Two Chairs Talking

Episode 78: Into many a green valley drifts the appalling snow

Perry and David talk about a bunch of recent literary awards and then go on to discuss the books they've read recently, which cover the range from an entertaining children's book to a confronting Booker Prize winner. And in the middle, a lot of snow.
Introduction (02:04)
General News (13:49)
Miles Franklin Award Winner 2022 (00:43)
Booker Prize long list 2022 (01:54)
British Fantasy Awards 2022 (03:39)
Le Guin Prize for Fiction 2022 (01:59)
Age Book of the Year Shortlist 2022 (01:58)
Vale David Ireland (01:34)
Other Awards (00:46)
Barack Obama's Summer Reading List 2022 (01:05)
What we've been reading (57:01)
The Girl Savage by Katherine Rundell (04:37)
Lisey's Story by Stephen King (06:43)
Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel (05:50)
The Guns of Navarone by Alastair MacLean (08:06)
Frostquake by Juliet Nicholson (07:28)
Cold Enough for Snow by Jessica Au (06:28)
The Circle by Dave Eggers (09:51)
At Night All Blood Is Black by David Diop (07:32)
Future recording schedule (05:29)
Windup (00:09)
Into many a green valleyDrifts the appalling snow.Time breaks the threaded dancesAnd the diver's brilliant bow.
-- W. H. Auden
Illustration generated by MidJourney AI

Episode 77: A forest of Hugo awards

David and Perry complete their review of all of the fiction nominated for this year's Hugo Awards by discussing the Best Novel category. Then Perry and Lucy Sussex investigate the controversy around the novel which was withdrawn from this year's Miles Franklin Award.
Introduction (03:03)
General News (04:07)
Arthur C. Clarke Award Short List (01:11)
2022 Women's Prize Winner: The Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozeki (00:47)
Publication date for Robbie Arnott's next novel (01:19)
Miles Franklin Award (00:39)
Best Novel Nominees for 2022 Hugos (01:09:21)
The Master of Djinn by P. Djèlí Clark (10:53)
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir (13:07)
The Galaxy and the Ground Within by Becky Chambers (09:07)
A Desolation Called Peace by Arkady Martine (10:17)
Light of Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki (06:39)
She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan (15:15)
Summary of the Hugo novels (01:05)
Introduction to discussion (01:22)
Discussion with Lucy Sussex about The Dogs by John Hughes (33:54)
Windup (00:48)
Illustration generated by MidJourney AI.

Episode 76: Psalms, splinters and burning tigers

Perry and David discuss in detail the novellas nominated for this year's Hugo Awards, and Perry talks to Rose Mitchell about the latest season of Star Trek: Picard.
Introduction (02:52)
General News (09:49)
2022 Locus Awards Winners (05:39)
Miles Franklin Award Shortlist (01:47)
Frank Moorhouse (02:10)
Hugo Nominated Novellas 2022 (43:56)
A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers (06:27)
Across The Green Grass Fields by Seanan McGuire (09:03)
Fireheart Tiger by Aliette de Bodard (06:22)
Elder Race by Adrian Tchaikovsky (05:21)
A Spindle Splintered by Alix E. Harrow (05:14)
The Past Is Red by Catherynne M. Valente (08:22)
Assessment of Novellas (01:32)
Introduction to Interview (01:38)
Star Trek Picard - discussion with Rose Mitchell (26:07)
Windup (02:25)
Illustration generated by Wombo Art.

Episode 75: A Bug in the Program

David and Perry discuss this year's nominees for the Short Story and Novelette categories of the Hugo Award, and Perry discusses the movie "Everthing Everywhere All at Once" with W. H. Chong.
Introduction (02:42)
General News (04:59)
Nebula Awards (01:46)
International Thriller Awards (01:37)
Australian Book Design Awards (01:23)
Hugo Nominees 2022 (53:57)
Hugo Voting Packet (03:47)
Short Stories (19:42)
Unknown Number by Blue Neustifter (03:00)
Proof by Induction by José Pablo Iriarte (02:51)
The Sin of America by Catherynne M. Valente (03:35)
Mr. Death by Alix E. Harrow (02:29)
Tangles by Seanan McGuire (02:47)
Where Oaken Hearts Do Gather by Sarah Pinsker (04:40)
Novelettes (26:53)
Bots of the Lost Ark by Suzanne Palmer (04:24)
That Story Isn’t the Story by John Wiswell (02:26)
Unseelie Brothers, Ltd. by Fran Wilde (02:54)
L’Esprit de L’Escalier by Catherynne M. Valente (05:41)
O2 Arena by Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki (04:27)
Colors of the Immortal Palette by Caroline M. Yoachim (06:09)
Overall opinions (02:47)
Discussion on Everything Everywhere All at Once (33:59)
Windup (01:03)
Illustration by David Grigg

Episode 74: Murder, though it have no tongue, will speak

Perry and David talk about their recent reading in the crime field, and spend some time on one particularly interesting crossover of the crime and SF genres.
General News (07:21)
Locus Awards (03:06)
CWA Daggers Awards (02:10)
Patricia McKillop (01:46)
Crime Fiction (57:32)
Those Who Perish by Emma Viskic (05:14)
Better Off Dead by Lee and Andrew Child (14:39)
The Murder Rule by Dervla McTiernan (09:25)
Duck Deason Death by June Wright (05:43)
The City and the City by China Miéville (13:37)
B Is for Burglar by Sue Grafton (08:14)
Windup (01:52)
Illustration: painting by Pieter Claesz (1597-1660)
...I have heardThat guilty creatures sitting at a playHave by the very cunning of the sceneBeen struck so to the soul, that presentlyThey have proclaim’d their malefactions:For murder, though it have no tongue, will speakWith most miraculous organ.
⸺Hamlet, Act 2, Scene 2

Episode 73: If I could only remember my name

David and Perry discuss recent awards and nominations, say a sad farewell to a friend, and talk about their recent reading, several items of which seem to deal with the loss of memory.
General News (07:25)
Hugo Nominees (03:57)
Philip K. Dick Award (00:26)
Compton Crook Award (00:28)
2022 Shadows Awards (00:58)
BSFWA Awards (01:03)
RIP Christine Ashby (02:30)
What have we been reading? (01:13:48)
The Last Woman in the World by Inga Simpson (06:07)
The Spare Room by Helen Garner (10:37)
Metal Fish, Falling Snow by Cath Moore (04:53)
The Housekeeper and the Professor by Yoko Ogawa (08:22)
Deeplight by Frances Hardinge (07:50)
SFF Novellas from 2021 (Pt. 1) (14:12)
Light Chaser by Peter F. Hamilton and Garth Powell (03:26)
Remote Control by Nnedi Okorafor (02:58)
Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells (03:03)
Stone Sky, Gold Mountain by Mirandi Riwoe (05:07)
SFF Novellas from 2021 (Pt. 2) (16:27)
And What Can We Offer You Tonight by Premee Mohamed (01:42)
Sun-Daughters, Sea-Daughters by Aimee Ogden (02:20)
Flowers for the Sea by Zin E. Rocklyn (01:45)
The Necessity of Stars by E. Catherine Tobler (02:32)
The Giants of the Violet Sea by Eugenia Triantafyllou (05:45)
Windup (00:56)
Illustration generated by Wombo.art

Episode 72: A dangerous kind of vision

Perry and David take the Hugo Time Machine back to the year 1968, when the shorter fiction was dominated by the Dangerous Visions anthology edited by Harlan Ellison and Lord of Light by Roger Zelazny won the Best Novel award.
General News (10:07)
Nebula Award Short List (03:14)
Forthcoming Releases (02:29)
Brandon Sanderson's Kickstarter project (04:15)
Hugo Time Machine 1968 (01:12:20)
Best Short Story (12:30)
The Dangerous Visions anthology (00:50)
The Jigsaw Man by Larry Niven (03:18)
Aye And Gomorrah by Samuel R. Delany (03:17)
I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream by Harlan Ellison (02:17)
Other possible nominees (02:44)
Best Novelette (14:26)
Faith of Our Fathers by Philip K. Dick (03:46)
Wizard's World by Andre Norton (02:45)
Pretty Maggie Moneyeyes by Harlan Ellison (03:04)
Gonna Roll the Bones by Fritz Leiber (02:32)
Other possible nominees (02:06)
Best Novella (19:46)
The Star-Pit by Samuel R. Delany (03:07)
Damnation Alley by Roger Zelazny (03:56)
Hawksbill Station by Robert Silverberg (03:05)
Weyr Search by Anne McCaffrey (02:48)
Riders of the Purple Wage by Philip José Farmer (04:20)
Other possible nominees (01:42)
Behold the Man by Michael Moorcock (00:30)
Best Novel (23:52)
Thorns by Robert Silverberg (03:09)
The Einstein Intersection by Samuel R. Delany (05:39)
Lord of Light by Roger Zelazny (09:34)
Other possible nominees (04:36)
Windup (01:25)
Photo by Omar Houchaimi on Pexels

Episode 71: With all this crimes broad blown

David and Perry plunge again into the murky depths of crime fiction, both in print and on television.
General News (05:04)
2022 International Thriller Writers Awards (01:45)
The Stella Prize 2022 longlist (01:22)
BSFA Awards (01:44)
Crime Fiction we've been reading (52:18)
The Dark Remains by William McIlvanney and Ian Rankin (09:44)
The Housemate by Sarah Bailey (05:35)
Razorblade Tears by S. A. Cosby (07:48)
The Torrent by Dinuka McKenzie (05:14)
The Department of Sensitive Crimes by Alexander McCall Smith (06:00)
The Apollo Murders by Chris Hadfield (06:21)
The Way It Is Now by Garry Disher (08:29)
David responds on The Way It Is Now (02:44)
Troppo TV Series (07:21)
Windup (01:47)
Photo by Jimmy Chan from Pexels
He took my father grossly, full of bread;With all his crimes broad blown, as flush as May;And how his audit stands who knows save heaven?
Hamlet, Act 3 Scene 3

Episode 70: Up in the clouds

Perry and David discuss their recent reading, in particular Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr and The Lost Daughter book and film.
News (07:19)
Locus Magazine recommended reading list (02:26)
Dublin Literary Award longlist (01:30)
Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards Winners (03:13)
What we've been reading (49:40)
David on Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr (03:46)
Perry's take on Cloud Cuckoo Land (08:23)
Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells (04:05)
Last Stand in Lychford by Paul Cornell (03:19)
All Our Shimmering Skies by Trent Dalton (03:21)
Flames by Robbie Arnott (07:49)
The Lost Daughter by Elena Ferrante (book) (04:02)
The Lost Daughter by Elena Ferrante (movie) (14:25)
Discussion with Lucy Sussex (27:05)
The Woman They Could Not Silence by Kate Moore (04:29)
I Hear the Mermaids Singing by Charmian Clift (03:01)
A Skinful of Shadows by Frances Hardinge (02:22)
Deeplight by Frances Hardinge (02:12)
Cuckoo Song by Frances Hardinge (00:52)
A Long Way from Verona by Jane Gardam (05:23)
Defiant Voices by Yvette Smith (01:34)
Vandemonians by Janet McCalman (02:41)
Enigma of China by Qiu Xiaolong (01:36)
Windup (00:39)
Photo by Magda Ehlers from Pexels

Episode 69: A dream we dreamt with our eyes open

David and Perry talk about their favourite TV and movies they saw in 2021; and Perry talks at length with W. H. Chong about the new Dune movie.
News (04:19)
Philip K. Dick Award (01:34)
2022 Hugo Nominations open (01:20)
Vale Bill Wright (01:21)
Perry's Overview of TV and Movies 2021 (04:29)
Perry's Best Movies 2021 (24:24)
The Dig (05:04)
Emma (03:52)
Green Book (04:54)
The Father (05:16)
Dune Part 1 (01:48)
Nomadland (02:28)
Perry's Honourable Mentions in movies (05:52)
Echo in the Canyon (01:08)
Trial of the Chicago Seven (01:11)
The Power of the Dog (03:24)
David's movies 2021 (00:36)
Perry's Best TV 2021 (14:50)
Hemmingway (02:26)
Midnight Diner (03:31)
Succession (03:21)
Anthony Bourdain : Parts Unknown (01:52)
Upright (03:26)
Perry's Honourable Mentions in TV(03:49)
Mare of Easttown (01:26)
The Chair (01:17)
Bodyguard (01:04)
David's Best TV 2021 (08:39)
The Expanse (00:42)
The Umbrella Academy (00:51)
The Wrong Mans (02:09)
Get Back (Beatles) (03:00)
Hanna (01:43)
David's Honourable Mentions in TV (01:19)
Broadchurch (00:14)
Maigret (01:01)
Discussion with W. H. Chong on Dune (41:24)
Windup (01:04)
Illustration: generated by wombo.art.
Episode title: from a quote by Federico Fellini.