<
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/sep/27/laura-jean-mckay-wins-the-arthur-c-clarke-award>
"Twenty years before Margaret Atwood won the inaugural Arthur C Clarke award
for her seminal novel
The Handmaid’s Tale, she published a poem entitled
The
animals in that country. Now Laura Jean McKay, who borrowed the title of
Atwood’s poem for her debut novel, has gone on to win the prestigious prize,
with judges praising her story of a pandemic that enables humans to understand
the language of animals for “reposition[ing] the boundaries of science fiction
once again”.
The Arthur C Clarke award was originally established through a grant from
Clarke, and goes to the best science fiction novel of the year. Previous
winners include some of the biggest names in the genre, from China Miéville to
Christopher Priest, but this year, six debut writers were shortlisted.
Australian novelist McKay won for
The Animals in That Country, a depiction of
a world where a “zooflu” epidemic allows “enhanced communication between humans
and nonhuman animals”, sending many people mad. When wildlife park guide Jean’s
son loses his mind and sets out with his daughter Kimberly to find out what
whale song really means, she follows him, along with Sue the dingo."
Share and enjoy,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
