Famous Authors Who Passed Away in 2021

Here is an annotated list of some of the authors who have passed away in 2021. This list is not in any way an inclusive list, but rather a subjective list of major authors who have held a cherished place in the world of literature and bought a little bit of light and joy to us, their readers. This short list will highlight some of their major works for us to revisit and once again enjoy the special magic these authors bought to us.

Lawrence Ferlinghetti – died February 22, 2021 (aged 101)

Born Lawrence Monsanto Ferling in Yonkers New York, Ferlinghetti was a leading light in the Beat movement as a publisher. He was a co-founder of City Lights Booksellers & Publishers in San Francisco; which published many of the early Beat authors, such as Jack Kerouac and William Burroughs. Although Ferlinghetti was a poet and author he did not consider himself a “Beat” author. His major influences were T. S. Elliot and William Carlos Williams. Ferlinghetti was not only influential in the Beat world, but continued to be a counter-cultural icon and touchstone throughout the sixties and beyond. His adopted hometown of San Francisco made him the Poet Laureate of San Francisco in 1998 and, on his 100th birthday in March 2019, turned his birthday, March 24, into "Lawrence Ferlinghetti Day".

Ferlinghetti books to check out at the Library:

These Are My Rivers: New & Selected poems, 1955-1993

Ferlinghetti's Greatest Poems

Beverly Cleary – died March 25, 2021 (aged 104)

Cleary was born on a farm in McMinnville, Oregon and moved with her family to Portland, Oregon when she was six years old. She was one of America's most successful authors - 91 million copies of her books have been sold worldwide since her first book was published in 1950. Some of Cleary’s best-known characters are Ramona Quimby and Beezus Quimby, Henry Huggins and his dog Ribsy, and Ralph S. Mouse. Not only was Cleary one of America’s most popular and successful children’s authors, she was also a children’s librarian! And it was as a children’s librarian that Cleary found the inspiration to become an author as she shared her young patrons frustration in finding reading materials that were compelling enough to hold their interest. So, she decided to write some herself. And boy did she! Her books are still enjoyed by children and her characters are still starring in books published today as Cleary handed off the baton of fun stories for other writers to continue.

Cleary books to check out at the Library:

The Mouse and the Motorcycle

Ribsy

Runaway Ralph

Larry McMurtry – died March 25, 2021 (aged 84)

Born, raised and died in Texas. McMurtry wrote about the west, the old west of cowboys (Lonesome Dove) and the new west of contemporary times (The Last Picture Show and Terms of Endearment). Many of his novels were turned into motion pictures. In fact, the films that were adapted from his works earned 34 Oscar nominations with 13 wins. He won the Pulitzer Prize in Literature in 1985 for his novel, Lonesome Dove.

McMurtry books to check out at the library:

The Last Picture Show

Lonesome Dove

Gary Paulsen – died October 13, 2021 (aged 82)

Paulsen was known primarily for writing wilderness adventure novels and stories for Young Adults. His most famous novel was Hatchet, which won the 1986 Newbery Award. Paulsen’s novels show his love of the outdoors, the importance of nature in our lives, and deal with “coming of age” by surviving in the wilderness.

Paulsen books to check out at the library:

Dogsong

Hatchet

Northwind Paulsen’s last novel, published posthumously in 2022.

Anne Rice – died December 11, 2021 (aged 80)

Born Howard Allen Frances O'Brien in New Orleans, Louisiana. Yes Howard! Rice was named after her father; Rice said it was her mother’s idea to give her an advantage in life in overcoming that, but an official biography pins it on her father himself. In any case, on her first day of Catholic school when a nun asked her for her name, she said “Anne” as she thought it was a pretty name. Her mother, who was there, let it go and that was her name from then on. Rice is most famous for her novel Interview with the Vampire and its many sequels. She writes mostly gothic tales, religious fiction and erotic tales (under a pen name). Later in life she had differences with the Church and declared herself a secular humanist.

Rice books to check out at the library:

Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt

Interview with the Vampire

Prince Lestat

Joan Didion – died December 23, 2021 (aged 87)

Didion was a journalist known for mostly memoirs, nonfiction books and essay collections. She was married to fellow author/journalist John Gregory Dunne. Her work has been awarded the National Book Award for Nonfiction and the Pulitzer Prize. She also wrote fiction novels and screenplays, but her most noted work was nonfiction.

Didion books to check out at the library: