Lavie Tidhar

Israeli writer

  • Israel
  • South Africa
  • United Kingdom
GenreFantasy, science fiction, slipstreamNotable works
  • Osama
  • The Violent Century
  • A Man Lies Dreaming
  • Central Station
Websitelavietidhar.wordpress.com Edit this at Wikidata

Lavie Tidhar (Hebrew: לביא תדהר; born 16 November 1976) is an Israeli-born writer, working across multiple genres. He has lived in the United Kingdom and South Africa for long periods of time, as well as Laos and Vanuatu. As of 2013, Tidhar has lived in London.[1] His novel Osama won the 2012 World Fantasy Award—Novel, beating Stephen King's 11/22/63 and George R. R. Martin's A Dance with Dragons. His novel A Man Lies Dreaming won the £5000 Jerwood Fiction Uncovered Prize, for Best British Fiction, in 2015.[2] He won the John W. Campbell Memorial Award for Best Science Fiction Novel in 2017, for Central Station.[3]

From October 2019 to August 2022,[4] Tidhar, along with Silvia Moreno-Garcia, was the science fiction and fantasy columnist for The Washington Post.[5] Since 2023 he has been writing short animated films[6] for director Nir Yaniv under their shared label, Positronish.[7]

Biography

Tidhar was born and raised on Dalia, a prosperous kibbutz in Israel's rural north. He began to travel extensively from the age of 15 and incorporates his experiences as a traveler into several of his works.[8]

Awards and honours

Bibliography

This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (June 2022)

Novels

  • Osama, P S Publishing, 2011 (UK).
  • The Violent Century, Hodder & Stoughton, 2013 (UK) / Tachyon Publications, 2019 (US). Review in the Guardian
  • A Man Lies Dreaming, Hodder & Stoughton, 2014 (UK) / Melville House, 2016 (US). Review in the Guardian
  • Central Station, Tachyon Publications, 2016.
  • Unholy Land, Tachyon Publications, 2018.
  • By Force Alone, Head of Zeus, 2020 (UK) / Tor, 2020 (US). Review in the Washington Post
  • The Hood, Head of Zeus, 2021.
  • The Escapement, Tachyon Publications, 2021.
  • Neom, Tachyon Publications, 2022.
  • Maror, Head of Zeus, 2022. Review in the Guardian
  • Adama, Head of Zeus, 2023.
  • The Circumference of the World, Tachyon Publications, 2023.

Children's Books

  • Candy, Scholastic, 2018 (UK), Peachtree, 2020 (US, as The Candy Mafia)

Others

  • Tidhar, Lavie; Nir Yaniv (2009). The Tel Aviv dossier : a novel. Toronto: ChiZine Publications.
  • Tidhar, Lavie (2013). Martian sands. Hornsea, England: P S Publishing.

The Bookman Histories

  • The Bookman. Angry Robot Books, 2010.
  • Camera Obscura. Angry Robot Books, 2011.
  • The Great Game. Angry Robot Books, 2012.

Novellas

  • An Occupation of Angels. United Kingdom: Pendragon press 2005. United States: Apex Publications 2010.
  • Cloud Permutations. United Kingdom: PS Publishing 2010.
  • Gorel and The Pot-Bellied God. United Kingdom: PS Publishing 2011.
  • Jesus & The Eightfold Path. United Kingdom: Immersion Press 2011.
  • Lust of the Swastika. United Kingdom: PS Publishing 2014.
  • The Vanishing Kind. First published in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction 2016. E-book edition published by Jabberwocky 2018.
  • New Atlantis. First published in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction 2019. E-book edition published by Jabberwocky 2020.
  • The Big Blind. United Kingdom: PS Publishing 2020.

Collections

  • HebrewPunk. United States: Apex Publications. 2007. A collection of four linked short stories re-imagining pulp fantasy in Jewish terms.
  • Black Gods Kiss. United Kingdom: PS Publishing. 2015. A collection of five linked short stories (including one novella) related to Tidhar's previous British Fantasy Award-winning novella Gorel & The Pot-Bellied God (2011).
  • Terminale Terra. Italy: Future Fiction, 2018. Collection of several SF short stories, in Italian translation.
  • Venus in Bloom. Japan: Hal-Con, 2019. Guest of honour collection published to coincide with Hal-Con 2019, collecting several SF short stories, in dual English and Japanese. Illustrated by Masato Hisa.

Comics

  • "The Butcher & The Fly-Keeper: A Christmas Love Story", in Murky Depths #6, 2008, 6pp strip with artist Thomas Tuke.
  • "Finger", in Murky Depths #10, 2009, 3pp strip with artist Neil Roberts.
  • "Mr. Spellman's Last Dance", in Grave Conditions, ed. Scott Nicholson, 2010, 6pp strip with artist Andre Siregar.
  • "Mr. Spellman's Holiday", in Murky Depths #13, 2010, 9pp strip with artist Andre Siregar.
  • Adolf Hitler's "I Dream of Ants!". United Kingdom: House of Murky Depths, 2012. With artist Neil Struthers.
  • A Man Named Wolf. Hodder & Stoughton 2014. Special promotional comic. With artist Neil Struthers.
  • "New Swabia" in Outside. Berlin: Ash Pure and Topics Press, 2017. 10pp strip with artist Sarah Anne Langton.
  • Adler #1. Titan Comics 2020. With artist Paul McCaffrey.
  • Adler #2. Titan Comics 2020. With artist Paul McCaffrey.
  • Adler #3. Titan Comics 2020. With artist Paul McCaffrey.
  • Adler #4. Titan Comics 2020. With artist Paul McCaffrey.
  • Adler #5. Titan Comics 2020. With artist Paul McCaffrey.

Picture books

  • Going to the Moon. United Kingdom: House of Murky Depths, 2012. With artist Paul McCaffrey.

As editor

The Apex Book of World SF Series

A series of anthologies published since 2009, collecting short stories of international speculative fiction. Tidhar edited the first three volumes, and remained as overall Series Editor from the fourth volume.[48]

  • The Apex Book of World SF. United States: Apex Publications. 2009.
  • The Apex Book of World SF 2. United States: Apex Publications. 2012.
  • The Apex Book of World SF 3. United States: Apex Publications. 2014.

As Series Editor

  • The Apex Book of World SF 4. United States: Apex Publications, 2015. Edited by Mahvesh Murad.
  • The Apex Book of World SF 5. United States: Apex Publications, 2018. Edited by Cristina Jurado.

The Best of World SF

In 2021, Tidhar began a new series with The Best of World SF, published in hardcover by Head of Zeus.[49]

  • The Best of World SF: Volume 1. United Kingdom: Head of Zeus, 2021.
  • The Best of World SF: Volume 2. United Kingdom: Head of Zeus, 2022.
  • The Best of World SF: Volume 3. United Kingdom: Head of Zeus, 2023.

Jews vs... Series

Other

Short stories

Selected anthologies

  • "The Green Caravanserai" - Out of the Ruins, edited by Preston Grassman, Titan Books, 2021
  • "Widow Maker" - The Book of Magic, edited by Gardner Dozois, HarperVoyager 2018
  • "Talking To Ghosts At The End Of The World" - Infinity's End, edited by Jonathan Strahan, Solaris Books 2018
  • "Waterfalling" - The Book of Swords, edited by Gardner Dozois, Bantam Books 2017
  • "The Drowned Celestrial" – Old Venus, edited by George R. R. Martin and Gardner Dozois, Bantam 2015[51]
  • "The Night Train" – Strange Horizons, 2010. Reprinted in both Gardner Dozois's The Year's Best Science Fiction: Twenty Eighth Annual Collection and in Jonathan Strahan's The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year: Volume 5.
  • "The Spontaneous Knotting of an Agitated String" – Fantasy Magazine 2010. Reprinted in Gardner Dozois's The Year's Best Science Fiction: Twenty Eighth Annual Collection
  • "The Integrity of the Chain" – Fantasy Magazine, 2009. Reprinted in Gardner Dozois' The Year's Best Science Fiction: Twenty Seventh Annual Collection
  • "Set Down This" – Phantom, edited by Sean Wallace and Paul Tremblay, Prime Books 2009
  • "One Day, Soon" – Lovecraft Unbound, edited by Ellen Datlow, Dark Horse Comics 2009
  • "Shira" – The Del Rey Book of Science Fiction & Fantasy, edited by Ellen Datlow, Del Rey 2008
  • "My travels with Al-Qaeda" – Salon Fantastique, edited by Ellen Datlow and Terry Windling, Thunder's Mouth Press 2006
  • "Bophuthatswana" – Glorifying Terrorism, edited by Farah Mendlesohn, 2007

Selected stories in online magazines

  • "Seven Vampires: A Judge Dee Mystery", Tor.com, 2022
  • "Rain Falling in the Pines", Clarkesworld Magazine, 2021
  • "Judge Dee and the Poisoner of Montmartre", Tor.com, 2021
  • "Judge Dee and the Three Deaths of Count Werdenfels", Tor.com, 2021
  • "Judge Dee and the Limits of the Law", Tor.com, 2020
  • "Blue and Blue and Blue and Pink", Clarkesworld Magazine, 2020
  • "In Xanadu", Tor.com, 2019
  • "Venus in Bloom", Clarkesworld Magazine, 2019
  • "Svalbard", PuzzleTales.com, 2019 [52]
  • "Gubbinal", Clarkesworld Magazine, 2018
  • "Yiwu", A Tor.com Original, 2018
  • "The Old Dispensation", Tor.com, 2017
  • "Terminal", A Tor.Com Original, 2015
  • "Selfies", Tor.com, 2014
  • "Dragonkin", Tor.com, 2013
  • "Spider's Moon", Futurismic, 2009
  • "304, Adolf Hitler Strasse", Clarkesworld Magazine, 2006
  • "The Dope Fiend", Sci Fiction, 2005

The "Central Station" story cycle

Inspired by authors like Cordwainer Smith, C.L. Moore, Clifford D. Simak, Philip K. Dick and Zenna Henderson.[53] Several of Tidhar's short stories relate to one another in the following chronological order, according to the author:[54]

  • "Under the Eaves", Robots: The Recent A.I., 2012 (Dozois’ Year's Best, Horton's Year's Best)
  • "Robotnik", Dark Faith II, 2012
  • The Smell of Orange Groves, Clarkesworld, 2011 (Dozois’ Year's Best, Strahan's Year's Best, Polish translation)
  • "Crabapple", Daily Science Fiction, 2013
  • The Lord of Discarded Things, Strange Horizons, 2012
  • "Filaments", Interzone, 2013
  • Strigoi. Interzone, 2012
  • "The Book Seller". Interzone, 2013
  • "The God Artist", unpublished as of February 2013[update][55]
  • "The Core", Interzone, 2013
  • "The Birthing Clinics", unpublished as of February 2013[update][55]

"Substantively different" versions of these stories form the basis of the fix-up novel Central Station.[56]


Short fiction

Title Year First published Reprinted/collected Notes
The indignity of rain 2012 Tidhar, Lavie (2012). "The indignity of rain". Interzone. The "Central Station" story cycle
Murder in the cathedral 2014 Tidhar, Lavie (June 2014). "Murder in the cathedral". Asimov's Science Fiction. 38 (6): 80–105.
Needlework 2013 Tidhar, Lavie (March 2013). "Needlework". Asimov's Science Fiction. 37 (3): 48–53.
The Oracle 2013 Tidhar, Lavie (September 2013). "The Oracle". Analog Science Fiction and Fact. 133 (9): 37–47. The "Central Station" story cycle
Vladimir Chong chooses to die 2014 Tidhar, Lavie (September 2014). "Vladimir Chong chooses to die". Analog Science Fiction and Fact. 134 (9): 40–47. The "Central Station" story cycle
Whaliens 2014 Tidhar, Lavie (April 2014). "Whaliens". Analog Science Fiction and Fact. 134 (4): 54–63.

Non-fiction

  • Art and War. Co-written with Shimon Adaf. United Kingdom: Repeater Books, 2016.

Filmography

Short Animated Film

Year Title Director Writer Producer
2023 Welcome To Your A.I. Future No Yes Yes
2023 Loontown No Yes Yes

Short Form Animated Series

Year Title Director Writer Executive
producer 		Creator
2024 Mars Machines No Yes Yes Yes

Trivia

Tidhar is referenced in several works of fiction:

  • In Adam Roberts's Jack Glass (2012), "Tidharian" is referred to as a futuristic spoken language. "It was English Dia was speaking, after all: not Potpourri or Tidharian or Pidgin-Martian."[57]
  • In Christopher Farnsworth's Killfile, the Mossad agent friend of the protagonist is named Tidhar after the author (though it is briefly mentioned he has a different first name). "I am on guard, because Tidhar is no one you want to mess with, even by accident." ... "Thanks to Tidhar, I'm piggybacking on Mossad tech." .... "I should tell Tidhar, if I ever see him again..."[58]
  • In the Shimon Adaf short story "third_attribute", the protagonist visits Tidhar's childhood home as he contemplates writing a thesis on Tidhar's Hebrew poetry. "He wanders along the Kibbutz pathways, but doesn’t become any wiser. A battered copy of Remnants of God, Tidhar’s only poetry book in Jewish [Jewish? He knew Jewish once!] held under his arm."[59]
  • In Nick Wood's Azanian Bridges (2016), Tidhar's Osama is mentioned as a banned book in the alternate history South Africa of the novel.[60]
  • In Charlie Kaufman's Antkind (2020), protagonist B. Rosenberger Rosenberg is portrayed as a former fan of Tidhar (along with Isaac Asimov and Harlan Ellison) turned against him. ""Yes," she screams, "Tidhar! You loved Tidhar!"" ... "I try to call after her, but I cannot. I cannot be a man who countenances Tidhar."[61]

References

  1. ^ Locus interview, 2013
  2. ^ a b "Jerwood Fiction Uncovered Prize announces winners". 18 June 2015.
  3. ^ a b "2017 Campbell and Sturgeon Awards Winners". 19 June 2017.
  4. ^ "Review | Let's talk about science fiction and horror by new, promising writers". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 7 April 2023.
  5. ^ "The weird, the wacky, the underappreciated: A new look at science fiction and fantasy - The Washington Post". The Washington Post.
  6. ^ "Lavie Tidhar | Writer, Producer". IMDb.
  7. ^ "About | Positronish Productions".
  8. ^ Israeli SciFi and Fantasy Authors Archived 17 June 2010 at the Wayback Machine Israeli Science Fiction. Retrieved on 28 June 2010
  9. ^ https://www.bsfa.co.uk/bsfa-awards-shortlist
  10. ^ "2023 Locus Awards Top Ten Finalists". 28 April 2023.
  11. ^ https://locusmag.com/2023/09/2023-dragon-awards-julie-award-and-mike-resnick-memorial-award-winners/
  12. ^ "2023 Locus Awards Top Ten Finalists". 28 April 2023.
  13. ^ "2022 Locus Awards Top Ten Finalists". 10 May 2022.
  14. ^ "Philip K. Dick Award 2022 Finalists". 11 January 2022.
  15. ^ "Aucune terre n'est promise de Lavie Tidhar, Prix Planète SF des blogueurs 2021". 30 September 2021.
  16. ^ "Les nominés du Prix Planète SF des blogueurs 2021". 21 June 2021.
  17. ^ "2021 British Fantasy Awards Shortlist". 27 July 2021.
  18. ^ "2021 Eugie Award Finalists". 7 July 2021.
  19. ^ "第十一届全球华语科幻星云奖在海南陵水揭晓-新华网".
  20. ^ "2020 Stabby Award Nominees". 30 December 2020.
  21. ^ "Sturgeon Finalists Announced". 10 June 2020.
  22. ^ "2020 Seiun Awards Nominees". 7 May 2020.
  23. ^ "Same Day Loans for Bad Credit | £100 - £5000 Paid in 60 Minutes". 2 March 2018.
  24. ^ "CWA 2019 Dagger shortlists revealed".
  25. ^ "2019 Campbell Memorial Award Finalists". 11 June 2019.
  26. ^ "2019 Dragon Award Ballot – The Dragon Award". www.dragoncon.org. Archived from the original on 7 August 2019.
  27. ^ "Kelvin505 Award Press Release" (PDF). www.kelvin505.com. 15 May 2019.
  28. ^ "2019 Locus Awards Finalists". 7 May 2019.
  29. ^ "2019 Kurd-Laßwitz-Preis". The Internet Speculative Fiction Database.
  30. ^ "Premio Italia 2019, ecco i finalisti". www.fantascienza.com.
  31. ^ "2019 Geffen Awards Finalists". Locus Online. 28 May 2019.
  32. ^ "Shortlists unveiled for Kitschies awards".
  33. ^ "2018 Sidewise Award Nominees". 19 August 2019.
  34. ^ "2018 Speculative Fiction Award Winners – Neukom Institute Literary Arts Awards".
  35. ^ "Tales of a Fantastic Future Shortlisted by Neukom Institute Literary Arts Awards 2018 – Neukom Institute Literary Arts Awards".
  36. ^ "2018 Geffen Awards Finalists". 24 May 2018.
  37. ^ "2017 Locus Awards Finalists". 12 May 2017.
  38. ^ "2017 Shortlist Announced – Arthur C. Clarke Award". Archived from the original on 10 July 2018. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
  39. ^ "Premio Roma - Il presidente".
  40. ^ "日本Sfファングループ連合会議：星雲賞リスト".
  41. ^ "2016 Printable Longlist | International DUBLIN Literary Award". Archived from the original on 24 November 2015. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
  42. ^ "British Fantasy Awards 2015: The nominees | the British Fantasy Society".
  43. ^ "Gaylactic Spectrum Awards - 2014/2015 Information".
  44. ^ "2015 Printable Longlist | International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award". Archived from the original on 28 July 2015. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  45. ^ "World Fantasy Award Ballot". World Fantasy Convention. Retrieved 8 August 2012.
  46. ^ Anders, Charlie Jane (4 November 2012). "Lavie Tidhar's Osama wins World Fantasy Award". io9. Archived from the original on 7 November 2012. Retrieved 4 November 2012.
  47. ^ Jordan Farley (13 January 2012). "Finalists announced for The Kitschies 2011". SFX. Retrieved 19 January 2013.
  48. ^ "What Happened when I Set Out to Celebrate Science Fiction from Around the World". 3 September 2015.
  49. ^ "Don't Miss: The Best of World SF, with tales old and new".
  50. ^ Interview at the Times of Israel
  51. ^ "Not A Blog: Venus In March". GRRM.livejournal.com. 19 June 2014. Archived from the original on 21 August 2014. Retrieved 27 September 2014.
  52. ^ "Interactive Puzzle Stories". PuzzleTales.com. 2019.
  53. ^ Five Classic Science Fiction Stories That Helped Shape Central Station
  54. ^ Tidhar, Lavie (15 February 2013). "Central Station". Archived from the original on 2 April 2013. Retrieved 16 February 2013.
  55. ^ a b "Central Station | Lavie Tidhar". Archived from the original on 2 April 2013. Retrieved 16 February 2013.
  56. ^ Tidhar, Lavie. Central Station. p. 274.
  57. ^ Roberts, Adam. Jack Glass. London: Gollancz 2012
  58. ^ Farnsworth, Christopher. Killfile. NY: William Morrow, 2016
  59. ^ Adaf, Shimon. "third_attribute", translated by Yaron Regev. In Tidhar and Adaf. Art and War. London: Repeater Books 2016
  60. ^ Wood, Nick. Azanian Bridges. Alconbury Weston: Newcon Press 2016
  61. ^ Kaufman, Charlie. Antkind. NY: Random House, 2020

Further reading

  • Yarovaya, Radmila (22 November 2020). "Overlooked: A brief foray into the breathtaking world of Lavie Tidhar: The cornerstone of modern fantasy that you have never heard of". The Varsity.
  • Pei-chen Liao (2020). "Worlding Alternate Histories of the Post-9/11 Era: The Transnational Trend, Normalization, and the Dynamics of Memory", in Post-9/11 Historical Fiction and Alternate History Fiction, Palgrave Macmillan.
  • Manheim, Noa (21 September 2020). "A Propher Without Honor". The Tel Aviv Review of Books.
  • Morgan, Glyn (2020). "Reimagining Horror: The Plot Against America (2004), Farthing (2006), A Man Lies Dreaming (2014), and J (2014)", in Imagining the Unimaginable: Speculative Fiction and the Holocaust, Bloomsbury Academic Press.
  • McFarlane, Anna (2019). "Time and Affect After 9/11: Lavie Tidhar's Osama: A Novel". In Sideways in Time: Critical Essays on Alternate History Fiction, ed. Glyn Morgan and C. Palmer-Patel, Liverpool University Press.
  • Glinter, Ezra (20 May 2016). "What If the Nazis Won – or If They Lost?". Forward.
  • Schaefer, Brian (29 June 2016). "Let's Circumcise Hitler: Literary Fantasies in the Summer of Trump and Brexit". Ha'aretz.
  • Maimon, Ehud (23 January 2012). "Bridge Over Troubled Waters: The City of Haifa In Lavie Tidhar's Stories". Strange Horizons.
  • Wilson, D. Harlan (4 December 2012). "Osama bin Laden, pulp vigilante". Los Angeles Review of Books.

External links

  • Lavie Tidhar's home page
  • Locus interview, 2013
  • 2012 interview by Gabrielle Gantz
  • Interview regarding Lavie Tidhar's upcoming novel The Bookman
  • Lavie Tidhar at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
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