The Masterharper of Pern, By Anne McCaffrey

Robinton is born into the Harper Hall to Mastersinger Merelan and Mastercomposer Petrion. Both are brilliant and very much in love, but the addition of Robinton to the family strains their relationship. Petrion is very jealous of Merelan: her voice, time, and presence. The Hall has put up with Petrion’s eccentricities for a long time since he’s the most brilliant and talented composer of the century, but sad to say he’s not much of a father, only noticing his son when he does something wrong. But in a way this is all for the best, because Merelan notices that Robinton is not only very talented musically, he could also be classified as genius. At three years old he has perfect pitch and is already composing variations of music on a pipe. If Petrion were to realize too soon that his son were musically talented, it’s quite possible that he would push Robinton too fast and make him lose his love of music. But this is not to be, as the Masterharper of the Hall is a wise man who helps protect Robinton until he is old enough, for Pern will have need of him before long. The end of the interval is approaching, and the Harper Hall is falling into disfavor just like the Dragonriders. The Hall will need a strong personality to revitalize Pern and prepare for threadfall.

Very rarely do we get to see a character grow up, and the accompanying changes that occur. Most of the time we only see a section of a character’s life, and not most of it. Not that we see all of Robinton’s life, but we get to see a fair segment. I think it’s easier to write about brilliant children, because they are more often like adults in their reactions, which is easier to write about. Many times authors attempt to write from a child’s perspective and suddenly the child seems to be 20 years old. But McCaffrey manages to get past that by focusing on other pov’s until Robinton is old enough to carry the story, and making him a genius capable of a more mature personality.

For those who have been long time fans of Pern, The Masterharper of Pern is quite delightful, for Robinton appears many times later in the series, but this is a book of his own that explains his past and family. Robinton is such a character that he absolutely deserves his own book, and it’s great to read. It might not be the best of McCaffrey, but it is certainly one of her better.