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In this special episode, we celebrate the midpoint between Life Day 2022 and Life Day 2023 (it's Halfway to Life Day!) with a review of the Star Wars Life Day Cookbook by Chef Strono Tuggs. We were joined by friend and writer Ann Harris for an eclectic feast from a galaxy far, far away. This is a cookbook episode, so we're eating, and it sounds like we're eating. We even talk with our mouths full (especially Lori), so if that's gonna gross you out, skip this one. LINKS: Follow author Ann Harris on Twitter! Hook, Line, and Sinker anthology, featuring Ann's short story "Changeling" Good, easy bread recipe Chewbacca speaking English

This month we discussed The Yiddish Policemen's Union by Michael Chabon. We swam in a sea of metaphors and similes so you don't have to. But you might want to, because in spite of itself, this storm of words is good! DM: Amy Big thanks to Lori's cousin Sarah, who did a sensitivity edit for us, and wrote us such a banger of an email that we asked her to turn it into a review! Heck, maybe we do written reviews now! Who knows! Check out our new shop! Transcript Library  Music by Pets of Belonging Lots 'o Links: NY Mag Review NYT Review Tor.com: Is Alternate History SF? Keith Law's Review London Review of Books   Academic Dictionaries & Encyclopedias

This month we discussed Kate Wilhelm's 1977 Hugo winner, Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang. This is the second book in our accidental 2023 Clone Duology (after Cyteen), and it's pretty weird! This episode covers some important topics, such as whether sex between clones is more like incest or more like masturbation.  DM: Lori CW/TW: Lots of weird sex stuff. DON'T LISTEN WITH YOUR KID(S) IN THE CAR. Thanks to Cody from the Hugonauts podcast for joining us! Each episode of Hugonauts dives into a single book or series in the sci-fi canon. They also do incredible author interviews, including a recent episode with Becky Chambers. Transcript Library  Music by Pets of Belonging

BIG NEWS: We're dropping our very first ALBUM!! We've curated all your favorite Sci Fi hits in one exclusive mix: The Hugo, Girl! Sounds of Sci Fi!  Supplies are limited, so order yours now!

This month we discussed CJ Cherryh's hot em dash mess, Cyteen. Weighing in at 1 lb 10.7 ounces (or 757 grams), Cyteen is a whole lotta book, and we definitely read every page of it.  SPOILER WARNING: There's a pretty uninteresting spoiler for Cyteen's sequel Regenesis, around the 45-46 minute mark. If you don't want to know who killed Ari, skip that part. DM: Haley CW/TW: sexual assault Transcript Library  Music by Pets of Belonging Links: Dragonflight and the Extinction of the Bodice Ripper Cyteen. (meadowparty.com) - Review by Keith Law nerds of a feather, flock together: The Hugo Initiative: Cyteen Designing people and societies: C.J. Cherryh’s Cyteen John Mulaney's Happy Birthday Sketch 

This month we read Doomsday Book, Connie Willis's 1993 Hugo Award for Best Novel. We had no idea it was going to be an eerily prescient pandemic story, with parallels to today, right down to the oft-mentioned toilet paper shortage. Necrotic! Amy is DM.  Transcript Library  Music by Pets of Belonging   Links: Doomsday Book, the 1992 time-travel novel that sheds light on today’s pandemic. (slate.com) New York Review of Science Fiction

This month we read Fritz Leiber's 1958 Hugo winner, The Big Time, which despite the cover art is not actually about a very tall lady. It was weird! DM: Lori Transcript Library  Music by Pets of Belonging LINKS: 1958 Hugo Nominees by Jo Walton Fritz Leiber's 1982 Introduction Neil Gaiman's Review

This month we jacked into cyberpunk classic Neuromancer, by noted orange cat owner William Gibson. Neuromancer won the Philip K. Dick Award and the Nebula Award in 1984, and the Hugo for Best Novel in 1985. There's some fun stuff in there! We don't hate it! Your console cowboy for this episode is Haley. TW/CW: SA Links: Hard-Wired Traumas Scene from Johnny Mnemonic

It's the fourth and final installment of Novella-vember! That was a lot! Phew! For our last episode, we read The Emperor's Soul by Brandon Sanderson, which won the Hugo for best novella in 2013. Amy is DM.

It's week 3 of Novella-vember! This is the third installment in our series. We'll be releasing four weekly episodes in November, covering a Hugo Award-winning novella. For this week's episode, we read The Last of the Winnebagos by Connie Willis, which won the Hugo for best novella in 1989. Lori is DM.

It's week 2 of Novella-vember! This is the second installment in our series. We'll be releasing four weekly episodes in November, covering a Hugo Award-winning novella.  For this week's episode, we read Houston, Houston, Do You Read? by James Tiptree Jr., which won the Hugo for best novella in 1977. Haley is DM. CW/TW: sexual violence, brief discussion of suicide Transcripts Music by Kevin

It's Novella-vember! This is the first installment in our series. We'll be releasing four weekly episodes in November, covering a Hugo Award-winning novella.  For this week's episode, we read The Word for World is Forest, which won the Hugo for best novella in 1973. Amy is DM. CW/TW: sexual violence, murder, colonial violence, slavery, racism Transcripts Music by Kevin

It's time for our Halloween Spooktacular Special! We watched and discussed the 1997 sci-fi/horror film Event Horizon, which has some incredible practical effects and solid performances, and is also very nearly scary. DM: Kevin!! CW/TW: violence, body horror, discussion of gross/graphic injuries Episode transcripts available via: https://www.hugogirlpodcast.com/transcripts Spooky special music by Kevin

This month we read and discussed Samuel R. Delany's 1984 queer sci-fi masterpiece, Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand, chosen by our fundraiser winner and friend, Steven! It was wild and it was weird and you should probably give it a shot if you haven't read it. DM: Lori CW/TW: none really, but lots of sex talk so FYI if you're listening with your kids or your parents in the car We've picked our books for Novella-vember: The Word for World is Forest Houston, Houston, Do You Read? The Last of the Winnebagos The Emperor's Soul Links: Sex With the Six-Legged Strangers Discussing 'Stars in my Pocket Like Grains of Sand' with Dale Cooper Samuel Delany Answers Your Science Fiction Questions! Like Pop Rocks for the Brain by Jo Walton  ________________________ Episode transcripts Music by Eon

We debrief after attending Chicon 8! Nearly 4 weeks after the fact, so the focus is largely on pizza. Tl;dr - we didn't win the Hugo, had fun anyway! 5 stars, would do again. Transcripts Music by Eon

This month we watched and discussed the beloved camp classic, Jupiter Ascending. What makes a good movie, anyway? If it has great costumes, sweeping spacescapes, and Eddie Redmayne alternately whispering and screaming, isn’t that enough to be good? Plot, dialogue, and acting are overrated, honestly. DM: Haley Episode transcripts available via: https://www.hugogirlpodcast.com/transcripts Music by Eon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVbvE0PJyss Links Movie Yelling from The Toast Notes on Camp by Susan Sontag Fiasco! episode of This American Life Lori was right about genetic copies.

This month we discussed Jo Walton's debatably fantastical novel Among Others, winner of the Hugo for best novel in 2012.  Your DM for this episode is Amy! CW/TW: CSA, child death Episode transcripts are available within a few days after the audio. Music by Eon Links: Jo Walton's Gizmodo Interview

Last month, we had the pleasure of appearing on City Lights, our local NPR station's arts and culture show, for an interview with senior producer Kim Drobes. We discussed the Hugo Awards, common issues in science fiction, and our favorite podcast segments.  AND THEN...the text version of our interview got scraped, run through a not-very-good thesaurus, and posted on a goofy "news" site. The result was hilarious, and we are pleased to present you with a dramatic live reading! Check out the original (legitimate) version (you can listen or read the interview highlights) on WABE's website.

This month we read and watched 2001: A Space Odyssey. The film won the Hugo for Best Dramatic Presentation in 1969. The poor book won no awards. This sprawling classic prompted many College Thoughts. Will we find the meaning of life? Probably not. Also, please enjoy a cameo from Haley's mom! DM: Lori Episode transcripts available via: https://www.hugogirlpodcast.com/transcripts Music by Eon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVbvE0PJyss Links: Interview with Clarke 

At long last, we discussed our oft-referenced favorite tale of Terror (and Erebus), Dan Simmons' 2007 novel The Terror, a fictionalized and dubiously supernatural account of the Franklin Expedition. Is it Peak Dan Simmons? Yes, it is! Is it as good the second time? No, it isn't! Did we still LOVE discussing it so much that we talked for nearly two hours, which Kevin has painstakingly pared down to 90 minutes? You betcha! Haley is both the captain and ship's cook for this episode. She made us pea soup and custom-monogrammed hardtack to fuel our discussion. Amy joined us remotely due to having a bit of a cough, hence the slight difference in sound quality. Safety first! CW/TW: Every -ism. Sexism, racism, colonialism. Violence against indigenous people. Hypersexualization of indigenous women. Violence, murder, cannibalism, death. If it's upsetting, it's in here. Yikes! Episode transcripts available via: https://www.hugogirlpodcast.com/transcripts Music by Eon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVbvE0PJyss