I mentioned back in February that the Nebula Award finalists were a giant scream of generational change. Well, the Hugo Award finalists are out and guess what, the change continues.
I'm thrilled to see The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi in the list, along with the novelettes "Eros, Philia, Agape" by Rachel Swirsky and "Sinner, Baker, Fabulist, Priest; Red Mask, Black Mask, Gentleman, Beast" by Eugie Foster. This novel and two novelettes were among the best stories I read last year, and are well deserving of this honor.
I'm also thrilled to see so many other exciting writers like N. K. Jemisin, Kij Johnson, Will McIntosh, Cherie Priest and John Scalzi on the list. Online magazines are well represented, as is the ever-great StarShipSofa in the Best Fanzine category. All of this reinforces my view that change is bubbling through the genre these days. And I'm not the only one to pick up on this.
Anyway, congrats to all the Hugo finalists!