Hugo Award Best Novel Winner
Gateway
by Frederik Pohl
Summary
Frederik Pohl follows Robinette Broadhog, a prospector who strikes it rich aboard Gateway, an asteroid full of abandoned starships built by a vanished alien race called the Heechee. Pilots board these vessels without knowing where they will travel or whether they will survive, gambling their lives for fortune. The novel alternates between the prospecting adventure and Broadhog's later sessions with a robot therapist, weaving guilt and trauma through a story about risk and the unknown.
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Historical Context & Significance
Gateway swept the major awards by also taking the Nebula, Locus, and John W. Campbell Memorial honors, and it launched Pohl's celebrated Heechee Saga.