Harry Harrison died yesterday

Harry Harrison died yesterday. He was one if that famous old guard of SF that everyone used to read. I certainly did when I was a kid. I was exposed to many classical SF writers as a kid by my father and he always loved Harry Harrison. He loved James Bolivar diGriz of Stainless Steel Rat and I got my life long addiction to evil, smart heroines who turn to do good with Angelina. I preferred Jason diAlt when my father liked Bill, the Galactic Hero better but we read the same books. However my favourite was Make Room! Make Room! and I think I got my first take of that superiority feeling when I watched Solyent Green and I started slowly realising I read that book and already knew what it was made of and that the book was better. I was young and didn't know yet not to expect too much from book adaptations (especially when they had popular actors like Charlton Heston in it).

His last book - form the Stainless Steel Rat series - came out two years ago when he was 85. Any writer could only hope to write for that long. It still doesn't seem enough.

Reactions:
Neil Gaiman remembers his first meeting and shares the interview he conducted with Harrison back then.

Charlie Jane Anders wrote about him at io9.

Christopher Priest's obituary in The Guardian.

The condolence thread on his blog.