I don't know how I missed this earlier today: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012/aug/15/harry-harrison
Harry Harrison was one of my favourite SF authors as a teenager and young adult. His range of works from the comedic to intensely tragic was remarkable.
I think I've read all of the Stainless Steel Rat and Bill the Galactic Hero series at one point or another, along with many of his other books and short stories.
Harry - you will be missed.
Oh.. I remember him and his work very well. I have some books by him in my SF collection but unfortunately not all of the stainless steel rat (a great series).
ReplyDeleteRegards
Bruno
You read Stainless Steel Rat too. I first read the series over 30 years ago and have had to buy it several times because I've lost it in moves. It was so different from the "stock" sort of things I was reading at the time that it really made an impact. The humor was the best.
ReplyDeleteIt led me to seek out people like Heinlein who also used humor to great advantage.
Thanks for posting this Tamisin, elsewise I would not have known.
Another of the greats is gone, and will be missed.
ReplyDeleteHe was hugely important for my budding interest in SF in the early days. His book Captive Universe (in a Swedish version) was probably the second SF-book I ever read, at it holds a special place in my library.
/Joakim
Good call and a sad day. As the article says, he did a lot beyond the literature too, bringing people in and helping us look at the genre from new perspectives.
ReplyDeleteHad the pleasure of meeting him at a science fiction con back in the late 80's/early 90's. Nice guy, passionate about story telling, loved nothing better than to sit in the bar and have a couple of drinks and a yarn with everyone and anyone who came past.
ReplyDeleteG'night, Harry.