1. BOOK FIVE

2. 1. In Ruchir Joshi‟s novel „The Last Jet
Engine Laugh‟, Calcutta of the future is
served by two airports. One is the existing
one named after Netaji Subhas Chandra
Bose. After whom is the other airport named?

3. 2. Roger Zelazny‟s „Lord of Light‟ was filled
with characters drawn from Hindu and
Buddhist mythologies. Which of the
characters in the novel is described as
having red fiery eyes, and hence always
goes around wearing large black glasses?

4. 3. Charles J Shields wanted to write a biography of
this author, and he sent a letter to the author
expressing his interest in doing so. The author
replied by sending a self-portrait of him smoking
with the message “This is a picture of me
demurring about your letter”. So Shields sent one
more letter, much more detailed and persuasive
this time around. The author replied by sending
another self-portrait of him smoking with the
message “OK”.
Whose biography took birth thus? And what was
the biography, released posthumously, titled?

5. 4. „The Tallest Doll in New York City‟ is a
short story by Maria Dahvana Headley.
Who/what does the title of the story refer
to? Also, who/what is her love interest in
this Runyonesque story?

6. 5. „The Cookie Carnival‟ is a 1935 Disney
animated film where all characters are
varieties of desserts. Modern reviewers
point out the homophobia and racism in
the movie. What is the food item involved
in each of the above cases of criticism?

7. 6. „The Midas Flesh‟
is a graphic novel
written by Ryan
North. What creation
of his is his primary
claim to fame?

8. 7. Charles Stross announced in
December 2013 that he won‟t be writing
the third book of the Halting State trilogy
set in a near-future Scotland. Why did
he make this decision?

9. We were talking of dragons, ______ and I
In a Berkshire bar. The big workman
Who had sat silent and sucked his pipe
All the evening, from his empty mug
With gleaming eye glanced towards us:
„I seen ‟em myself!‟ he said fiercely.
8. Identify the poet. Also fill in the blank.

10. 9. Caladan Brood are a band that
look and sound a lot like the more
popular The Summoning.
However, unlike The Summoning,
their lyrics aren‟t about Tolkien‟s
world, but instead from what epic
fantasy series?

11. 10. From the
lyrics of which
1975 song is
this book title
taken?

12. 11. Louis XIV had this inscribed on his
cannons: “Ultima Ratio Regum”
The final book in a trilogy takes its name
from the English translation of this quote.
Name the book.

13. 12. Identify this
classic.

15. 14. In „Y: The Last Man‟, when the plague that
kills all men (except Y) strikes, Margaret
Valentine, the Secretary of Agriculture becomes
the President of the US as she is the survivor with
the highest rank in USA‟s chain of succession.
She stands for re-election when things have
settled down, and wins. She attributes her victory
to being the most famous woman as “no one
knows where _____ is hiding”.
Fill in the blank.

16. 15. Eric Corley is a prominent hacker, and
founder of the hacker quarterly 2600. He
writes under the pen-name Emmanuel
Goldstein, a reference to the fictional
author of „The Theory and Practice of
Oligarchal Collectivism‟.
Emmanuel Goldstein is a character from
which 1949 novel?

17. 16. Identify this band that takes its name
from the underground hideout of the
main character of a 1982-1989 work.

18. 17. This is the sixth
book in the
Bunnicula series
(about a vampire
bunny!). What‟s the
name of the raven
in this book?

19. 18. Sayuri Ueda‟s
novel „The Cage of
Zeus‟ is full words
such as E, Em,
and Eir. What are
they?

20. 19. The world is divided into five factions:
Abnegation (the Selfless), Dauntless (the
Brave), Candor (the Honest), Amity (the
Peaceful), and Erudite (the Intelligent). Once
citizens reach a certain age, they must
undergo testing to determine which faction best
suits them, after which they are forced to
decide whether to choose a new faction or stay
put. This is the premise of which YA series,
now being made into a much-hyped movie?

21. 20. David Peterson‟s first creation was called
“Megdevi”, put together when he was a student
at UCB, and meant as a present to his thengirlfriend. (The name Megdevi is a portmanteau
of his name, and that of his girlfriend Megan)
What is his most famous creation, that currently
has 3700 entities, and he plans to continue
adding to it until it reaches at least 10000?

22. 21. According Gardner Dozois, the role of a
science fiction writer was to notice the car
and the movie theater and not just
anticipate X, but go on to predict Y as well.
In other words, not just write about futuristic
innovations, but also about the social
consequences of those innovations.
What are X and Y?

23. 22. On what date was the 2006
remake of „The Omen‟ released?

24. 23. In 2013, shortly before the author‟s death, his first novel was made
into an opera by the composer Ben Frost and it debuted at Royal
Opera House, London. Name the author, and the novel.

25. 24. Original
manuscript of?

26. 25. In his youth, this
author was an avid
amateur boxer, and
went by the nickname
„Two-gun Bob‟.
Name him, and his
most famous
creation.

27. 26. This 1979
alternative history
(and as the title
makes it clear,
alternative
geography even!)
novel is in news
again thanks to
parallels to current
events in that part
of the world. Name
the novel.

28. 27. This poem was
published in an 1893
issue of Punch magazine
in response to an article
titled „The Man of the
Year Million: A Scientific
Forecast‟ that was
published in the Pall Mall
Gazette. Who wrote this
article, which tried to
envision what man would
evolve into a million
years hence?

29. 28. While the eventual movie adaptation was by David Lynch, there was
a project getting another equally offbeat director to do it. This photo
shows the artist who was commissioned with producing artwork for the
movie, and some of the sketches he came up with for it. Name the
movie, who was supposed to direct it, and who was the artist involved?

30. 29. What is the book
cover inspired by?

31. 30. „Sheltered‟ is set amid
an isolated society of
doomsday preppers who
have spent their lives
preparing for the end times,
only to face danger from
within when their own
children decide to massacre
all of the adults.
Given this premise, the
subtitle categorises the
comic into what „genre‟?

32. 31. There was a spurt of 1 star
ratings for this book this past
week. Same for the author‟s
other books too. Why?

33. 32. Henry Beard and Douglas
Kenney wrote the popular
1969 parody book „Bored of
the Rings‟. What did the two
go on to found the same year?

34. 33. For those only
familiar with the
famous movie
adaptation, the
book cover may
seem very wrong,
but the cover art
shown here
matches what is
described in the
book. Name the
book/movie.

35. 34. An annual award given to a work or works
of science fiction or fantasy that explores and
expands gender roles is named after an
author whose gender was the source of
much debate. Name the award.

36. 35. Before he became an author, he
served in the British army, and was
stationed in India. When in India, he visited
the Calcutta Botanical Gardens and saw a
tree labeled as the biggest in the world. He
thought about what would happen if the
tree continued growing and ended up
covering the whole world. Thus was born
the idea behind which famous novel?

37. 36. „Pillar to the
Sky‟ is the first of
the novels marrying
science fiction and
science fact
published by Tor in
collaboration with
whom?

38. 37. „A Modest Proposal‟ is a 1729
satire which advices the Irish poor to
sell their children as food for the rich
as a way out of their economic
troubles. Who was the author?

39. 38. A recent BMW i8 ad used this speech,
thus probably making him the first sci-fi
author to endorse a car, albeit
posthumously. Identify the speaker.

40. 39. This short story
was the inspiration
for which movie?
And who wrote this
story under the penname Don A Stuart,
possibly to avoid
insinuations of an
editor favouring his
own work for
publication?

41. 40. Alan Moore‟s new book „____:
Heart of Ice‟ is the story of Janni
Dakkar, daughter of ____, and her
struggle to come to terms with her
father‟s legacy. Fill in the blank.

42. 41. Who co-produced
this Ralph Bakshi film?

43. 42. What products made by Sirius
Cybernetics work on a principle called
“defocused temporal perception” which
enables them to dimly perceive the
immediate future and hence eliminate
inefficiencies that involve waiting in a
lobby, making tedious conversations,
pressing buttons, etc.?

44. …after this slide

45. 1. In Ruchir Joshi‟s novel „The Last Jet
Engine Laugh‟, Calcutta of the future is
served by two airports. One is the existing
one named after Netaji Subhas Chandra
Bose. After whom is the other airport named?

46.  Rabindranath
Tagore

47. 2. Roger Zelazny‟s „Lord of Light‟ was filled
with characters drawn from Hindu and
Buddhist mythologies. Which of the
characters in the novel is described as
having red fiery eyes, and hence always
goes around wearing large black glasses?

48.  Agni

49. 3. Charles J Shields wanted to write a biography of
this author, and he sent a letter to the author
expressing his interest in doing so. The author
replied by sending a self-portrait of him smoking
with the message “This is a picture of me
demurring about your letter”. So Shields sent one
more letter, much more detailed and persuasive
this time around. The author replied by sending
another self-portrait of him smoking with the
message “OK”.
Whose biography took birth thus? And what was
the biography, released posthumously, titled?

50.  Kurt
Vonnegut
 And So It Goes.

51. 4. „The Tallest Doll in New York City‟ is a
short story by Maria Dahvana Headley.
Who/what does the title of the story refer
to? Also, who/what is her love interest in
this Runyonesque story?

52.  Chrysler
Building
 Empire State Building

53. 5. „The Cookie Carnival‟ is a 1935 Disney
animated film where all characters are
varieties of desserts. Modern reviewers
point out the homophobia and racism in
the movie. What is the food item involved
in each of the above cases of criticism?

54.  Angel‟s
food cake
 Devil‟s food cake

55. 6. „The Midas Flesh‟
is a graphic novel
written by Ryan
North. What creation
of his is his primary
claim to fame?

56.  Dinosaur
Comics

57. 7. Charles Stross announced in
December 2013 that he won‟t be writing
the third book of the Halting State trilogy
set in a near-future Scotland. Why did
he make this decision?

58.  Because
the present caught up with his
predicted future—NSA‟s spying, Scotland
on the brink of independence.

59. We were talking of dragons, ______ and I
In a Berkshire bar. The big workman
Who had sat silent and sucked his pipe
All the evening, from his empty mug
With gleaming eye glanced towards us:
„I seen ‟em myself!‟ he said fiercely.
8. Identify the poet. Also fill in the blank.

60.  CS
Lewis
 Tolkien

61. 9. Caladan Brood are a band that
look and sound a lot like the more
popular The Summoning.
However, unlike The Summoning,
their lyrics aren‟t about Tolkien‟s
world, but instead from what epic
fantasy series?

62.  Malazan:
Erikson
Book of the Fallen, by Steven

63. 10. From the
lyrics of which
1975 song is
this book title
taken?

64.  Shine
Floyd
On You Crazy Diamond, by Pink

65. 11. Louis XIV had this inscribed on his
cannons: “Ultima Ratio Regum”
The final book in a trilogy takes its name
from the English translation of this quote.
Name the book.

66.  Last
Argument of Kings, by Joe
Abercrombie

67. 12. Identify this
classic.

68.  The
Hearing Trumpet

70.  The
Worf of Starfleet

71. 14. In „Y: The Last Man‟, when the plague that
kills all men (except Y) strikes, Margaret
Valentine, the Secretary of Agriculture becomes
the President of the US as she is the survivor with
the highest rank in USA‟s chain of succession.
She stands for re-election when things have
settled down, and wins. She attributes her victory
to being the most famous woman as “no one
knows where _____ is hiding”.
Fill in the blank.

72.  Oprah

73. 15. Eric Corley is a prominent hacker, and
founder of the hacker quarterly 2600. He
writes under the pen-name Emmanuel
Goldstein, a reference to the fictional
author of „The Theory and Practice of
Oligarchal Collectivism‟.
Emmanuel Goldstein is a character from
which 1949 novel?

74.  Nineteen
Eighty-Four, by George Orwell

75. 16. Identify this band that takes its name
from the underground hideout of the
main character of a 1982-1989 work.

76.  Shadow
Gallery, hideout of V in „V for
Vendetta‟

77. 17. This is the sixth
book in the
Bunnicula series
(about a vampire
bunny!). What‟s the
name of the raven
in this book?

78.  Edgar
Allan Crow

79. 18. Sayuri Ueda‟s
novel „The Cage of
Zeus‟ is full words
such as E, Em,
and Eir. What are
they?

80.  Spivak
pronouns—gender neutral
pronouns. Ueda‟s book deals with
„Rounds‟, people who have both male and
female genitalia

81. 19. The world is divided into five factions:
Abnegation (the Selfless), Dauntless (the
Brave), Candor (the Honest), Amity (the
Peaceful), and Erudite (the Intelligent). Once
citizens reach a certain age, they must
undergo testing to determine which faction best
suits them, after which they are forced to
decide whether to choose a new faction or stay
put. This is the premise of which YA series,
now being made into a much-hyped movie?

82.  Divergent,
by Veronica Roth

83. 20. David Peterson‟s first creation was called
“Megdevi”, put together when he was a student
at UCB, and meant as a present to his thengirlfriend. (The name Megdevi is a portmanteau
of his name, and that of his girlfriend Megan)
What is his most famous creation, that currently
has 3700 entities, and he plans to continue
adding to it until it reaches at least 10000?

84.  The
Dothraki conlang

85. 21. According Gardner Dozois, the role of a
science fiction writer was to notice the car
and the movie theater and not just
anticipate X, but go on to predict Y as well.
In other words, not just write about futuristic
innovations, but also about the social
consequences of those innovations.
What are X and Y?

86.  Drive-in
theaters
 The sexual revolution

87. 22. On what date was the 2006
remake of „The Omen‟ released?

88.  6th
June (thus 6/6/6)

89. 23. In 2013, shortly before the author‟s death, his first novel was made
into an opera by the composer Ben Frost and it debuted at Royal
Opera House, London. Name the author, and the novel.

90.  Iain
Banks
 The Wasp Factory

91. 24. Original
manuscript of?

92.  Dracula,
by Bram Stoker

93. 25. In his youth, this
author was an avid
amateur boxer, and
went by the nickname
„Two-gun Bob‟.
Name him, and his
most famous
creation.

94.  Robert
E Howard
 Conan, the Barbarian

95. 26. This 1979
alternative history
(and as the title
makes it clear,
alternative
geography even!)
novel is in news
again thanks to
parallels to current
events in that part
of the world. Name
the novel.

96.  The
Island of Crimea

97. 27. This poem was
published in an 1893
issue of Punch magazine
in response to an article
titled „The Man of the
Year Million: A Scientific
Forecast‟ that was
published in the Pall Mall
Gazette. Who wrote this
article, which tried to
envision what man would
evolve into a million
years hence?

98.  HG
Wells

99. 28. While the eventual movie adaptation was by David Lynch, there was
a project getting another equally offbeat director to do it. This photo
shows the artist who was commissioned with producing artwork for the
movie, and some of the sketches he came up with for it. Name the
movie, who was supposed to direct it, and who was the artist involved?

100.  Dune
 Alexander
 HR
Giger
Jodorowsky

101. 29. What is the book
cover inspired by?

102.  The
painting „Napoleon Crossing the Alps‟

103. 30. „Sheltered‟ is set amid
an isolated society of
doomsday preppers who
have spent their lives
preparing for the end times,
only to face danger from
within when their own
children decide to massacre
all of the adults.
Given this premise, the
subtitle categorises the
comic into what „genre‟?

104.  Pre-apocalyptic

105. 31. There was a spurt of 1 star
ratings for this book this past
week. Same for the author‟s
other books too. Why?

106.  Lynn
Shepherd asked JK Rowling to stop
writing

107. 32. Henry Beard and Douglas
Kenney wrote the popular
1969 parody book „Bored of
the Rings‟. What did the two
go on to found the same year?

108.  National
Lampoon

109. 33. For those only
familiar with the
famous movie
adaptation, the
book cover may
seem very wrong,
but the cover art
shown here
matches what is
described in the
book. Name the
book/movie.

110.  Wizard
of Oz (book had silver shoes,
movie had ruby slippers)

111. 34. An annual award given to a work or works
of science fiction or fantasy that explores and
expands gender roles is named after an
author whose gender was the source of
much debate. Name the award.

112.  James
Tiptree Jr. Award

113. 35. Before he became an author, he
served in the British army, and was
stationed in India. When in India, he visited
the Calcutta Botanical Gardens and saw a
tree labeled as the biggest in the world. He
thought about what would happen if the
tree continued growing and ended up
covering the whole world. Thus was born
the idea behind which famous novel?

114.  Hothouse,
by Brian Aldiss

115. 36. „Pillar to the
Sky‟ is the first of
the novels marrying
science fiction and
science fact
published by Tor in
collaboration with
whom?

116.  NASA

117. 37. „A Modest Proposal‟ is a 1729
satire which advices the Irish poor to
sell their children as food for the rich
as a way out of their economic
troubles. Who was the author?

118.  Jonathan
Swift

119. 38. A recent BMW i8 ad used this speech,
thus probably making him the first sci-fi
author to endorse a car, albeit
posthumously. Identify the speaker.

120.  Arthur
C Clarke

121. 39. This short story
was the inspiration
for which movie?
And who wrote this
story under the penname Don A Stuart,
possibly to avoid
insinuations of an
editor favouring his
own work for
publication?

122.  The
Thing
 John W Campbell Jr.

123. 40. Alan Moore‟s new book „____:
Heart of Ice‟ is the story of Janni
Dakkar, daughter of ____, and her
struggle to come to terms with her
father‟s legacy. Fill in the blank.

124.  Nemo

125. 41. Who co-produced
this Ralph Bakshi film?

126.  Frank
Frazetta

127. 42. What products made by Sirius
Cybernetics work on a principle called
“defocused temporal perception” which
enables them to dimly perceive the
immediate future and hence eliminate
inefficiencies that involve waiting in a
lobby, making tedious conversations,
pressing buttons, etc.?

128.  Elevators