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I just heard this via one Neil Gaiman
11-23-2011, 03:35 AM
That Anne McCaffrey has passed away.
http://www.wired.com/geek...nne-mccaffrey-1926-2011/
The news was not necessarily unexpected, given her age, but on the other wing, it's still saddening.
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"You know how parents tell you everything's going to fine, but you know they're lying to make you feel better? Everything's going to be fine." - The Doctor
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I grew up reading her books, and they still hold a special little nostalgic place in my heart.
-Terry
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"so listen up boy, or pornography starring your mother will be the second worst thing to happen to you today"
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<head bowed, hat over heart>
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
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Her publisher has confirmed the news.
To quote Fred Brackin over on the SJGames forums, "Good night sweet lady, and flights of dragons sing thee to thy rest."
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Rob Kelk
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them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."
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That's really sad. (In the least sarcastic way possible.) If there's any authors who come close to rating 10s on my scale, they're her and Asimov - both of them I very nearly started cults to worship in junior high. I actually started wearing pants with a big cargo pocket at the knee for teh purpose of carrying around the hardcover copies of the Dragonriders trilogy and Harper Hall trilogy so I could read them anytime, and had to get new copies to go on the bookshelf because the ones I carried, the covers got warped into the shape of my leg. I worked out how to glue a ribon bookmark into the binding without messing up the books to do it on that series, so they wouldn't get pulled out going into and out of the pockets. I asnwered analogy questions on tests with things like "white as Ruth" and "bold as Moreta." And, since the English teacher was so happy to have a student who actually read for fun, I would get the correct answers changed so they were marked right after explaining the analogy.
- CD
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"Anko, what you do in your free time is your own choice. Use it wisely. And if you do not use it wisely, make sure you thoroughly enjoy whatever unwise thing you are doing." - HymnOfRagnorok as Orochimaru at SpaceBattles
woot Med. Eng., verb, 1st & 3rd pers. prsnt. sg. know, knows
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Well . . .damn.
Gone away, gone between.
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*looks at the library copy of Masterharper of Pern sitting next to my desk*
Shards. Still, her son has shown at least some capability of carrying on her legacy. Though I expect what I am feeling will only get worse as more and more of the authors I grew up with finally pass.
In many ways I was Young K'van, the littlest candidate though in our reality there are no dragons.
Rest well, Fair Mistress, and may Robinton sing of your richly earned rewards
Hear that thunder rolling till it seems to split the sky?
That's every ship in Grayson's Navy taking up the cry-
NO QUARTER!!!
-- "No Quarter", by Echo's Children
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Damn.  As JFerio said, not unexpected considering her age, but still saddening. She was one of the first authors I started collecting (building on my Mum's collection which is what hooked me in the first place), I've got 70-some of her books. She will be missed.
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This one really hurts.
I think the Dragonriders of Pern was the first "adult" Sci-Fi book I ever read. I mean adult as in mature in theme and presentation. Not meant as a "young adult" book. I remember the bright green sky and golden dragon of the masterfully done cover by Robert Whelan catching my eye in my Junior High School Library and beginning to read it right there. The first trilogy in full was at the Library there. Later I hunted down and bought and read the rest of the series. (I think the first Harperhall Trilogy was also at the Junior High School Library too. Though I'm not certain of that now.)
Later on I read and devoured many of her other books, including Rowan and similar books.
I named my "Femshep" Shepard character in Mass Effect (And ME2) "Sassinak" after the titular character in her "Planet Pirates" series with Elizabeth Moon. (And I've re-used that name for a couple of other characters in City of Heroes and elsewhere.)
So yeah, I grew up with McCaffrey and her books. I'm going to sorely (and selfishly) miss ever seeing anything new. And I lament that I never got a chance to meet her and say thank you.
Rest in peace Lady Masterharper.
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awww man... Mom's gonna take this hard - she was a bigger Pern fan than I. I did like her other stuff very much, like The Rowan and its numerous sequels.
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Well, crap.
Heinlein, Asimov, McCaffrey, and Anthony pretty much kept me sane throughout school. This is... sad.
She will be missed.
--sofaspud
--"Listening to your kid is the audio equivalent of a Salvador Dali painting, Spud." --OpMegs
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Sofaspud Wrote:Well, crap.
Heinlein, Asimov, McCaffrey, and Anthony pretty much kept me sane throughout school. This is... sad.
She will be missed. I never really got into Asimov, but I was big into Andre Norton who also passed away several years back (another auther where I got hooked by my mum's collection, then greatly added to it).
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