Andre Norton (Alice Marie Norton) is one of the grandmasters (grandmistresses?) of sci-fi and fantasy. She wrote dozens of books that I read and reread voraciously as a kid and teen, and still reread today. The Zero Stone, Moon of Three Rings, Year of the Unicorn, The Crystal Gryphon — the Witch World series, and her shared-universe SF tales (blasters! stunners! hyperspace! the Patrol! the Traders Guild!) — my view of what fantasy and sf should be was shaped by her probably more than by any other author, Asimov and Heinlein notwithstanding.
According to the Mercedes Lackey newsletter:
After being sworn to secrecy, I have just been permitted to release this information. One of the seminal authors of our field, Andre Norton, is gravely ill. She was admitted to the hospital last Monday for surgery, and is still there. More to the point, her spirits have sunk to a life-threatening low. She needs to know just how highly regarded she is in our community, and she needs to know now.
… Please send cards and letters to:
Andre Norton
114 Eventide Drive
Murfreesboro TN 37130
If you wish to send flowers, you may also send them to this address, but direct the florist to leave them on the porch if no one is home. Andre’s two friends who are caring for her will make sure they are brought to her, but they are spending most of the time at the hospital, and so may not be there. (If this gets to be a problem, arrangements will be made for frequent pick-up!) Please do not send food, as she is on a liquids-only diet.
You may send e-cards to:
Andre Norton
E-mail Address(es): highhallack@mindspring.com
Again, her friends will make sure she gets to see them.
So often we only hear about these sorts of things after one of these figures passes away. Here’s an opportunity to actually let someone know how their work affected you before that happens. If Andre Norton is someone whose work you’ve enjoyed, drop her a line.
The Moon of Three Rings was the first science fiction I ever read. Before that I didn’t like scifi — I thought it was all hardware and monsters. I’ve read every one of her books, and I am attempting to collect them all. Her writing style is the one that has influenced mine above all others, even Tolkien.
(Hope this doesn’t appear twice — I got one of those “this page is unavailable” things.)
I just visited the Andre Norton message board. A post there indicates she is recovering.
That’s excellent news.
One thing Norton always did that I found interesting was blur SF with Fantasy. MoTR is a good example — blasters and stunners coupled with mind/soul transferrence and psychic brouhaha. She wrote in accord with Clarke’s Law, that any sufficiently advanced (or different) technology will appear to be magic.
I haven’t cared as much for her more recent efforts — I don’t know if her aesthetic has drifted over the decades, or mine has — but I still greatly enjoy her “classics” when I open them up.
Aaughh! A get-well-soon appeal with no official website or cut-off date! Shades of Craig Shergold!
Good point. Well, the AN Message Board referenced above seems to be a somewhat official site.