Scalzi and the Hugo 2: Electric Boogaloo

It’s not every day that I can say, "Hey, one of my friends is nominated for a Hugo."

It’s not every day that I can say, "Hey, one of my friends is nominated for a Hugo. Again."

It is, however, embarrassing to me that while I can now say, "Hey, one of my friends is nominated for a Hugo. Again," I never actually read the goddamn book that’s nominated, though I bought it on the day it was released, and consistently face it out when I see it in book stores.

So, yesterday, I set up a chair in the back yard, grabbed some iced tea, and started reading The Last Colony.

At 2 this morning, I finally forced myself to put the book down because I was too tired to comprehend it, and didn’t want to miss anything. I’m a little more than halfway through, I guess, and while I’ve wanted to do nothing more than blow off all my work for today and dive back into it, I’ve been responsible to the point of avoiding extended trips to the bathroom, whether I really have to go or not.

Oh, shut up. You’ve all done it, and if you haven’t done it, it’s because you don’t have kids who wouldn’t leave you alone to read unless you were making stinky with the door closed.

I don’t know what my endorsement is worth, but if you’ve read my blog long enough to have an idea of whether or not we like the same things, you should go get this book right away, though I’m guessing most of you already have, since I’m so late to the party on this one.

I loved all the books that John set in this universe: Old Man’s War, The Ghost Brigades, and The Sagan Diary. I love the characters, I love the setting, and I love how massively fun they all are to read. I love them so much, in fact, that I have the lettered versions from Subterranean Press. That’s a lot of love, my friends. The Last Colony had some very big shoes to fill, and it’s wearing them quite nicely. If you’re looking for an accessible, intelligent, well-paced series that won’t let you down in the flavor department, I urge you to check out these books. The cool thing? John wrote them so they all work together, but each one stands alone, like the farmer’s cheese, so you don’t have to commit yourself to them all to enjoy just one.

I would bet, however (if I were a betting man, which I sometimes kinda am) that after reading one of them, you will want to read them all, and you won’t be disappointed.

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25 thoughts on “Scalzi and the Hugo 2: Electric Boogaloo”

  1. This part “you don’t have kids who wouldn’t leave you alone to read unless you were making stinky with the door closed.”
    Made me laugh so hard some of my co-workers are wondering if I’m a little insane.
    For me: not kids, significant other. Same scenario though.

  4. I’m perhaps unusual, in that I started with the most atypical of the books: The Sagan Diary, which proves that not only can Scalzi write, but he can also write. The prose and thought there just blew me away.
    I’m being stubborn and reading the books from “start” to “last”, although perhaps I should just pick up The Last Colony now and get all Hugo-caught-up.

  5. I have read all of them as well and I agree. They are great. And, yes, I do the same thing. With two kids, six and four, I really have no choice.

  6. I finally got around to reading my first Scalzi – Old Man’s War – last week. Spent three days taking advantage of every spare minute to read it. (“Hey, this elevator’s got TWO floors to go >rummage through bag< I can get a couple pages in before I get there...") Wouldn't have ever known about it if it wasn't for your blog, Wil, so thanks a ton.

  8. I’ve recently finished Old Man’s War and I just missed buying The Ghost Brigades at the last SF con I was at so I’m waiting for the library to tell me they have a copy on reserve for me. I picked up The Androids Dream and The Last Colony, though.
    I’ve been telling everyone I know that Old Man’s War is the best first novel I’ve read so far. Note: I tried to read Heinlein once (Double Star) and didn’t like it enough to finish it. So you don’t have to like Heinlein to like Scalzi’s stuff.
    And I have to ask, what’s your Zombie Plan?

  9. Do you love them so much that you want to take them behind the middle school and get them pregnant?
    Thanks 30 Rock. I heart you. I heart you so much that….

  10. Thanks for the recommendation.I’ll give those books a read.
    And I totally know where you’re coming from on the bathroom thing. Heh.

  11. I wish they’d hurry up and make an Old Man’s War video game. Here’s my idea for it: during character creation, you pick your old person-type wrinkled facial features, and the game extrapolates the younger self. How fun would that be? =P

  12. I’ve only read Old Man’s War so far and read his blog (after you linked to both many times) but I have to say I *love* OMW and I’m becoming quite a Scalzi fan. I’m really late to the party when it comes to his books but hopefully I’ll be picking up some of the rest of his books soon.
    My special reading alone in the bathroom time is always cut short by a chorus of “meows” in various states of duress and numerous paws thrust under the door.
    Cheers!

  14. I’m working my way through Old Man’s War since Tor offered it as a free e-book. It’s dangerously hurting my work productivity – “Hey, I’m compiling… time to read a few pages!” *half an hour later* “Ahh crap!” – I didn’t realize there were so many more in the series. Yay!

  16. Hi Wil,
    Brian Briggs (BBspot.com) has written a great new book titled “The BBook of Geek,” a hilarious guide to topics every geek should know. Part reference, part satire, all geek, it simultaneously pokes fun at and celebrates everything that makes a geek a geek. The BBook of Geek breaks down geekdom into eight pillars of knowledge: science, literature, hardware, software, gaming, movies, TV and the Internet. Each pillar has 16 topics which range from Einstein to emacs, from Stan Lee to Star Trek and everything in between. Also, to make the transition from computer to book easier, The BBook of Geek comes installed with hexadecimal page numbers for its 256 pages (00-FF).
    Most important of all, there’s a section devoted to you.
    We would be honored and grateful if you would consider reading this book and possibly mentioning it on your site. If you’d like to see it, I can email the manuscript to you now or send you the book itself later on.
    Thanks for your time and consideration.

  17. Wil, I will take your recommendation and check out this book.
    Side note for derailment…I checked out BBspot.com and I must say that the site lay out is unbearable. Could there be more junk all over that homepage? I was also startled to see the advert for the USB humping dog. But, I will muscle my way through the navigation and see what’s there. I just suggest a little webscaping. For a Geek site, I would expect a little more organization.
    Sorry, back to the books!

  18. Really, ‘stinky in the bathroom’ gets you privacy?
    You obviously never had MY kids!
    In my house the bathroom is like the bunny trap: bunny has to go in sometime then !SNAP! trapped!
    *sigh*

  19. I really, really liked The Last Colony. However, as a Canadian, I am legally obligated to root for Robert J. Sawyer’s novel Rollback. I urge everyone to check it out, and not just because I’m a frothing fanboy. If you’re interested, Rob’s site is http://www.sfwriter.com

  21. Okay, so I’m a little late in commenting – but… total synchronicity – This last week I was on a business trip to Vancouver, BC, and took Old Man’s War up with me. I’d never heard of Scalzi before – the book was given to me by my mom (who’d I’d just turned on to SciFi).
    I almost broke the book I read it so fast. The characters are so believable. Very well crafted plots, transitions – I’m looking forward to reading the rest of his books now.
    I’d always had the urge to try my hand at SciFi fiction (I’ve co-authored two non-fiction technical books) – Scalzi gives me encouragement!

  22. Having just picked up Old Man’s War and having just read it in bed until I fell asleep with a book on my chest then having immediately scrambled for my page upon waking and finishing the book before getting out of bed… having done all that I am now very grateful that I read your review and subsequently read the book!

  23. I picked them up via Amazon.co.uk, they arrived in the mail monday
    Today thursday, i’m half way through Ghost Brigade and loving every second of it!
    Items not yet dispatched: Delivery estimate: 31 Jul 2008: The Last Colony
    I can hardly wait…

  24. Dammit, Wil… I discovered your blog earlier this year and you’ve already cost me over £80.
    My friends hint that there’s something weird about a man in his mid-30s walking around in a crayon version of the opening scene of Res Dogs. But it always gets an appreciative laugh when people recognise it. 🙂
    Love your stuff. Keep it up.

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