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Post by mnhermit on Dec 3, 2011 10:43:05 GMT -5
www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/obituaries/2011/1203/1224308522062.htmlAnne McCaffrey 1 April 1926 – 21 November 2011 When I dropped out of college in 1971, one of the things I was able to do was read for pleasure once again (I hadn't been able to while taking classes). One day while I was sitting in the CUB (student union building on campus) reading an E.E. 'Doc' Smith book an acquaintance recommended this 'new' author to me and loaned me two of her books. One was Restoree, and the other was the first Dragon book. I wasn't going to read them, but since I'm a 'nice' guy, took them assuming I'd give them back in a couple weeks. I was a dyed in the wool 'hard' SF reader, didn't have much patience with fantasy and neither of these books looked like they'd interest me. They got left on the kitchen table and the girl I was living with picked them up, devoured them both in a couple days and said 'You've GOT to read these'. With out much hope of being entertained, but not wishing to piss her off, I picked up the one that seemed more SF and found myself enthralled. Finishing Restoree by staying up all night, I decided to give that ridiculous book about dragons a shot. It made me look at fantasy in a whole new light. McCaffrey has provided many hours of entertainment for me over the years and I expect she will in the future as I re-read many of my favorites of her books. She led me away from my dependency on Heinlein, Asimov, Clarke, into more 'current' writers and a whole new genre, since after reading Dragonflight I was much more willing to TRY fantasies. RIP
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Post by Deleted on Dec 3, 2011 10:48:02 GMT -5
Had a bit of a chat with her at a book signing once. Really lovely woman.
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Post by RickW on Dec 3, 2011 12:44:43 GMT -5
Loved her stuff. The dragon books were starting to get a bit old by the end, but the first several of them were magical. Dragonsinger is one that, perhaps it's a tad light, but is one I go back to to read again.
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Post by Supertramp78 on Dec 3, 2011 12:50:28 GMT -5
As she repeatedly said herself, the Dragon books were not fantasy. They were science fiction. the animals were genetically bred to perform the things they do and much of the scenarios aren't that much different from Dune. Kelly has a real "book" version of just about everything she ever wrote (plus most of what she wrote with other people including her son). You couldn't find a bigger fan than her. She got me listening to the Dragon books on tape and I too was a hard SF fan who figured out that these books were pretty damn good.
Isn't it cool when people lend you a book and say, "Hey, read this, you might like it."?
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Post by Doug on Dec 3, 2011 12:53:00 GMT -5
I get annoyed at authors that I like dying. Just rude.
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Post by Russell Letson on Dec 3, 2011 13:25:18 GMT -5
I first read McCaffrey in the magazines--"The Ship Who Sang" in F&SF (I retain a vivid memory of the Ed Emshwiller cover) and "Weyr Search" in Campbell's Analog. I suspect that Campbell published her precisely because of the way she worked out a science-fictional rationale for the fantasy trope of riding fire-breathing dragons.
I stopped reading her after the early Pern and Helga stories, but McCaffrey had an incredibly loyal and enthusiastic audience--she was really loved by her readership, especially by young women, who had felt a bit marginalized by the boys'-club end of the SF subculture. I know that her colleagues liked and respected her. And she had a long and very successful career, which is what any writer wants.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 3, 2011 13:56:16 GMT -5
Thank you Anne, I collected your books so my grandchildren could read them.
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Post by kenlarsson on Dec 3, 2011 14:24:06 GMT -5
She was one of my favorites also. She was the first woman to win both the Hugo and the Nebula awards, SciFi's highest honors. A giant in the field.
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Post by dradtke on Dec 3, 2011 14:27:42 GMT -5
I dug out the Pern books and reread them not long ago.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 3, 2011 17:32:33 GMT -5
Chronological Order of Pern Books
In the First Pass: Dragonsdawn The Chronicles of Pern: First Fall
In the Second Pass: Dragonseye
In the Third Pass: Dragon's Kin Dragonsblood by Todd McCaffrey (release date to be announced)
In the Sixth Pass: Moreta: Dragonlady of Pern Nerilka's Story
In the Ninth Pass: Dragonflight Dragonsong Dragonquest Dragonsinger (overlaps with Dragonquest) The White Dragon Dragondrums (overlaps with The White Dragon) Masterharper of Pern (overlaps with all of the above and more) Renegades of Pern The Girl Who Heard Dragons (short story) (also the title of an anthology of short stories, not all of which are set on Pern) All The Weyrs of Pern The Dolphins of Pern The Skies of Pern
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Post by Supertramp78 on Dec 3, 2011 19:32:01 GMT -5
Marty, while that is the chronological order of the events in those books, Anne herself frequently requested people read them in the order that they were published.
Dragonflight (1968) The short stories “Weyr Search” and “Dragonrider” are incorporated in this book. Dragonquest (1971) Dragonsong (1976) Dragonsinger 1977) The Smallest Dragonboy, in: Get Off The Unicorn (1977) The White Dragon (1978) the earlier publication “A Time When” (1975) is incorporated in this book. Dragondrums (1979) Moreta: Dragonlady Of Pern (1983) Nerilka’s Story (1984) Dragonsdawn (1988) The Impression, in: The Dragonlover’s Guide To Pern (1989) The Renegades Of Pern (1989) All The Weyrs Of Pern (1991) The Chronicles of Pern: First Fall (1993) The earlier publications “Rescue Run” (1991) and “The Dolphin’s Bell” (1993) are incorporated in this book. The Girl Who Heard Dragons, in: The Girl Who Heard Dragons (1996) Dragonseye, published as Red Star Rising in the UK (1996) The Masterharper Of Pern (1998) Runner Of Pern, in: Legends (anthology edited by Robert Silverberg) (1999) The Skies of Pern (2001) A Gift of Dragons (2002) The short story “Ever the Twain” is incorporated in this book. Dragon’s Kin (with Todd McCaffrey) (2003) Beyond Between, in: Legends II (anthology edited by Robert Silverberg) (2004) Dragonsblood (by Todd McCaffrey) (2005) Dragon’s Fire (with Todd McCaffrey) (2006)
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Post by Deleted on Dec 3, 2011 20:50:11 GMT -5
Like almost everyone I read them in order of publication and would advise anyone to read them in that order also. But you don't ever see them listed in Chronological Order.
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