Tuesday, March 6, 2018

Dispatches from the Border, March 2018

DISPATCHES FROM THE BORDER
Events and News From Borderlands Books
March 2018

----------------------
Upcoming Events
----------------------

Loteria Game Night and Poster Signing with artist John Picacio! Thursday, March 15th at 7:00 pm

Mishell Baker, IMPOSTOR SYNDROME (Saga Press, Hardcover $29.99 and Trade Paperback, $15.99) and Seanan McGuire, TRICKS FOR FREE (DAW, Mass Market, $7.99) Saturday, March 17th at 6:00 pm

Come Visit Borderlands West, Saturday, March 24th from 12:00 to 6:00 pm - Alan will be showing off our favorite construction site at 1377 Haight St. (at Masonic Ave.)

SF in SF with authors Nancy Kress, Silvia Moreno-Garcia, and Jack Skillingstead (at the American Bookbinders Museum, 355 Clementina Street, San Francisco) Sunday, March 25th at 6:30 pm

Ilana C. Myer, FIRE DANCE (Tor, Hardcover, $26.99) Saturday, April 14th at 3:00 pm

(for more information check the end of this newsletter)

-------
News
-------
* Overheard in the Store:
"I told them, 'Several people this morning are really lucky that it's impossible to get punched in the face through a telephone.'"

* As much as spending a stupid amount of money to make a TV series based on The Lord Of The Rings was, well . . . stupid (http://deadline.com/2017/11/amazon-the-lord-of-the-rings-tv-series-multi-season-commitment-1202207065/), Amazon's most recent move is brilliant.  They're making a TV series based on Iain M. Bank's Culture novels, starting with Consider Phlebas.  We cannot wait.  https://www.theverge.com/2018/2/21/17035618/amazon-culture-series-iain-m-banks-television-show

* R.I.P prolific speculative author Victor Milan.  To read more about the series he contributed to, the writers he helped and the impact he had, read this wonderful obituary in Albuquerque Journal.  https://www.abqjournal.com/1141374/prolific-author-victor-milaacuten-leaves-science-fiction-legacy.html

* Popular Bangladeshi science fiction Muhammad Zafar Iqbal was recently stabbed in the head.  He survived, and is currently undergoing treatment, but please keep him in your thoughts.  http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/popular-science-fiction-writer-zafar-iqbal-stabbed-in-bangladesh/article22920210.ece

* Fionce Siow gives her opinion on how most recent science fiction visual media has let us down when it comes to pushing forward instead of reinvestigating the same questions over and over.  http://www.dailycal.org/2018/03/04/mainstream-science-fiction-fails-to-live-up-to-its-full-potential/

* For anyone in Southern California (or anyone planning a trip there soon), be sure to swing by the Pasadena Museum of History and check out their new exhibit "Dreaming the Universe: The Intersection of Science, Fiction, & Southern California."  https://www.pasadenastarnews.com/2018/02/27/see-southern-californias-history-of-science-fiction-and-fact-at-pasadena-museum-of-history/

* A fascinating article in the Wall Street Journal about the rise of digital dictatorships, using science fiction as a jumping off point to talk about the Chinese government and technology.  https://www.wsj.com/articles/stranger-than-science-fiction-the-future-for-digital-dictatorships-1519900866

* Peter S. Beagle is to be honored as the next SFWA Grand Master!  Read all about it over at GeekWire:  https://www.geekwire.com/2018/seattle-pittsburghs-fantastic-connection-new-grand-master-science-fiction-fantasy/

* The Verge has pointed us in the direction of an interesting podcast we can't wait to check out.  Read their write-up on Imaginary Worlds, a podcast that goes deep into different aspects of the science-fiction & fantasy community: https://www.theverge.com/2018/2/18/16392224/eric-molinsky-imaginary-worlds-science-fiction-fantasy-podcast

* Looking for something new to read?  Gizmodo gives us 27 novels coming out in March; at least one or two are sure to tickle your fancy. https://www.gizmodo.com.au/2018/03/27-new-science-fiction-and-fantasy-books-well-worth-checking-out-in-march/

* "Annihilation" is the latest in a string of visual science-fiction that has done a better job at putting more complex female characters in the forefront. https://slate.com/culture/2018/02/annihilation-leads-a-new-wave-of-sci-fi-movies-about-women.html

* LAB GROWN MEAT!  It's actually a pretty awesome thing (and we can't wait to try some), but it just feels like it has to be said in capital letters, old-school horror-movie-poster style.  https://www.reuters.com/article/us-shapiro-meat-commentary/commentary-science-fiction-no-more-can-lab-grown-meat-feed-and-save-the-world-idUSKCN1GA25H

* Genre picked up a lot of awards this Oscar season; hopefully this means we'll see a broader collections of stories being adapted for visual media in the near future. http://www.syfy.com/syfywire/genre-fare-picks-up-big-at-the-oscars

* We had hoped that when they announced a Dune Park it would be about ingesting spice and avoiding sandworms, but an actual park is good too.
https://www.geekwire.com/2018/science-fiction-author-frank-herberts-legacy-honored-new-dune-park-tacoma/

* An essay on the ideas in PKD's MINORITY REPORT, and what they could mean for real-world legal rules and ramifications.  If you're interested, it's the beginning of a series. https://patentlyo.com/patent/2018/02/science-fiction-minority.html

* Netflix continues to purchase big-budget science fiction films that other studios are nervous about attempting.  https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/netflix-cloverfield-paradox-watch-extinction-release-date-trailer-bright-a8203256.html

* This movement of western science fiction as it (too) slowly starts to reach out, and we get more and more translated works from other countries and perspectives is fantastic. A new volume examining the Russian fantastic is out now!  http://news.cornell.edu/stories/2018/02/new-edited-volume-examines-russian-science-fiction

* Stephen R. Donaldson begins a new fantasy series in a different world.  http://newsok.com/seventh-decimate-launches-series-for-veteran-fantasy-writer/article/5585271

* Five fantasy books by women that you should read in 2018, according to Newsweek.  http://www.newsweek.com/2018/03/09/female-fantasy-books-written-women-2018-820278.html

* An article that explores why "Black Panther" is so important to black science fiction and fantasy fans, and also why it is an important step in correcting longstanding media imbalance:  https://www.destructoid.com/black-panther-is-black-fantasy-sci-fi-490817.phtml

* Oscar Award-winning "The Shape of Water" has faced a lot of analysis and scrutiny in the past few months, but not enough has been made of its use of religion. This article breaks down a lot of the important parallels and metaphors it uses.  http://www.kentucky.com/opinion/op-ed/article203415989.html

* An article about the fact that time travel might actually be possible.  https://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/weird-news/686557/how-to-time-travel-is-time-travel-possible-proof-science-evidence-how

------------------
Award News
------------------

* The 2017 Nebula nominees have been announced.  Congratulations to all the nominees, but especially to local friends of the store Daryl Gregory, Ellen Klages, and Annalee Newitz!  https://www.theverge.com/2018/2/20/17032222/2018-nebula-awards-nominations-best-science-fiction-fantasy-books-movies-read-online

* Congratulations to Carmen Maria Machado, who has received the Crawford Award for her collection HER BODY & OTHER PARTIES!  Check out the rest of the short list at Locus: https://locusmag.com/2018/02/machado-wins-crawford-award/

* The 2017 finalists for Aurealis Awards for excellence in Australian SF/F have been announced.  https://aurealisawards.org/2018/02/15/2017-aurealis-awards-shortlist-announcement/

*The shortlist for the 2017 British Science Fiction Awards has been announced.  Go here to check it out and vote if you're a member of BSFA.  https://www.bsfa.co.uk/bsfa-2017-awards-voting-form/

* The Sir Julius Vogel Award finalists from New Zealand have been announced: http://www.sffanz.org.nz/sjv/sjvFinalists-2018.html

* Ursula K. Le Guin has been posthumously award a PEN Award for her collection of essays, NO TIME TO SPARE: THINKING ABOUT WHAT MATTERS. Check out all the winners here: https://pen.org/2018-winners/

* Kenesha Williams has been awarded the 2018 Scholarship From Hell by the HWA, which will allow her to attend the intensive Horror University at this year's StokerCon.  For more details on the awards and on Williams, check out the StokerCon website: http://stokercon2018.org/2018/02/the-2018-winner-of-the-scholarship-from-hell/

* The 2018 Compton Crook Award nominees have been announced.  (As a side bonus, the Baltimore Science Fiction Society's website is sure to provide a flashback to anyone old enough to remember Angelfire or Geocities.)  http://www.bsfs.org/CCA/bsfsccnu2014.htm

--------------------
From The Office
--------------------

Haight Street Building Update -

Frustratingly, I don't have very much news this month.  We're in that miserable stage of construction wherein we mostly wait.  We wait for the engineer to get drawings back to us and we wait for PG&E to answer basic questions.  Until those things happen, I've been keeping busy closing up the wall that we can close (i.e. putting up sheetrock and patching),  but even that process has had some waiting because the next step, "Tape and Mud", has to wait 'til it gets a bit warmer, since there's no heat hooked up yet.

(An aside: "tape and mud" is the process in which we use paper tape to close the seams where pieces of sheetrock meet.  That tape in held in place and covered by joint compound, ("mud"), which is mostly gypsum dust mixed with water.  Since water is the solvent, it takes time to dry and contracts when it does.  If the temperature is too low, it takes forever to dry and, worse, cracks more.  So, we need some days that are mostly over 55 degrees, and we haven't had many of those.  There are other compounds that I could use, but they are a pain in the butt to work with compared to regular mud.)

On the bright side, the volunteers that I'm working with are great, and they've been learning a lot.  Last Sunday I realized that I'm basically training a framing crew from the ground up.  It's taking a little time (and some mis-cut lumber),  but they're smart folks, willing to work hard, and are learning really fast.  I expect that, by the time we're building walls in earnest, they'll be pretty darn good.  So it's a great investment for the future.  Most of the hard-core are already getting up to speed with nailguns and compound miter saws.  All that aside, everyone who's come to help has been lovely and has worked their asses off.  It's been heartwarming to see that kind of support and I'm grateful to every one of them.

If the current weather holds, I hope to start the tape and mud this weekend along with doing the framing for the supply closet.  And, based on some email exchanges today, we might have the engineering drawings by the end of this week.  Which would be a very, very fine thing.

If you're curious about how the place looks, you'll have a chance this month to come check it out.  I'll be holding the place open for visits on Saturday, the 24th, from noon until six pm.  Feel free to stop by anytime in that window and I'll give you the ten-cent tour.
All Best,
Alan

----------------
Best Sellers
----------------
Borderlands Best-Selling Titles for February, 2018

Hardcovers
1. The Power by Naomi Alderman
2. Tempests and Slaughter by Tamora Pierce
3. The Will to Battle by Ada Palmer
4. Provenance by Ann Leckie
5. Autonomous by Annalee Newitz
6. Beneath the Sugar Sky by Seanan McGuire
7. Artemis by Andy Weir
8. Black Wolves of Boston by Wen Spencer
9.  Dark State by Charles Stross
10.  Down Among the Sticks and Bones by Seanan McGuire

Trade Paperbacks
1. The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu, edited by Ken Liu
2. The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin
3. Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer
4. Binti: The Night Masquerade by Nnedi Okorafor
5. Robots vs. Fairies edited by Dominik Parisien and Navah Wolfe
6. Too Like the Lightning by Ada Palmer
7. Woman on the Edge of Time by Marge Piercy
8. Universal Harvester by John Darnielle
9. All the Birds in the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders
10. Amberlough by Lara Ellen Donnelly

Mass Market Paperbacks
1. Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
2. Who Fears Death? by Nnedi Okorafor
3. The Collapsing Empire by John Scalzi
4. Changing Planes by Ursula K. LeGuin
5. Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. LeGuin
6. The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rotthfuss
7. His Majesty's Dragon by Naomi Novik
8. Old Man's War by John Scalzi
9. The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin
10. The Wrong Stars by Tim Pratt


------------------------------
Book Club Information
------------------------------

The QSF&F Book Club will meet on Sunday, March 11th, at 5 pm to discuss AFTER ON by Rob Reid.  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 18th, at 6 pm to discuss MORE THAN HUMAN by Theodore Sturgeon. The book for the following month will be PASSING STRANGE by Ellen Klages.  Please contact bookclub@borderlands-books.com for more information.

------------------------------
Upcoming Event Details
------------------------------

Loteria Night with artist John Picacio!  Thursday, March 15th at 7:00 pm - LOTERIA NIGHT! WIN PRIZES! Join Hugo Award-winning artist John Picacio for a fast, fun evening playing the classic Mexican game of chance, Loteria (AKA 'Mexican Bingo'). John has produced gorgeous book and product art for works by George R. R. Martin, Michael Moorcock, Harlan Ellison, James Tiptree, Jr., Dan Simmons, Brenda Cooper, Robert Silverberg, Sheri S. Tepper, among many others (http://www.johnpicacio.com).  He's producing an ongoing, stunningly-illustrated set of Loteria Cards, and he'll be signing some of those limited-run collectibles.  We'll play up to 10 rounds of Loteria with the classic Mexican bingo deck and winners will go home with terrific prizes.  We'll also have some of John's limited-run Loteria Posters available and the artist will be signing those as well!  We hope you'll join us for an incredibly entertaining night."

Mishell Baker, IMPOSTOR SYNDROME (Saga Press, Hardcover $29.99 and Trade Paperback, $15.99) and Seanan McGuire, TRICKS FOR FREE (DAW, Mass Market, $7.99) Saturday, March 17th at 6:00 pm - It's always a treat to welcome author Seanan McGuire to Borderlands!  This round, she'll be joined again by the awesome Mishell Baker, and we know you're going to love this urban fantasy duo!  Mishell will be showing off her novel IMPOSTER SYNDROME, third of the Arcadia Project novels: "Three months ago, Los Angeles and New Orleans seceded from the Arcadia Project over an atrocity committed by its London leader, Dame Belinda Barker.  Now, as the two U.S. cities scramble to keep their offices running, Barker fires the devastating first shot of an arcane civil war.  And Millie's partner is the target."  Seanan will be showing off TRICKS FOR FREE, the newest InCryptid book. With this seventh book of the series, "Antimony Price is on the run. With the Covenant on her tail and her family still in danger, she needs to get far, far away from anyone who might recognize her--including her own mice.  For the first time in a long time, a Price is flying without a safety net.  Where do you go when you need to disappear into a crowd without worrying about attracting attention?  An amusement park, of course".  Get your questions answered, bring your books to be signed, and prepare for a high-energy, incredibly fun event!

Come Visit Borderlands West, Saturday, March 24th from 12:00 to 6:00 pm - Alan will be showing off our favorite construction site at 1377 Haight St. (at Masonic Ave.).  See the Forest of Basement Posts!  Thrill at the Dirt Carpeted Back Yard!  Marvel at the Extensive Fire Damage!  And get a chance to see it now so you can impress you friends in just a few months by telling them how you never imagined that it would ever look so nice.  Stop by anytime between noon and six and Alan will give you the 10 cent tour.

SF in SF with authors Nancy Kress, Silvia Moreno-Garcia, and Jack Skillingstead (at the American Bookbinders Museum, 355 Clementina Street, San Francisco) Sunday, March 25th at 6:30 pm - (Suggested donation $10.)  Doors and bar at 6:00 pm, event begins at 6:30 pm.  We're so happy to participate in the Science Fiction in San Francisco reading series! The authors 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. Questions? Email sfinsfevents@gmail.com.

Ilana C. Myer, FIRE DANCE (Tor, Hardcover, $26.99) Saturday, April 14th at 3:00 pm - We're delighted to welcome Ilana C. Myer as she returns with a standlaone novel set in the same extraordinary world as her debut novel LAST SONG BEFORE NIGHT!  From the publihser: "Espionage, diplomacy, conspiracy, passion, and power are the sensuously choreographed steps of the soaring new high fantasy novel by Ilana C. Myer, one woman's epic mission to stop a magical conflagration.  Lin, newly initiated in the art of otherwordly enchantments, is sent to aid her homeland's allies against savage attacks from the Fire Dancers: mysterious practitioners of strange and deadly magic.  Forced to step into a dangerous waltz of tradition, treachery, and palace secrets, Lin must also race the ticking clock of her own rapidly dwindling life to learn the truth of the Fire Dancers' war, and how she might prevent death on a scale too terrifying to contemplate.  Myer's novel is a symphony of secret towers, desert winds, burning sands, blood and dust.  Her prose soars, and fluid movements of the politically charged plot carry the reader toward a shocking crescendo."  We hope you'll join us to meet this up-and-coming fantasy novelist!  Read the excellent Publishers Weekly review of FIRE DANCE here: https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-7653-7832-3

Borderlands event policy - all events are free of charge.  You are welcome to bring copies of an author's books purchased elsewhere to be autographed (but we do appreciate it if you purchase something while at the event).  For most events you are welcome to bring as many books as you wish for autographs.  If you are unable to attend the event we will be happy to have a copy of any of the author's available books signed or inscribed for you.  We can then either hold the book(s) until you can come in to pick them up or we can ship to you.  Just give us a call or drop us an email.  If you live out of town, you can also ship us books from your collection to be signed for a nominal fee.  Call or email for details.

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 Gobert 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

* * * * * * *