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SF Great Poul Anderson, 1926-2001 108

Posted by jamie from the still-accelerating dept.
Hugo and Nebula winner, fantasy/sf author for nearly half a century, Poul Anderson passed away today. Among his works I really enjoyed were the classic Tau Zero and The Boat of a Million Years. CaptainCarrot passed along the sad news: "Word had gone out to the science fiction comminity a short time ago that Poul Anderson was very ill and was probably in his last days. Earlier today, Anderson's son-in law Greg Bear posted the following to a board at sff.net:

"Friends,

Poul Anderson passed away last night, July 31-August 1, around midnight. During the afternoon, he received hundreds of emails and messages from friends and readers and fellow writers, which Astrid and Karen printed out and read to him. He died knowing (and how!) that he was loved and valued, and hearing how much his work had entertained and moved so many. Though he was weak at the end, there was no loss of mental capacity, and my last conversation with him was slow but sparkling with the curiosity and deep-seated gentlemanliness that Poul always had, and which was, I think, built into his whole body and being.

He is survived by his wife and writing partner, Karen, his daughter Astrid, brother John, grandchildren Erik and Alexandra, nieces Janet and Cathy, and by millions of readers.'

Poul Anderson was an extraordinarily rare kind of man, a brilliant writer with an impressive intellect who was yet always open, friendly, approachable, and a downright decent human being. I had the pleasure of meeting him and his wife Karen on several occasions over the years at BayCon, and I will always treasure the experience. I extend my sympathies to Karen and condolences to his family.

You can look up Poul's impressive bibliography or read an interview he did for Locus a few years ago. You can also read an obituary at the Locus site, or this notice at SFWA."
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SF Great Poul Anderson, 1926-2001 More

SF Great Poul Anderson, 1926-2001

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  • OT: Greg Bear (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward
    I find it interesting that Greg Bear is Poul's son-in-law. He wrote the Infinity Concerto and the Serpent Mage (both parts of "Songs of Earth and Power" or something like that). I read those books and the concepts were good, if the writing was amateur. Adios Poul. Leave your writing skills to Greg, please.

  • at least Gillian Anderson still lives (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward
    It is too bad ol' Poul punched out -- he and Gillian were going
    to start a web page for Andersons with peculiar first names.

  • Re:Another... how many are left? (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Alot of the writer's write both, and the publishing houses concentrate on both, so they end up on the same shelf. If you're looking for non-lame plot in fantasy here's a few : 'Oath of Swords' and 'War God's Own' by David Weber (Good hard SF writer too) 'Philisophical Strangler' Eric Flint (Hard SF writer) and David Freer Anything by David Gemmel, he recycles plots, but they entertain. 'The Forlorn' By David Freer (Starts Fantasy, ends SF) For Good new SF: 'A Hymn Before Battle'/'Gust Front' by John Ringo 'March Upcountry'/'March to the Sea' By David Weber and John Ringo 1632 by Eric Flint Anything by David Weber, especially the Honor Harrington stuff 'Star Soldiers' by Andre Norton, it's old but just reprinted 'Foreign Legions' Anthology based on Drake's "Ranks of Bronze' which is also in reprint 'Lt. Leary Commanding'/'With The Lightnings' by David Drake 'Against The Odds'/Change of command' by Elizabeth Moon 'Soldiers' by John Dalmas And a non-Baen series just to be different: the 'Island in the Sea of Time' trilogy from S.M. Stirling That should keep you busy for a bit. Mykroft Holmes IV

  • Re:History and D&D influences (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward
    His stories literaly changed my life. Poul Andersons writings ignited an interest in history in me that never ended. I started out as a geeky reader of SF and math textbooks. I still love math and computor science (been programing since I was a teen in the middle 70s), but my true love is pre-history. I learned early on, that it is impossible to understand the future without understanding the past. Man has always been confronted with advances in technology that are so profound as to change society at its most fundemental level. Thanks Poul, because of you, I found my true passion.
  • I know it's only my opinion - but hear me out! I too have felt the sting of cliched fantasy. A author has appeared that has restored my faith!
    No longer is the magic, the faries, or fantastical beings the only focus of fantasy novles - there is an author that focuses on realistic multi-dimensional CHARACTERS. No longer do the good guys wear white tunics, or the bad guys wear black mail! Almost all of the characters by this author are GREY, very, very GREY. They will do good, they will do evil - they are above all, HUMAN, and INTERESTING!

    The author - George R. R. Martin - a sci-fi author who decided to write some fantasy - his series - "A Song of Ice and Fire".

    So far I have DEVOURED his first two books - "A Game of Thrones" and "A Clash of Kings". The thrid novel (forgot title) is out, but I'm waiting for it to come out in paperback. These books ARE weighy - upwards of 800-900 pages each, but I went through them like NO fantasy book I have ever read before - and that includes my previous fav - Robert Jordan (whose books, for MANY reasons, do not hold the enjoyment they once did).

    He writes really dark, gritty fantasy - people (even good ones and major characters) will die, because it MAKES SENSE FOR THEM TO DIE. His characters and plots are complex, but not overwhelmingly so (ahem Mr. Jordan). He keeps the action going when it should. Honestly, never before have I enjoyed good characters getting revenge, or bad characters executing another move in a web of plots and counter-plots. Not that the series is perfect - the setting is good, but not the most original - but is ANYTHING original in fantasy anymore??? The focus is the writing, plot and the characters - and in these elements, Mr. Martin has succeeded (IMHO) in ways no previous fantasy author I have read has.

    Do give him a try - I recommended his works to two separate friends and both immediately LOVED his work and greedily read the first two novels.

    Sincerely,
    Kevin Christie
    crispiewm@hotmail.com

  • Re:A sad year for SF (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Yes, it seems they are dying in alphabetical order.
  • Memo to bookstore owners: Separate the sections!!!

    I wonder how many of the authors in the Sci Fi/Fantasy section wish there was only Fiction section.

  • Wow, what a beautiful piece of poetry, one of the best tributes I've seen to Poul Anderson's Passing.

    ttyl

  • One of my favorite of his works is Orion Shall Rise, which is very interesting in the way it plays with the concept of utopia, and also makes you almost not notice the parallels with norse myth at the same time.

  • If I remember rightly, Mr. Anderson was one of the founders of the SCA.

  • I have some of the same issues, but I've found a few contemporary authors writing some excellent sci-fi: (you'll notice I'm fond of military sci-fi, especially ones with a real sense of tactics, as well as long on-going series)

    David Weber, especially the Honor Harrington books. The first book in the series, On Basilisk Station, is available free from: http://www.baen.com/library/default.htm

    I am also fond of Oath of Swords, a well-written Fantasy with real characters that doesn't quite fit into the normal fantasy sterotypes established by Papa Tolkien :) This is also available from Baen Free library.

    S.M. Stirling and David Drake co-wrote the excellent "The General" series, a 5-book series with a related sequal. The Hammer series by Drake (Mercenaries) is good, but not up to The General, IMHO.

    The first 3 Star Wars novelizations by Timothy Zahn are excellent too, with a well-defined plot arc and human (well, alien) characters.
    On the well-written fantasy side, I enjoyed The Videssos Cycle by Harry Turtledove. This doesn't seem to have the well-defined plot arc of some of the other series, but the combination of Roman Legions and magic is intriguing.

    The disc-world series by Terry Pratchett is generally a fun read, if you have a high tolerance for puns.

    _A Company of Stars_ by Christopher Stasheff is well-written with engaging characters, and appropriate subject matter for slashdot; it deals with censorship and politics. Some of the reviews of the sequels are not as promising, but I haven't found any yet, so I can't give a personal opinion. This book is out of print, and the series is incomplete.

    Of course, there is always the voluminous Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. There have been many other reviews here and elsewhere, so I will leave this one to others.

  • Re:Another... how many are left? (Score:3)

    by Ranger ( 1783 ) on Wednesday August 01, 2001 @08:48PM (#2177563) Homepage
    If Orson Scott Card quits writing, I don't know what I'll do :-(

    I gave up Card a while back, but have you tried George R.R. Martin, Neal Stephenson, Dan Simmons, Greg Egan, Connie Willis, Tony Daniel, Michael J. Straczynski, Harlan Ellison, Larry Niven, or Ben Bova? Gardner Dozois makes a valid claim that there are good new authors out there. You just have to look for them.

    For those who must have a morbid fascination with not dead yet lists see: Oldest Living Authors/Editors/Artists [sfsite.com] Obviously they haven't had time to remove Poul's name from that list. It is from the Internet Science Fiction Database (ISFDB) Derived Information [sfsite.com] page.

    The question should be how many "Golden Age" authors are left that are still writing?
  • 'Unclefish Beholding' is a great piece -- it's atomic science using the English we'd have if there had been no Norman invasion, i.e. no latin/greek-derived words.

    "Uncleavish Truethinking". See this Poul Anderson bibliography [sfsite.com].

  • History and D&D influences (Score:3)

    by Colin Simmonds ( 4017 ) on Wednesday August 01, 2001 @06:39PM (#2177565) Journal

    My favorite Poul Anderson work is the Time Patrol story "The Sorrow of Odin the Goth", which brings a tear to my eye every time I read it. It would have to be closely followed by The Boat of a Million Years, which makes being immortal sound like a burden. These show Anderson at his best, either taking the long view of history or making some ancient piece of the past seem alive and exciting. No other author I've read has had that delicate touch for history, and for that he will be missed.

    Little known-fact: I read somewhere that Anderson's novel Three Hearts and Three Swords was one of the strong influences on the creation of Dungeons and Dragons.

  • Re:Greg Bear (Score:3)

    by Manuka ( 4415 ) on Wednesday August 01, 2001 @06:25PM (#2177566) Homepage
    As a side note, Greg Bear is also scheduled to be the Keynote Speaker at this year's LISA [usenix.org] conference in San Diego. The speech is titled "Slime vs. Silicon--Life's a Bitch, But Would You Want to Be a Computer?" -- sounds like great fun :)
  • I didn't know Greg Bear is Poul's son-in-law either.

    I enjoyed Eon, Eternity and the books that start with the Forge of God, Greg certainly does have some original ideas.

    And of course the sadness is felt for the loss of Poul, one who became nearly immortal in his words and worlds he created.

  • Was that supposed to be an attempt at humor, or just a display of ignorance?
  • Just for the record, Jethro was played by Max Baer, Jr., not Max Bear. Max Baer, Sr., was also an actor.

    Adolescents with no knowledge of, or appreciation for, talents such as Poul Anderson are empowered to anonymously contribute the electronic equivalent of litter and graffiti to an otherwise somber and respectful discussion of the recently deceased and the sense of loss felt by his readers. Is this one of the blessings of the computer age?

  • according to www.amazon.co.uk, the Broken Sword by Paul Anderson (sigh) is available on special order as a 1998 paperback, and by Pohl Anderson (double sigh) on special order as a 1973 harcover.
    So I guess it had a few more print runs.
  • Find a used book store in your area. Regular new book stores like B&N or even local sellers usually have jack shit for selection in SF. Used book stores, in my experience, tend to have much wider selections of much better material, and the stuff is cheaper to boot!
  • Moving more offtopic, but in a related fashion, you could also read 'Who's Afraid of Beowulf?' by Tom Holt, a book where a group of Viking heroes reawake in the current era.

    Quite an amusing read.
  • Not too sure about the Shadow series - like most people here I am a great fan of the Ender books, especially the first two (Ender's Game and Speaker For The Dead).

    I read the Shadow series, but kept feeling that political events within them happened a bit too 'deus ex machina' i.e. some of the events within them did not relate so well. Although Bean himself is extremely well developed, Achilles ability to control several governments is a little overstretched.

    I hope the third book in the series has a more realistic development of Peter's rise to power.

  • /.
    One of the few science fiction / fantasy authors who studied history, and a member of the Society for Creative Anacronism. The SCA is a sport combat group (one of several such organizations active in the US) with a somewhat unrealistic medieval-themed stick fighting system (plastic & aluminum armor & shields are both legal in most kingdoms, which is anacronistic if not creative).
    Poul wrote a historical fiction about Harald Hardraada, as well as many fantasies and science fiction stories with a medieval theme.
    Since most geeks read science fiction, and some geeks frequent slashdot, it's not suprising that many of the denizens of this forum consider your question stupid and trollish.
    --Charlie
  • Genesis as a novel? I remember reading a novella called that in one of Dozois's Year's Best Science Fiction collections; set in a far-far-far future Earth with main character Christian Brannock, right?
    If it's a novel now, I should get that...
  • No. Jerry Pournelle mentions on his website (jerrypournelle.com) that Poul was offered the opportunity and chose not to do so, for whatever reason. Bizarre.

    Randall.
    On a visible but distant shore, a new image of man;
  • Does anyone else remember this book, I found it at a garage sale when I was younger. It is my favorite Anderson book. Looks like it is out of print though. No content here, move along people.
  • Having worked at a bookstore that did seperate the two, I was constantly pissed that they never got the seperations right. And woe unto me if I ever got caught putting them in the wrong spot.

    Sure the star trek books and the tsr books are easy to catagorize. But what about stuff like the adept series from Piers Anthony (they never could decide where they went) or alot of stuff from Roger Zelazny? Or do you consider only hard stuff from the likes Bob Forward to be sci-fi?

  • Requiem (Score:3)

    by moebius_4d ( 26199 ) on Wednesday August 01, 2001 @09:57PM (#2177579) Journal
    Poul Anderson touched many people as a writer, as a storyteller. He did not write abstruse literary fiction aimed only at those who wished to decode the symbolism and disregarded the story. His gift was an ancient one, that of drawing others into the web of his imagination and holding them there until he had said his peace.

    Whatever his beliefs about the nature of man, Poul will live on in his work and in the hearts of those he inspired and enchanted both as a writer and as a man.

    Northern skies, behold! A noble comes forth to take his place among you.
  • From a search of local libraries it looks like Baen Books also reprinted The Broken Sword in 1988.

    If you can't find a copy of an older book to buy, check with your local library. You can usually do a multi-library search from a web site and then email a request for inter-library loan. For instance there are two copies of The Broken Sword in Minnesota libraries, one is the 1971 Ballentine (w/ intro by Lin Carter) and the other is the 1988 Baen edition.

  • And thank you, Poul.

    "All that really matters is the story."
    Poul Anderson, Hrolf Kraki's Saga

    --
    "Deep in the ocean are treasures beyond compare,

  • Re: The Broken Sword (Score:3)

    by sphere ( 27305 ) on Wednesday August 01, 2001 @06:51PM (#2177582) Homepage Journal
    The Broken Sword is indeed great fantasy and well worth your time. But there was another print run of Sword: Lin Carter reprinted the book as part of his Adult Fantasy series of paperbacks, which he did for Ballentine Books back in the '70s. A year or three ago, I got lucky and found a copy from this print run in a Wasington DC used bookstore.

    Additionally, if you like Sword, I highly recommend Anderson's Hrolf Kraki's Saga, his retelling of a Danish saga that is related to Beowulf. This story features Hrothgar, and Beowulf is essentially a footnote in Hrolf Kraki's tale. Operation Chaos is also a good fantasy by Anderson, much in the spirit of Heinlein's Magic, Inc.
    --
    "Deep in the ocean are treasures beyond compare,

  • I ran into Greg Bear in the early 1990s at the UW Book Store. I had met Mr. Bear at several signings and was at the book store purchasing some Poul Anderson novels for my stepmother who now and then will read a science fiction novel. Greg noticed that I had two Poul Anderson novels and asked me if I would like to have them autographed. I said sure and he took me around the corner and there was Poul Anderson. Poul signed both of the books and another that I bought for myself (just to have him sign it). What a nice guy, taking time out from his shopping trip to sign a fan's books. I was pretty speechless and stammered something about being a huge fan.
    His novella "Sam Hill" reprinted in _The Best of Poul Anderson_ is a classic about the abuses of government databases that is as relevant today as when it was written almost 50 years ago.
  • He's obvioulsy faked his death as part of his recruitment for the time patroll.
    He will be missed.
  • Probably my favorite book titles of all time. One of the Heechee books.


    I can tell you the meaning of life,
  • Oops, you're right of course. I'd blame it on ADD but I can't remember what I was talking about.


    I can tell you the meaning of life,
  • Close: the Heechee books were by Fred Pohl. Easy to get confused... :)
  • The sad thing is that many of those authors you mention aren't new. Harlan Ellison wrote for the original Star Trek (City on the Edge of Forever, one of the best). Larry Niven has been writing for over 30 years,as has Ben Bova.
  • Yes, it was Poul Anderson - The Enemy Stars - a damn fine short novel/novella, originally written about 1960. I think a new edition was re-released a few years ago.
  • When "Earthblood" came out, the way it stirred the imagination, the wonder of it - I will never forget it. And all those Retief yarns!

    None of them can ever be replaced. SF has been a vast wasteland for some time but for the old guard. With just about all of them gone, the SF I knew is dead, and the world is poorer for it.
  • Wow, what a beautiful piece of poetry, one of the best tributes I've seen to Poul Anderson's Passing.

    I took it from the first page of Poul's own masterpiece, "The Boat of a Million Years." It is translated from ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics, The Book of Going Forth by Daylight, Theban recension, ca 18th Dynasty. I thought it was a fitting adieu for one of 20th century's giants. I can't think of any other sci-fi author who can match Poul's grasp of history and the human condition. A great loss.

  • May He Go Among the Imperishable Stars (Score:5)

    by Louis Savain ( 65843 ) on Wednesday August 01, 2001 @06:35PM (#2177592) Homepage
    May he go forth in the sunrise boat,
    May he come port in the sunset boat,
    May he go among the imperishable stars,
    May he journey in the Boat of a Million Years.

    -The Book of Going Forth by Daylight

    He will be missed

  • Read one of his books in class ... (Score:3)

    by karb ( 66692 ) on Wednesday August 01, 2001 @05:44PM (#2177593)
    My freshman writing class, "Science Fiction in Story and Film."

    Cool thing was, the class a few years later than me actually had a phone interview with him about one of his books.

    Not much of a remembrance, just an author who'd take time out of his schedule to talk to a freshman writing class had to be pretty cool :)

  • What is a little creepy is the fact that I bought their books this year before they died. I had never read books by either man, so I decided to buy The Boat of a Million Years and Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

    I also have finally read the entire Heechee series of books (all five) which I purchased this spring. I hope I am not a curse. Nah.

    I must say that Half Price Books is a great place to shop. Half (no pun) the books I buy there are in new condition. I try to scout there about every two weeks to see if I can find a classic in top quality to read and add to my collection. I hate creases in the spines of my books!!! :)

  • The Hoka stories were great. Alas, not only did we lose Poul Anderson this year, but his co-author on the Hoka books (Gordon R. Dickson) also died earlier this year. Add in Douglas Adams and it's been a really, really, bad year. Sigh.

  • After reading The High Crusade, The Star Fox, Flandry stories and the time patrolman novels..

    I just couldnt go back to Asimov, save for the Baley detective stories.. Foundation and To the end of eternity were always everafter just so much rice crackers.

    Be seeing you..

  • No, it had italicized the entire page. Both the front page and the comments. It probaby got fixed quickly so no one believes me now. *sigh*
  • Make sure you're not thinking of Frederick Pohl. "Pohl" is a surname, "Poul" is a Scandanavian first name. They're somewhat different writers, but often confused for some reason.

  • Oh damn, damn, damn, DAMN. (Score:3)

    by kiscica ( 89316 ) on Wednesday August 01, 2001 @11:36PM (#2177599) Homepage
    Philip K. Dick... Richard Brautigan... Sturgeon... Avram Davidson... Frank Herbert... Bester... James Tiptree Jr.... Simak... Heinlein... Asimov... Fritz Leiber... Zelazny... A.E. van Vogt... L. Sprague de Camp... Adams.. Anderson...

    Almost twenty years ago, as I hit my teens and began actually taking note of the names that appeared again and again under the titles of the stories and books that I loved (and that were teaching me, despite their often other-wordly subjects, more about the world than I ever suspected), I started noticing at the same time the obituaries, one or two a year, in a bad year three...

    One after the other, writers who enriched -- and continue to enrich my life -- with their work.

    Each death an icicle of regret in my heart. Yet another writer whom I will never have the chance to thank. And, selfishly I know -- another writer whose work has become, suddenly, finite and bounded, whose stories and books I must now ration (if I have not already read them all over and over), to stretch out my enjoyment as long as possible.

    I will take Tau Zero and The Boat of a Million Years on my weekend trip tomorrow, and reread each for the third, or is it fourth, time... Paul Anderson wasn't even one of the authors whom I sought out most eagerly, but his work has rarely disappointed me, and he certainly places well in my personal "top 100" list. I'm sure he is near the top of the list for many. His death is a deeply felt loss to all lovers of SF. Thank you, Poul Anderson, and thank you again to all the other writers, living and no longer living, who have helped to make our lives worth living.

    Kiscica (Adam Jacobs)
  • I might add David Brin and Kim Stanley Robinson among others. There are great SF authors still, but the old one will be dearly missed.

    I own and read a lot of Poul Anderson's novels. I will miss him :-(
  • if he wasn't there at the beginning, he was certainly there soon after. If I remember rightly, there's a history page that mentions him and Harlan Ellison fighting in Los Angeles within the first couple years.

    Kean

  • first Marion Zimmer Bradley, who helped come up with the SCA [sca.org]'s name, now Poul, who was a knight and a laurel.

    Damn.

    Kean

  • If I remember correctly, the phenomenon was called the "Dirac beep". Off the top of my head, I can't remember any Poul Anderson stories in which it appeared, but there was a story by (I think) James Blish called "The Quincunx of Time" which used it.
  • Fighting with Harlan is hardly rare...

  • There are always new authors ready to step into the limelight. One just needs to look for them.

    I get my fix here [analogsf.com].

    Goodbye Mr. Anderson, you will be missed - but your works will live on forever.

  • Pivotal moment: Getting caught reading Tau Zero in 6th grade class by hiding it inside a textbook (which I'd already read cover-to-cover, I mean come on people :-)).

    Paul Boutin | writer unfit to tie Poul Anderson's sandals and amateur search engine optimization [lycos.com] consultant

  • 'The High Crusade' was probably my favorite Anderson. One of the funniest books I've ever read, almost as funny as 'Good Omens'. I'm glad that he went in the company of the people that he loved.
  • I was a passionate fan of real science fiction. I could learn about science and experience some aspects of what our real future might end up being like because of real science. I wanted to learn things that could be really useful, not waste mental CPU cycles learning the goofy rules of some enchanted tree or some such thing.

    I guess the market for fictional speculations on the fascinating, even astounding, implications of real science and technology is just too small compared to the market for superstitious nonsense, which is never-ending.

    Polluting science fiction with dwarves with magic rings, dragons and enchanted swords and all that nonsense is like making the astronomy category into astronomy/astrology.

    It's just another example of "dumbing down".

  • I always enjoyed the man-kzin series of Baen books. I understand Mr. Anderson had some involvement with this, and of course, many, many other fine works.

    Condolences and thanks for one of the finest people to ever grace this planet or any other.


    Treatment, not tyranny. End the drug war and free our American POWs.

  • Coincidence.... I think NOT! (Score:3)

    by dpilot ( 134227 ) on Thursday August 02, 2001 @05:11AM (#2177611) Homepage Journal
    Actually I'm sure it is...

    The /. story after this is about all messages being imbedded in Pi.

    Which reminds me of what I believe was a Poul Anderson story, titled "Blip" or "Bleep" or "Bzzzt", or something like that.

    In essence, they had an FTL communications method which always had a burst of static at the start of every message. At some point, our hero (in law enforcement) starts getting crime tips and information about his organization's activities that are supposed to be secret.

    It turns out that the static burst contains ALL messages ever transmitted this way: past, present, and future, merely time-compressed into a brief burst of noise. Our heroine (the previously unknown party) decompressed this burst and began reading them, sending the tips to our hero.

    Of some interest was that some of the messages were perfectly legible, but could not be understood for lack of cultural or scientific references. Our hero heard a call for help from the far future, but couldn't understand either the distress or what form help might be.

    Kind of like fishing for messages in the digits of Pi.
  • Card has had a downslope but the later ones - the Shadow books - are great and are much nearer the style of his first Ender book than the sequels.
  • Perhaps they'll re-release Three Hearts and Three Lions again. What a great book -- I have two copies.
    I only have one copy, but it's a signed hardback first edition...

  • Re:History and D&D influences (Score:4)

    by dazed-n-confused ( 140724 ) on Wednesday August 01, 2001 @10:07PM (#2177614)
    My favorite Poul Anderson work is the Time Patrol story "The Sorrow of Odin the Goth"
    According to the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America [sfwa.org] obituary page (he was a former President of this organisation), the books Poul Anderson wanted to be remembered for are: Tau Zero, Midsummer Tempest, The Boat of a Million Years, Three Hearts and Three Lions, The Enemy Stars and Brain Wave.

    Quite agree re: "The Sorrow of Odin the Goth"; my own favourites would include The Broken Sword and the Nick van Rijn/Polesotechnic League/Flandry stories -- whenever I can find them! But then, I grew up with those, and not his own proudest works.

    I think D&D got its regenerating rubbery trolls from Three Hearts and Three Lions (not Swords, but we seem to have a large enough population of regenerating rubbery trolls here on /. to put that origin into doubt. Unless they were all inspired by Poul's book... nah, I doubt it!
  • www.gregbear.com

    BTW, this website is developed by my former co-worker.
  • First Adams, now Anderson. We say a teary and fond good-bye to another great. Rest in peace, Poul.
  • Ye another blow to a teetering house of cards. How many greats have we lost? The golden age of sf has gone the way of Zelasny, Heinlein, and now (tragically) Anderson. There are still excellent sci-fi writers but their work is ignored in favor of the dross... coauthored novels where the big name is just a name on the cover, Dragonlance novels, and spoof fantasy... You want proof of the decline of SciFi literacy? Witness Ballantine's decision to cancel midseries David Gerrold's War Against the Chtorr, the most maddening and intriguing series I have ever read. I know he's basically fantasy but hopefully Orson Scott Card and a few others (Brin, Bujold, etc..) will keep the flame alive. There was a time when the best literature being produced was sci-fi. Weep for those days and its' artists.
  • I'm a newbie to SF books, and I picked up a Heinlein (Starship Troopers) which I read from time to time, but just yesterday got a book of short stories and started reading "Among Thieves", which completely captivated me. Now I look to pick up more books to find out he just died today!

    Its really sad realize that there is only a finite number of books from an author. I guess it paves the way for new authors to try to be as successful as their predecesors.

    He will be sadly missed, even though I hardly knew him...

    --
    Fnord is that feeling you get when you reach for a Snickers and come back with a Slurpee.

  • The stars... (Score:3)

    by Alakaboo ( 171129 ) on Wednesday August 01, 2001 @06:49PM (#2177619) Homepage
    The death of a great man, and the birth of a hero.

    --

    A warm night, a rumpled bed, crickets chirping outside, the scents of love's aftermath. She snuggled against him. Her locks spilled over the arm he had brought around her shoulders. "I've thought of what I want on my tombstone," he laughed.

    "Each man dies
    And ends his day.
    Here he lies
    Who used to lay."

    "I won't get that after all," Guthrie said.
    "But I will remember it," the robot said.
    "Right. That's enough. Listen," Guthrie hissed. "I want ... to brief you ... about Fireball.... You're going to have ... a hell of a ruckus ... and you're still ... feeling your way ... into existence--" He breathed for a span. Even amplified, his question was barely to be heard. "I wonder. How does it feel?"
    "Strange," the robot confessed. "A kind of--lightness? I'm an abstraction, I think." He sought for words. "But there is a, a drive yet, and I'm fond of my old friends, my old memories, yours. Not quite the same way as before--as you've been--but--but No, you were not very kind to Sheila today."
    "Take care ... of her. She's earned it."
    "I will. She has." This also the robot shared. "Okay, what've you got to tell me about Fireball?"
    Guthrie gathered strength.
    "They're swarming around you already, aren't they?" he began. "Advice, requests, demands.... And you know ... what I know ... about them, but ... have you got the--intuition--the sense of them?" He fought. "Listen. Mostly they mean well... Watch out for ... Delancey.... he's after power. Too good ... and administrator ... to scrap, and ... we mustn't break faith, ever ... but keep a curb on him." He fought. "And Tanya ... Tanya Eagle Tree. Good gal, besides being ... my granddaughter ... but she should stay with .. engineering. Steer her off of ... trying to steer people. And--"
    The seizure contorted him.
    The robot knelt and held him close, mummy against metal, while it ran its course. "Shall I ring for help?" the robot asked. Anyone else would have done so immediately.
    The expected "No" shivered to him. His vibrosensors felt the racking heartbeat, his chemosensors drank the swell of clam-cold sweat. "Hell with that. Never mind."
    The spasm ended. The robot lowered the man to the pillow. Guthrie's right hand trembled toward him. "Stars," Guthrie pleaded. "Keep us aimed ... at the stars ... whatever your people ... say."
    "That night at the lake is in me too," the robot assured him.

    The air was utterly still and unbelieveable clear, especially since the altitude was not much. Above the woods, stars were beyond counting. Their reflections gleamed everywhere on the lake. Anson and Juliana had the campsite to themselves; in those days, you had to backpack to here. They stripped and went for a swim. The water caressed them, almost warm. At each stroke it ran back down into itself with a clear clinking like laughter. They swam among stars. "Someday we'll do this for real," Juliana said. "Promise?"

    "Good," Guthrie whispered. "Grand. That's what counts." He rested until he could speak a bit louder. "I'll drink to theat. The Scotch ... is over there."
    "Better not," the robot counseled.
    "I'm still in command."
    The robot yielded. "You are." He crossed the room, fetched the bottle from a drawer as directed, returned, and poured into a tumbler meant for water. Kneeling again, he lifted the knaggy head and brought rim to lips.
    "The stars," Guthrie mumbled.
    Curtains rippled evening-lit in a gathering breeze. The grandfather clock reached another hour and boomed it away.

    Alakaboo

  • Oh crap, I can't believe Dickson is dead too! No more Dorsai books! That's what I get for living in Japan, even if it made the news, I couldn't understand it ;)

    Wow, it really has been a bad couple years, almost no SF authors that I grew up reading are still alive. Only Iain Banks, and he doesn't write Culture book all that much recently.

    Lacoste
    --
    Vidi Vici Veni
  • written by Fredrick Pohl who is thankfully still with us.
  • I went strolling through Amazon -- it's Fredrik Pohl (no "c")... sorry about that.

  • The High Crusade. (Score:3)

    by TomRitchford ( 177931 ) on Wednesday August 01, 2001 @07:22PM (#2177623) Homepage
    Damn, I'm all choked up here, I've read so many of his books.

    Don't think anyone mentioned "The High Crusade" which is a very strong and funny book where English knights take over a UFO and take the Crusade back to the aliens. Funny, moving, just like a lot of his books.

    Perhaps they'll re-release Three Hearts and Three Lions again. What a great book -- I have two copies. Surprised to read that it's hard to get, it's SUCH a good read.

    Goodbye, Pohl, you'll be missed.

  • _A Company of Stars_ was one of my favorite Stasheffs, but he seems to have stopped with the third book in what could have been a very long and entertaining series. _We Open On Venus_ (book 2) was preachy, and the third (and so far final) book (the name escapes at the moment) was a recycling of the plot of Book II - actors come in, get censored, stir up rebellion (knowingly or unknowingly), leave town with the cops at their heals. The difference between books 2 and 3 was the settings - Company Planet vs. Planet of the Religious Zealots. Both strongly stereotyped (the better to build plots agains) and both easily outwitted by the acting troupe.

    The name of the series was fun, too - "Starship Troupers."

    Chris, give us MORE!!!

  • Agreed. Unfortunately, the "Science Fiction/Fantasy" section in the bookstore is about 98% fantasy nowadays (WHY do they throw those two together???) Good, hard science fiction is pretty rare nowadays, although not unheard of. I particularly like the Uplift series of books by Brin, who is a relatively young guy.

    I've come to the point where I pretty much hate fantasy. I simply can't read another unicorn/elf/wizard book with the same plot about "geeky guy becomes hero" that basically tried to fill some geeky writer's personality holes. :)

    Memo to bookstore owners: Separate the sections!!!


    --

  • Re:Another... how many are left? (Score:3)

    by Alien54 ( 180860 ) on Wednesday August 01, 2001 @06:20PM (#2177626) Journal
    Another... how many are left?

    Sadly, the way the mass culture is developing with visual media, with things like quake and MTV, well these things are not the things of great literature.

    In history, during times when many men did not read, nothing much was written in the way of literature. This seems rather obvious to say it that way.

    The question is, with the passing of these great authors, are we entering into another age when many men do not read?

    We seem to be in an age of shallow men.

  • I read both The Infinity Concerto and The Serpent Mage in college and enjoyed them both well enough. They were two of his earliest works. They were a little rough-hewn, but the original ideas that make a successful Greg Bear story were already there. Greg revisited the story and "cleaned it up". The result is that both have been republished under the title Songs of Earth and Power [amazon.com]. It's currently available as both a paperback and an e-book (it recently found a home on my Handpsring Visor!).
  • I may have picked up a book or two of Pohl's at one time or another, but can't recall what they were offhand. I've tried to sample a variety of authors, but sometimes even the great ones don't get the attention they deserve because I pick up one of their less-impressive texts, or am not sure what novels are must-reads out of the sea of books they've had published.

    What is ironic is that from the death of Pohl Anderson I've gleaned a list from all yours posts of "must have" books to guide me the next time I go to the used book store.

    Thanks for the recommendations; the greatest thing an author can hope for is that he is remembered for his work, and Pohl Anderson definitely seems to have left a deep impression with his fans.
  • In history, during times when many men did not read, nothing much was written in the way of literature. This seems rather obvious to say it that way.

    Yes and no. When literacy was rare, literature was also rare. However, great literature was written and even more great stories/poems/plays/... were passed down by oral tradition.

    Some great literature has survived for over three thousand years, including the Epic of Gilgamesh and The Tale of the Eloquent Peasant to give but two examples from the Near East. There are many others from other cultures.

    Paul

  • I was very fortunate to have been able to listen to Poul Anderson talk at least once a year at the BayCon science fiction convention over Memorial Day. He was always a gracious and quite interesting man, and wrote a long line of excellent novels (I recommend Genesis, one of his last works and recent recipient of the John W. Campbell Memorial Award for best novel of 2000).

    One novel he wrote early his career, The Broken Sword, drew inspiration from the Norse sagas and eddas and is an excellent book. Too bad it is quite underrated due to the fact it only had one initial print run in the early 1950's and sadly got overshadowed by the work of one John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, IMHO.
  • I've never had a chance to read any of his work
    Huh? No bookshops or libraries where you live?
  • I read that one too. Coincidence? I think not. Too often was Science Fiction ridiculed as being preposterous in the past by idiots who didn't realize that it's as much science as fiction.

  • A great author! (Score:3)

    by raretek ( 215909 ) on Wednesday August 01, 2001 @06:10PM (#2177633)
    I remember when I finished Harvest of Stars, and then a few years later picked up The Stars Are Also Fire. Magnificent, both of them were absolutely awesome. It's a shame that he died before the ability to download himself became reality. He dealt with issues of liberty and self reliance, and also the morality of questioning authority when authority is Corrupt, yet is considered by most to be good(sounds like a country I live in). It opened my eyes to my own blind faith in Government(I was raised to have it). I've read many sci-fi novels, but no other books impacted my view of authority and reality. His books did and I will always remember those 2 works, especially the sequel. Good Bye Poul!(I'd say Mr. Anderson, but there's something too sinister about that ever since the Matrix).

  • Maybe now would be a good time to start reading the anthology of his that I have?

    I've only read one story so far. 'Unclefish Beholding' is a great piece -- it's atomic science using the English we'd have if there had been no Norman invasion, i.e. no latin/greek-derived words. An 'uncleft' is an atom, 'waterstuff' is hydrogen.

  • No, I meant what I said. Search the same link [sfsite.com].

    The one you mentioned was published in 1960, mine 1989. IIRC, the later one is an extended version of the earlier.

  • golden agers still writing?

    Fred Pohl. [amazon.com] um, Andre Norton [amazon.com] I think.

    does Le Guin [amazon.com] count as Golden Age? I still think of her as new wave.

    Bob Forward [amazon.com] still publishes, I think. but he's not really golden age. way too hard.

    but apart from Pohl, [amazon.com] I don't really like the golden age survivors anyway. I'd rather be reading Cadigan [amazon.com] or Robinson [amazon.com] or Haldeman [amazon.com] or Stephenson [amazon.com] or Goonan [amazon.com] or Niven. [amazon.com] or when it comes to fantasy, or [amazon.com]Brust [amazon.com] or Gaiman [amazon.com] or Dorsey. [amazon.com]

    although I admit it. I saw the new Earthsea book [amazon.com] in the bookstore a couple days ago, and I was vaguely tempted. I decided to wait for paperback though.

    it's funny that Dozois [amazon.com] of all people claims that there are still good authors out there, they're just hard to find. before he took over IAsfm, it was by far the best magazine on the market. it was edited by a woman named Shawna McCarthy, [amazon.com] and it was amazing.

    in 1984 and '85, everybody knew who all the good authors were. Shawna printed their stories. (for example, check the May '84 issue, [sfsite.com] or the June issue. [sfsite.com] all great stories.) now, Dozois edits the year's most pretentious, annoying crap, and Shawna... is editing a little-known magazine called Realms of Fantasy.

    interesting. just found some good news, at least Aboriginal SF [aboriginalsf.com] is still afloat. they're subscription-only though really, no newsstand sales to speak of. thus leaving most of the SF-reading public dependent on... Fantasy & Science Fiction. [sfsite.com] oh god.

    somebody give Shawna a real job. save SF.

  • Brain Wave is one of my all time favorite classic sci-fi tales, right up there with Alfred Bester's The Stars, My Destination. The concept of an intelligence-dampening field floating thru space was such a truly mind-blowing concept for a story.
  • I remember when he was our Guest of Honor at a V-Con, and hanging with him and his wife at a couple of the worldcons. He was always unassuming, had a nice sense of humor, and was polite to all the fans, treating them as equals.

    While not my favorite writer in terms of his written works, he was probably my favorite writer to talk with. And, he helped shape SF (and a little Fantasy even) in many ways.

    Skol, Poul ...

    [I know Fran really liked him too - hope she doesn't take this news too badly ...]

  • Was he frozen [alcor.org]? Probably not. Failure to connect between ideas and science...

  • I don't quite mind them throwing SF and Fantasy in the same section. I do mind the enormous amount of crap Fantasy that is being published tday.

    Anyhow, If you like a few newer authors, what about:

    • Kim Stanley Robinson. The Mars Trilogy is excellent hard SF, unless you don't like politics, because there is a lot of politics in those novels.
    • Peter F. Hamilton. Did his debut only in 1993, with the excellent Greg Mandel novels, a cross between cyberpunk and classic whodunit mysteries. Also the author of the Night's Dawn trilogy, classic space opera, with again a nice genre crossover into horror.

    I'm sure other people will come up with more examples.

    And as a last note, I only read 'Starfarers' by Poul Anderson, and it convinced me to start reading more of him. He definitely sounds like a fine author, and I'm saddened to hear of his demise.

    Mart

  • I know of Sturgeon's Law. Unfortunately, it is 95% or more of modern fantasy that is crap. And I happen to like Fantasy, so that is really hurting me.

    On the other hand with new writers like Robinson, Hamilton and a few others coming up, my other favourite genre (SF) is doing quite well.

    Mart

  • Another... how many are left? (Score:4)

    by tulare ( 244053 ) on Wednesday August 01, 2001 @05:54PM (#2177642) Journal
    Having watched someone fight along and often hopeless fight with cancer, I extend deepest condolences to the Anderson family. I can only hope that their loss will be made more bearable by the great legacy that Poul left behind.

    Like (I'm sure) many slashdotters, I grew up reading as much science fiction as I could get my hands on. Poul Anderson was one of those who produced a great deal of the best work which I so eagerly digested, along with the likes of Heinlein, Asimov, Foster, and Bradbury. (antiflame: this list is by no means intended to be complete) Lately, it seems that there are fewer and fewer such bright lights in this trade. If Orson Scott Card quits writing, I don't know what I'll do :-(

    Take care, Poul.

    Kill Smart Tags:

  • Pssst, Manga (and to a lesser extend, Anime).

    Sure, most of its crap (sorry, but its true), but if you know who and where to look for stuff, you find some pretty good sci fi and fantasy tales out there.

    A lot of it is nicely understated, and plot takes awhile to develop, a nice change of pace compared to American movies and (most) novels.

    Oh well, just my $.02.

    Dasunt, who's waiting on the Mermaid's Trilogy by Takahashi.

  • Oh, my fucking god.

    I grew up on reading the science fiction of an older time, and while I was well aware that people like Asimov, Heilein, or Clarke (and not to forget Jack Williamson!) were either hella old or dead, it never occured to me that people like Jerry Pournelle, Dean Ing, or Ursula K. LeGuin were in their mid-60's to early 70's.

    Jebus, I'm going to slink off and feel really old, yet really young at the same time. :-(

    ------------

  • to paraphrase Boswell, "It's amazing enough that science fiction tries to be funny, let alone does it well." Though, they are very funny books. I may have to hunt through my attic for my copies of them tomorrow.
  • What's peculiar about Gillian? ... for 'peculiar' read 'non-English' ...? Don't forget Gerry! FAB.
  • If you know nothing, say nothing.
  • Okay, blatant plug for a friend of mine. Try Ventus [fatbrain.com] by Karl Schroeder. It's his first novel, has been getting great reviews and sales, and the paperback is due out in October.
  • Have you got Look to Windward? It's a brand new Culture novel; I picked it upo in the U.K. a couple of months ago, and it should be out in the U.S. this month. I have no idea how publishing schedules in Japan work, or what they import.
  • I'll miss his writing.

    When I was quite young, I read many stories of his that made a lasting impression. One got me interested in relativity, which led to AP math, which led to engineering... and, well, here I am, doing fun tech stuff.

    The story was about a ship (sublight) sent out into space, but with a teleporter on board. The idea was, they could send the ship to another star system, and while it might take a hundred years for the ship to reach the destination, they could rotate the crew every six months. Thus, when it arrived at the destination, they'd have an on-site teleporter, ready to transport men, materiel, etc. through for colonization.

    Unfortunately, something goes wrong, and the guys on board have to figure out how to rig up a replacement teleporter.... quite a nailbiter. At least I think it was Poul... hard to get the name wrong, but I might have, it was so long ago...

    That ring any bells with anyone?

    Good-bye, Mr. Anderson.

  • I agree with your assessment of the three Timothy Zahn Star Wars books, they are actually quality work unlike the plethora of other money-grubbing trash that has appeared with the Star Wars name on it.

    If you want some gritty fantasy with political intrigue and war as the focus rather than Unlikely Young Hero Comes Into Magical Powers (tm), I recommend you check out George R. R. Martin's series that begins with A Game of Thrones and continues with A Clash of Kings. Another series that I really enjoy and is out of the mainstream is Jack Whyte's Camulod series, which is a pseudo historical fiction interpretation of the Authurian legend with just a touch of the mystical rubbed in. I think the first book is called Skystone; I know it's Sky-something.

    Cheers,


    Goncyn

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