- Norton, Andre
-
▪ 2006Alice Mary Norton American author (b. Feb. 17, 1912, Cleveland, Ohio—d. March 17, 2005, Murfreesboro, Tenn.), led many young readers into the realm of science fiction with her fantasy adventure novels of the 1950s and '60s. Working as a children's librarian at the Cleveland Public Library, she kept a low public profile while penning romantic otherworldly tales about young alienated heroes. Her early works included adventure stories such as The Prince Commands (1934) and spy tales such as The Sword Is Drawn (1944). Beginning with Star Man's Son, 2250 A.D. (1952), she wrote in the science-fiction genre, gaining a wide readership and many accolades. Norton later concentrated on fantasy, notably with her popular Witch World series, launched in 1963. The series featured recurring families of characters, magical plot twists, and story lines that pitted good against evil. Fantastic animals were featured prominently in other works: The Beast Master (1959), Catseye (1961), Iron Cage (1974), and Star Ka'at (1976). In 1999 she founded a writers' research centre in Tennessee. At the end of her career, she collaborated with a stable of assistant writers. Norton was the first woman to win (1983) the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America's Grand Master Award for lifetime achievement. The first Andre Norton Award for Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy was to be awarded in 2006.
* * *
▪ American authororiginal name Alice Mary Nortonborn February 17, 1912, Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.died March 17, 2005, Murfreesboro, Tennesseeprolific best-selling American author of science-fiction and fantasy adventure novels for both juveniles and adults.Norton entered Western Reserve University (now Case Western Reserve University) in 1930 but two years later began an 18-year career as a children's librarian at the Cleveland (Ohio) Public Library. She legally changed her name to Andre Norton in 1934, when her historical fantasy The Prince Commands was published; it was the first of eight novels that she published while working as a librarian. Among her early novels was an espionage trilogy about the Dutch underground during World War II, consisting of The Sword Is Drawn (1944), Sword in Sheath (1949), and At Swords' Point (1954). While working for the science-fiction publisher Gnome Press in the 1950s, she first tried her hand at science fiction, producing Star Man's Son, 2250 A.D. (1952); it was reprinted in paperback as Daybreak—2250 A.D. and sold more than a million copies.Norton's fast-moving science-fiction and fantasy tales usually feature adolescents undergoing rites of passage—tests of physical, emotional, and moral strength. Her future worlds are detailed and colourful. The most noted of her more than 130 books are those in her Witch World series, set on a matriarchal planet. She published the final book of the series, The Warding of Witch World, in 1996. A group of cat stories cowritten with Dorothy Madlee, beginning with Star Ka'at (1976), also were popular, as were the multivolume Catfantastic anthologies that she coedited with Martin H. Greenberg.* * *
Universalium. 2010.
