group leader, Christopher Rodriguez, at cobalt555@earthlink.net, for more information.

The Science Fiction and Fantasy Book Club will meet on Sunday, March 20th, at 6 pm to discuss TIME AND AGAIN by Jack Finney. The book for the following month will be THE DANGEROUS TYPE by Loren Rhoads (with a special author visit!) Please contact bookclub@borderlands-books.com for more information.

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Upcoming Event Details
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Pwning Tomorrow, Today! at the Internet Archive (300 Funston Avenue  San Francisco  CA) with authors Cory Doctorow, Eileen Gunn, Carolyn Jewel, Ramez Naam, Annalee Newitz, Hannu Ranjaniemi, and Rudy Rucker on Saturday, March 19th at 2:00 pm - The Electronic Frontier Foundation will host an afternoon with the authors of PWNING TOMORROW, the EFF's free ebook anthology of speculative fiction.  EFF's Dave Maass leads PWNING TOMORROW authors Cory Doctorow, Eileen Gunn, Carolyn Jewel, Ramez Naam, Annalee Newitz, Hannu Ranjaniemi, and Rudy Rucker in exploring their works and the future of digital privacy and free expression.  EFF is pleased to host this event with the Internet Archive.  Borderlands will be on hand to sell (paper) books.  Current EFF members will receive a free Pwning Tomorrow commemorative poster at the event reception from 2-3 pm.  The author panel begins at 3 pm.  The ebook is free and available to the public.  RSVP: https://eff.org/PwningTomorrowToday  Get the ebook: https://supporters.eff.org/donate/pwning-tomorrow

Glen Hirshberg, GOOD GIRLS (Tor Books, Hardcover, $26.99) on Saturday, March 26th at 3:00 pm - From the publisher's website: "Three-time International Horror Guild and Shirley Jackson Award Winner Glen Hirshberg brings his flair for the grim, grisly, and emotionally harrowing to GOOD GIRLS, the standalone sequel to MOTHERLESS CHILD."  Glen is a brilliant writer, and MOTHERLESS CHILD was a terrifying ride.  We hope you'll help us welcome him back and check out this new work of excellent literary horror.  You can read an excerpt here: http://us.macmillan.com/excerpt?isbn=9780765337467

Brian Staveley, THE LAST MORTAL BOND (Tor Books, Hardcover, $28.99) on Tuesday, March 29th at 7:00 pm - We are happy to welcome Brian Staveley to Borderlands for the conclusion of the trilogy begun with THE EMPEROR'S BLADES! From the publisher's website: "The ancient csestriim are back to finish their purge of humanity; armies march against the capital; leaches, solitary beings who draw power from the natural world to fuel their extraordinary abilities, maneuver on all sides to affect the outcome of the war; and capricious gods walk the earth in human guise with agendas of their own.  But the three imperial siblings at the heart of it all --Valyn, Adare, and Kaden -- come to understand that even if they survive the holocaust unleashed on their world, there may be no reconciling their conflicting visions of the future."  See the cover art, as well as Brian's, um, influential original sketch, here: http://www.tor.com/2015/05/07/cover-reveal-last-mortal-bond-brian-staveley/

Marie Brennan, IN THE LABYRINTH OF DRAKES (Tor Books, Hardcover, $25.99) on Saturday, April 9th at 3:00 pm -  An event with Marie Brennan is always a delight -- last time she brought _dragon bones_, people!  Anyway, we're happy to welcome her back for the newest chapter in the very exciting memoirs of the world's premier dragon naturalist, Lady Trent. You can see the absolutely adorable dragon hatchling on the cover here: http://www.tor.com/2015/05/06/cover-reveal-for-marie-brennans-in-the-labyrinth-of-drakes/.   You know she's a great author, but did you know that Marie is also a talented photographer?  We'll be featuring a small selection of Marie's photographs in the Cafe from March 29 - May 31st, so this is perfect opportunity to meet the writer and discover a new facet of her talents!

SF in SF with authors Peter S. Beagle and Carter Scholz (American Bookbinders Museum, 355 Clementina, San Francisco, CA) on Sunday, April 17th at 6:30 pm - (Suggested donation $10, no one turned away for lack of funds.)  Doors and bar at 5:30 pm, event begins at 6:30 pm.  We're so happy to celebrate the return of SF in SF, at a lovely new venue! Each author will read a selection from their work, followed by Q&A from the audience moderated by author Terry Bisson.  Authors will schmooze & sign books after.  Books available for sale courtesy of Borderlands Books.  Seating is limited, so first come, first seated.  Bar proceeds benefit the American Bookbinders Museum.   Phone (night of event) 415-572-1015.  Questions?  Email sfinsfevents@gmail.com.

InsideStorytime SUPERPOWERS at The Make Out Room (3225 22nd St.  San Francisco CA) with Charlie Jane Anders, Elwin Cotman, Daryl Gregory, guest MC Dhaya Lakshminarayanan, Jessica May Lin, and Seanan McGuire on Thursday, April 21st at 7:00 pm - Borderlands will be on hand to sell books; do not miss this irresistible lineup!  More info about InsideStorytime can be found here: http://www.insidestorytime.com/

Paolo Bacigalupi, THE WATER KNIFE (Vintage, Trade Paperback, $16.00) on Friday, April 22nd at 7:00 pm - It's always an honor to host talented Paolo Bacigalupi!  Paolo's back in town to share the paperback publication of his frighteningly plausible novel THE WATER KNIFE.  You can read a great review of the novel from NPR here: http://www.npr.org/2015/05/28/408295800/the-water-knife-cuts-deep.  We hope you'll join us.

Seanan McGuire, EVERY HEART A DOORWAY (Tor.com, Hardcover, $17.99) on Saturday, April 23rd at 6:00 pm - Are there actually two events with Seanan McGuire listed in this single newsletter?  Yes, there are!  Lee Harris from Tor.com concisely explains exactly what I was thinking about EVERY HEART A DOORWAY: "[The book] tells the story of what happens _after_ Ever After.  When a portal fantasy has ended, and its young protagonist is no longer wanted, where do they go?  And how do they cope with the transition back into the "real" world?  It begins almost as a coming-of-age tale, but soon becomes something quite different and unexpected.  Remember the feeling you had when you read that last great book you were sad to have finished?  Welcome to your next one . . . ."

Richard Kadrey, THE EVERYTHING BOX (Harper Voyager, Hardcover, $24.99) on Sunday, April 24th at 3:00 pm - I was going to tell you all about Richard Kadrey's funny new novel THE EVERYTHING BOX, but this Publishers Weekly review does it just fine! "Los Angeles already has a reputation as a somewhat otherworldly town, but in the skilled hands of Kadrey (the Sandman Slim series), that description takes on new meaning.  Coop, a burglar who specializes in overcoming magical traps and spells, thanks to his natural immunity to them, is just out of jail after a job gone sour.  He’s recruited to steal a mysterious box for a well-paying client.  Coop is far from the only person after the box; he and his crew must contend with a middle-class doomsday cult, agents from the Department of Peculiar Science, a temporally displaced homicidal stranger, and the angel who lost the box in the first place.  Coop soon finds himself in the middle of a shadow war between heaven and Earth, with the biblical apocalypse at stake.  Kadrey draws heavily on Gaiman and Pratchett’s classic novel, GOOD OMENS, for inspiration, and in equal measure on Donald Westlake’s caper comedies.  Kadrey’s plot doesn’t depend on magic; instead, magic is the broth bringing all manner of delicious ingredients together in this wonderful stew of a story.  This unusual urban fantasy is a delight."  Don't miss this chance to meet Richard Kadrey!

This newsletter is distributed monthly free of charge and may be distributed without charge so long all the following information is included.

Dispatches from the Border
Editor - Na'amen Tilahun
Assistant Editor - Jude Feldman

All contents unless otherwise noted are the property of Borderlands Books, 866 Valencia St.
San Francisco CA 94110
415 824-8203
http://www.borderlands-books.com
Comments and suggestions should be directed to editor@borderlands-books.com