McCaffrey Quest 2008 - Topic Announced!

[Cheryl]

Just in time for Christmas (and your Christmas book wish lists!), we're announcing the topic for next year's McCaffrey Quest:

6th Pass Pern and Brainships

The specific books and short stories that will be covered are
Pern
Moreta
Nerilka's Story
"Beyond Between" - short story found in Legends II edited by Robert Silverberg

Brainship
The Ship Who Sang
Partnership
The Ship Who Searched
The Ship Who Won
The Ship Errant - novel by Jody Lynn Nye
The City Who Fought
The Ship Avenged - novel by S.M. Stirling
"Honeymoon" - short story found in Get Off the Unicorn
"The Ship Who Returned" - short story found in Far Horizons edited by Robert Silverberg


We know it may be harder to get your hands on the two non-Anne Ship books, so while they will be included in the quest, there will be only 2-3 questions on each. So if you can't find them, don't think that you shouldn't bother with the quest.

And as a helpful hint, some of the Brainship books can be found in anthologies published by Baen:
Brain Ships (Partnership and The Ship Who Searched)
The City and the Ship (The City Who Fought and The Ship Avenged)
The Ship Who Saved the Worlds (The Ship Who Won and The Ship Errant)

[L'isa]

Thanks, Cheryl. Never hurts to start early!!!

[Lady Maelin]

OH YESSSSSSSSSSSSS HORRAY!!! I don't know if I will do anybetter on this next Quest than I have one the last two...but what great fun I will have playing with all my ship books this next year....

[sjslack]

-Rubs hands together- Well, it's a good excuse for me to buy another...-Counts- 8 books. xD

[Hans]

Ah... that's why we choose this subject Sara, to create this chance for you

[edith]

I need 3 and I've read one of them before.

[Allana]

I haven't read any of the Brainship ones! Nor do I have any of them!

[Lara]

Drat, I haven't got the two non-Anne ones, and don't intend to get them either. I have never cared much for any of the co-written books; in fact, of the ship books, I only really liked Helva and Nancia. I've never cared much for Moreta, and was horribly disappointed in Beyond Between. I won't be participating then, though I had hoped to next year, for the first time.

[Deb]

Woo Hoo!!
Got all the Anne ones, but I'll have to search for the non-Anne ones, and the Robert Silverberg anthologies....anthologies are usually quite good so getting those certainly won't be a waste!!

And Lady M....I can so see you dancing all night long in joy...getting to read all your ship books over and over and over again!!

[Becky]

Don't forget about your local library for the books you don't have. If you're in a larger area they may be able to get the books in from another site if they don't have one on hand.

[jube]

Let's get "jiggy" with it. I'm dancing a little jig coz I had a look on my bookshelves and I actually had every one of those books Cheryl mentioned - barring the 3 "2-in-1" books, I call them that for an obvious reason that there's 2 books in 1 so to speak, pardon any puns. I've got them out, ready to read and answer any questions. Bring it on Cheryl!

[Nina]

Originally Posted by Becky

Don't forget about your local library for the books you don't have. If you're in a larger area they may be able to get the books in from another site if they don't have one on hand.

The only non-Anne book the library had was The Ship Avenged, and I ordered it on-line. I just got a mail back saying that the one copy they have cannot be lend out. They did not give any reason why. *sigh*

Are the non-Anne books very good??? In the affirmative I will try to get hold of them somehow.

[Greenrider Tresa]

Thanks, Cheryl!
And if anyone needs to, books can be ordered at amazon.com. I once got an otherwise out of print book for less than 5 dollars. Though it wasn't one of Anne's.

[Cheryl]

It's been a while since I read either sequel, Nina, but as I recall each is pretty similar to the co-authored one it follows after. So if you liked the first, you'll probably like the second, and if you didn't like the first, then you're very unlikely to like the second.

[Hans]

I find the quality if the two no Anne ship books very good.

If you are prepared to buy the books you lack, Nina, rest assured that they can be obtained at low cost from ebay.

[Nina]

Thank you for your answers

If you choose them for a Quest, they must be good enough, right?

I will trust your judgement and get hold of them, if I can.

[Nina]

I am almost ready now

I have checked that I already have all the Anne McCaffrey books needed for the 2008 Quest.

I have gotten hold of the two Anne McCaffrey short stories in the Robert Silverberg books.

Now I only need the two non-Anne books, and I have just ordered them online to arrive in about 4 weeks.

I am looking forward to the Quest

[Gwina]

ooooh! I cannot believe that I haven't read the Brainship series :thinks was sidetracked by Acorna at the time: I read the first and really loved it. Well, I hope I can do better the next go around. Thank you for letting us know well ahead of time. This is so much fun!

[Gidget2]

My fave series!!! Thank you!!

(Hmmm. Have now set myself up for a big fall when I take part and fail miserably!! ROFL)

Do you have any rough guess-timate of the kind of time of year 2008 MCQ is going to take place?

[Hans]

We usually plan for the end of October and real life sees the Quest usually starting early November

[Gidget2]

Thanks, Hans! Hopefully it will be less hectic this time around!!

[mawra]

Thanks for letting us know early. I'll have to see what I can find. I think I have read most of them.

[L'isa]

Maw, let me know what you don't have. I think I have doubles of some things.

[jube]

I've started to reread them but got sidetracked with xmas and a new Anne/Todd book as a xmas present so once that's done, I'll be back into it again. So when are the dates for it, please? Or is there something up already? I've been neglecting MOM something shocking lately as I like to keep with what's going on with everyone!

[Hans]

No dates yet; it'll be either end of October or begin of November 2008. When we'll have a definite date we'll post asap.

[unicorntig]

I'm looking forward to entering in this year's contest!! Only got 2 wrong last time, so now I'm determined to improve that to one or better!! Better yet I have all the books!!

[Lady Maelin]

It's lovely to read and study up in some of my favorite books ...I find that this year while I'm reading them...I am picking out interesting questions that might be asked on the Quest, It'll be interesting to see if any of the ones that I found interesting, end up in the list of questions.

[Hans]

Maelin probably found out how most of the team come to research/find the questions to ask!

[Lady Maelin]

Hans...not such a bad job then ...as you
do get to have the pleasure of re-reading all of the
chosen stories again, and for a wonderful reason .

This years reading list is a particular favorite of mine...
...as most members know by
now...so it is even more of a pleasure than some of
the other books that have been picked in years past .

[jube]

It's funny, currently re-reading "The Ship Errant" and quite happily read the 1st time, now finding it how to get back into it this time around. Oh well, I shall persist with it, if only for the greater good of solving the questions.

[Lady Maelin]

Jube sorry to hear that you are having such a hard time getting into the Ship Errant this time....hopefully as you go along it will get better for you.

[jube]

Think it's funny, because I like reading medieval stuff as much as sci-fi/fantasy or kids books but that's what happens with books, one day you love the story and the characters, next time around, it's the complete opposite. Or vice versa... Anyway I'll keep trying, halfway through at least. I'm commited myself to at least working out what Cheryl is going to "throw" at us, questionwise as I didn't get a chance to do the quest in previous years. Crossing my fingers that I'll remember the obscure facts and conveniently forget the obivious ones. Hehe!!

[Anneli]

Lady Maelin, it depends on whether you're reading them with 3 months, 3 days or 3 hours left before your questions are due to be submitted

Originally Posted by Lady Maelin

Hans...not such a bad job then ...as you
do get to have the pleasure of re-reading all of the
chosen stories again, and for a wonderful reason .

[Lady Maelin]

Anneli, then that would be even easier...thats where all you have to do, is open each one of the books and let your fingers do the walking...and the finding of a question. Our problem is then going back and finding that same spot where your finger landed... IF WE CAN

[jube]

I agree with Lady Maelin. Now where did that finger land????

[Hans]

Lady Maelin, that doesn't work because if you work that way you'll never be sure that the answer to the question you come up with isn't refuted (or has another solution) elsewhere in the book. Often we have to check and double check things for not only story line discrepancies but spelling error and anne-consitencies...

And even then a few out of a hundred might possibly have anotbher anwers we didn't find or think of!

[Lady Maelin]

Well then...looks like you got your work cut out for you then... don't you !!!


Seriously...I hadn't really realized all that goes into getting the MCQuest ready to go before. Apprearently the four of you go through a whole lot of trouble and hard work, so that the rest of us can have loads of fun with the quest for three days....THANK YOU !!!

[mmarkina]

hello everyone,

I was looking around for the books and found some copies of Far Horizons. Everywhere I've looked it seems to say that the story in there is "the ship who sang". Is there another edition that has "the ship who returned" or are they the same?

I don't really want to purchase the wrong book, so if someone can clear this up for me I would appreciate it very much.

[Greenrider Tresa]

They're two separate stories.

[Lady Maelin]

MMarkina...The story in *Far Horizons* is *The Ship Who Returned*...basicly its one more of the short stories in the ongoing *The Ship Who Sang* saga....just like *Honeymoon*was, in *Get off the Unicorn. You should get it if you love the *Helva* stories like I do...or even if you want to read another short story by Anne, thats one of the chosen stories for the Quest.