[Elfwreck]

Originally Posted by leebase

The Doomsday Book - Connie Willis

I "read" this book via audible.com, and the audio portion of the book (reading, characters) was excellent. The content of the book, well, let's just say I remain puzzled by the awards Connie Willis wins.

I'm not remotely puzzled by that one winning the Hugo.

The year it was nominated, Worldcon was in San Francisco, and a free copy was given out at the door with every membership package. (So were a couple of others; possibly Barnes & Niven's Achilles' Choice.)

Giving away free copies wouldn't make it win if it were crap. I liked it fine; I can't remember if I voted for it or didn't vote on the grounds that I'd never heard of most of the nominees. Having a free copy made it *noticeable,* stand out from the list in a way that most nominees don't. Any kind of presentation at Worldcon has a chance of getting that nominee the Hugo--a reading from the book or of the short story, freebies, themed t-shirts, whatever.

The Hugo's a popularity contest. It's not a bad one; it can't be outright bought, and lots of at-con promos don't guarantee a win. But it's not a measure of literary quality; it's a measure of "what readers this year liked." And "liked" doesn't always mean "liked to read it."

Which doesn't explain her winning the Nebula that year; that one's judged by people who have serious literary preferences about the genre.

I just have no interest over what she seems to find so very interesting. Her book is filled to the brim with annoying characters treating each other badly -- and the effect is merely to annoy ME, the reader.

I didn't find the characters annoying, nor did I think they treated each other badly. (Different tastes. Not saying you shouldn't have.)

She uses time travel -- but does this book cover any important historical characters? No. Interesting details about the past that edify?

The details she shared were fascinating to me, but I was a longtime Renfaire participant.

But it's all the stuff in the middle of the book, which takes up 90% of the book -- which is filled with endless prattle.
...
Maybe it's a gender thing. Maybe women LOVE all the details that Willis puts in her books the way I like Tom Clancey's detailed descriptions of weapons and tactics.

Could be. I loved the middle part of the book and considered the ending "something kinda thrown in there so it would have a way to wrap up."