Lavie Tidhar

Israeli writer (born 1976) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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] and received the Philip K. Dick Award Special Citation, for The Escapement, in 2022. Maror won the prestigious Deutscher Krimi Preis in 2025 for Best International Crime novel.

Born (1976-11-16) 16 November 1976 (age 49)
Dalia, Northern District, Israel
Citizenship
OccupationsAuthor, editor
LanguageEnglish
Quick facts Born, Citizenship ...
Lavie Tidhar
לביא תדהר
Born (1976-11-16) 16 November 1976 (age 49)
Dalia, Northern District, Israel
Citizenship
OccupationsAuthor, editor
Writing career
LanguageEnglish
Years active2003–present
GenresFantasy, science fiction, slipstream
Subjects
  • speculative fiction
  • world science fiction
  • alternate history
  • Jewish themes
Notable work
  • Osama
  • The Violent Century
  • A Man Lies Dreaming
  • Central Station
Notable awards
Websitelavietidhar.wordpress.com Edit this at Wikidata
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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] The two had previously edited The Jewish Mexican Literary Review[6] together, an online magazine which ran for 3 issues. Since 2023 he has been writing short animated films[7] for director Nir Yaniv under their shared label, Positronish.[8] With Jared Shurin he edits Shelfies,[9] a newsletter dedicated to celebrating the books on people's shelves.

Biography

Stark Holborn, Una McCormack, and Lavie Tidhar at the panel A Guide To SFF at MCM London Comic Con in May 2023.

Tidhar was born and raised on Kibbutz Dalia in northern Israel.[10]He began to travel extensively from the age of 15 and incorporates his experiences as a traveler into several of his works.[11]

Awards and recognition

Published works

Novels

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

Literary / Historical Fiction

The Maror Trilogy

  • Maror, Head of Zeus, 2022.
  • Adama, Head of Zeus, 2023.
  • Golgotha, Head of Zeus, September 2025.
  • Six Lives, Apollo, 2024.

Children's Books

  • Candy, Scholastic, 2018 (UK), Peachtree, 2020 (US, as The Candy Mafia)
  • The Children's Book of the Future (2024), DK Books (with Richard Watson)

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 works (including one novella) related to Tidhar's previous British Fantasy Award-winning novella Gorel and the Pot-Bellied God (2011). (The title makes reference to the C.L. Moore short story "Black God's Kiss".)
  • 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.
  • The Lunacy Commission. US: Jabberwocky, 2021. A collection of linked short stories featuring Wolf/Hitler from A Man Lies Dreaming and set in the two years preceding the events of the novel.
  • No One Hears The Last Shot. United Kingdom: PS Publishing. 2025. A collection of ten crime and noir short stories.
  • The Three Coffin Problem. US: Jabberwocky, 2026. Nine linked short stories, most previously published online, concerning Tidhar's medieval vampire Judge Dee

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.[53]

  • 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.[54]

  • 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[56]
  • "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 G. 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 Terri Windling, Thunder's Mouth Press 2006
  • "Bophuthatswana" – Glorifying Terrorism, edited by Farah Mendlesohn, 2007

Selected stories in online magazines

The "Central Station" story cycle

Inspired by authors like Cordwainer Smith, C. L. Moore, Clifford D. Simak, Philip K. Dick and Zenna Henderson.[58] Several of Tidhar's short stories relate to one another in the following chronological order, according to the author:[59]

  • "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 Magazine, 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[60]
  • "The Core", Interzone, 2013
  • "The Birthing Clinics", unpublished as of February 2013[60]

"Substantively different" versions of these stories form the basis of the fix-up novel Central Station.[61]


Short fiction

More information Title, Year ...
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.
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Non-fiction

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

Filmography

Short Animated Film

More information Year, Title ...
Year Title Director Writer Producer
2023 Welcome To Your A.I. Future No Yes Yes
2023 Loontown No Yes Yes
2024 The Radio No Yes Yes
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Short Form Animated Series

More information Year, Title ...
Year Title Director Writer Executive
producer		 Creator
2024 Mars Machines No Yes Yes Yes
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Adaptations

Tidhar's Bookman Histories were adapted as a series of dramatised audiobooks by GraphicAudio.[62]

In popular culture

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."[63]
  • 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..."[64]
  • 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."[65]
  • 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.[66]
  • 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."[67]

References

Further reading

External links

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