Andre Norton is dead at the age of 93. For those of us that grew up with her books, she will be sorely missed.
I first read an Andre Norton book....well, I don't want to say how long ago. I think the first one that I read was "The Beast Master." Don't judge the book by the terrible movie of the same name. Later, I became a big fan of the "Witch World" series. I can't begin to count how many wonderful hours of enjoyment I found with her books.
When Ms. Norton began to write, Sci-Fi was not really open to women. Her early works were published under the name "Andrew North." She broke the barriers preventing women from writing Sci-Fi.
She was the first woman to receive the Grand Master of Fantasy Award from the SFWA in 1977, and she won the Nebula Grand Master Award in 1984.
Her last complete novel, "Three Hands of Scorpio," is set to be released in April. Norton's publisher, Tor Books, rushed to have one copy printed so that the author, who had been sick for almost a year, could see it. Which I think is just wonderful.
Rest in peace, Ms. Norton and thank you.