The Incomparable Mothership

635: Throw a Rock at a Reader

Listen Later

It’s time to reconvene our Book Club, not to talk about an awards shortlist but to recommend books from arbitrarily selected categories. So many books! And not many rocks, we promise.

Antony's book list

Antony Johnston with Erika Ensign, James Thomson and Jason Snell

Show Notes & Links

Our picks for each category:

An SFF book you’d recommend to a non-SFF Fan:

  • Erika: Lock In by John Scalzi
  • James: Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree
  • Jason: A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers, Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr
  • Antony: Among Others by Jo Walton, Borderline by Mishell Baker

    • A classic (pre-1990) that still holds up:

    • James: The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy Omnibus by Douglas Adams, The Warlock of Firetop Mountain by Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone
    • Jason: Marooned in Realtime by Vernor Vinge, Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
    • Erika: Tombs of Atuan by Ursula K. LeGuin
    • Antony: The Spy Who Came In From the Cold by John Le Carre, The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

      • A book you didn’t expect to like, but really enjoyed:

      • Jason: Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan Maguire, The Last Graduate by Naomi Novik
      • Erika: Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
      • James: The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon
      • Antony: Country by Michael Hughes

        • The best book you read in the past year:

        • Erika: The Nova Incident by Dan Moren (Galaxy and the Ground Within by Becky Chambers, A Desolation Called Peace by Arkady Martine)
        • James: The Galaxy and the Ground Within by Becky Chambers (A Memory Called Empire and A Desolation Called Peace by Arkady Martine)
        • Jason: Elder Race by Adrian Tchaikovsky, City of Blades by Robert Jackson Bennett, The Golden Enclaves by Naomi Novik
        • Antony: Paint My Name In Black and Gold: The Rise of the Sisters of Mercy by Mark Andrews (The Galaxy and the Ground Within by Becky Chambers)

          • What are you reading?

          • James: Gideon the Ninth & Harrow the Ninth by Tasmin Muir, A Big Ship at the Edge of the Universe by Alex White
          • Erika: Terminal Peace by Jim C. Hines, Three Little Wishes by Paul Cornell, Steve Yeowell, Pippa Bowland & Simon Bowland, “Bramblewilde” by Jordan Taylor, “The Night Dance” by Leah Cypess, “The Path of Water” by Emma Törzs, “Two Hands, Wrapped in Gold” by S.B. Divya, “The Portal Keeper” by Lavie Tidhar
          • Jason: The Golden Enclaves by Naomi Novik, Mickey7 by Edward Ashton, Shards of Earth & Eyes of the Void by Adrian Tchaikovsky
          • Antony: The Cruel Stars by John Birmingham, Moonraker by Ian Fleming, The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman

            • Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bonus episodes, and more.

            ...more
            View all episodesView all episodes
            Download on the App Store
            The Incomparable MothershipBy Jason Snell
            • 4.8
            • 4.8
            • 4.8
            • 4.8
            • 4.8

            4.8

            619 ratings

            More shows like The Incomparable Mothership

            View all
            MacBreak Weekly (Audio) by TWiT

            MacBreak Weekly (Audio)

            2,014 Listeners

            Mac Power Users by Relay

            Mac Power Users

            1,285 Listeners

            The Talk Show With John Gruber by Daring Fireball / John Gruber

            The Talk Show With John Gruber

            3,125 Listeners

            Accidental Tech Podcast by Marco Arment, Casey Liss, John Siracusa

            Accidental Tech Podcast

            2,092 Listeners

            9to5Mac Happy Hour by 9to5Mac

            9to5Mac Happy Hour

            718 Listeners

            Total Party Kill by The Incomparable Dungeon Masters

            Total Party Kill

            182 Listeners

            Connected by Relay FM

            Connected

            568 Listeners

            The Incomparable Radio Theater by David J. Loehr

            The Incomparable Radio Theater

            113 Listeners

            Phil and Lisa Ruin the Movies by Lisa Schmeiser and Philip Michaels

            Phil and Lisa Ruin the Movies

            21 Listeners

            Upgrade by Relay

            Upgrade

            1,199 Listeners

            The Incomparable Game Show by The Incomparable

            The Incomparable Game Show

            132 Listeners

            Lazy Doctor Who by Erika Ensign and Steven Schapansky

            Lazy Doctor Who

            70 Listeners

            Robot or Not? by John Siracusa and Jason Snell

            Robot or Not?

            118 Listeners

            Cortex by Relay

            Cortex

            1,260 Listeners

            Doctor Who Flashcast by Jason Snell

            Doctor Who Flashcast

            30 Listeners

            Biff! Superhero TV and movies by Dan Moren, John Moltz and Guy English

            Biff! Superhero TV and movies

            27 Listeners

            Under the Radar by Relay

            Under the Radar

            210 Listeners

            AppStories by Federico Viticci, John Voorhees

            AppStories

            508 Listeners

            Somehow I Manage (Rewatching "The Office") by Tiff Arment and Stephen Hackett

            Somehow I Manage (Rewatching "The Office")

            192 Listeners

            Voyager Revisited by Jean MacDonald

            Voyager Revisited

            4 Listeners

            Pants in the Boot by Glenn Fleishman

            Pants in the Boot

            10 Listeners

            A Legitimate Salvage (The Expanse) by Chip Sudderth

            A Legitimate Salvage (The Expanse)

            20 Listeners

            A Complicated Profession: "Star Wars" on TV by Dan Moren

            A Complicated Profession: "Star Wars" on TV

            37 Listeners

            Agents of SMOOCH by Annette Wierstra

            Agents of SMOOCH

            3 Listeners

            Lions, Towers & Shields by Shelly Brisbin

            Lions, Towers & Shields

            11 Listeners

            Magnum, podcast - revisiting "Magnum P.I." by Jason Snell, Philip Michaels and David J. Loehr

            Magnum, podcast - revisiting "Magnum P.I."

            44 Listeners

            NASA Vending Machine (watching "For All Mankind") by Dan Moren and Jason Snell

            NASA Vending Machine (watching "For All Mankind")

            54 Listeners

            Watchers of the Plus by Sam and Moze

            Watchers of the Plus

            1 Listeners

            I Want My M(CU)TV: Talking Marvel's New TV Shows by Kelly Guimont, Lisa Schmeiser, Lisa Melton and Nathan Alderman

            I Want My M(CU)TV: Talking Marvel's New TV Shows

            3 Listeners

            The Cast of Us: HBO's "The Last Of Us" Recapped by Ben Rice McCarthy and Brian Hamilton

            The Cast of Us: HBO's "The Last Of Us" Recapped

            6 Listeners