This will be the last reading list I post in my Classic Fantasy series! And next week will be the final essay in the series as well. I hope you all enjoyed this series and came away with a longer reading list than you had before. I plan to revisit this Classic Fantasy series in the future to take a closer at some of the other texts which I have listed.
Without further ado, here is the reading list for Classic Fantasy from 1975-1989!
The Riddle-Master of Hed by Patricia A. McKillip
The Dragon and the George by Gordon R. Dickson
A Spell for Chameleon (Xanth series) by Piers Anthony
Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever by Stephen R. Donaldson
The Sword of Shannara by Terry Brooks
Gate of Ivrel by C. J. Cherryh
Beauty by Robin McKinley
MythAdeventures by Robert Lynn Asprin and Jody Lynn Nye
The Neverending Story by Michael Ende
Tales of Neveryon by Samuel R. Delany
Split Infinity (Apprentice Adept series) by Piers Anthony
The Book of the New Sun by Gene Wolfe
The Land of Laughs by Jonathan Carroll
Little, Big by John Crowley
Imaro by Charles R. Saunders
Pawn of Prophecy (Belagriad Sequence) by David Eddings
Magician (Riftwar Saga) by Raymond E. Feist
The Elfin Ship by James Blaylock
The Anubis Gates by Tim Powers
The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley
Alanna: the First Adventure by Tamora Pierce
The Colour of Magic by Terry Pratchett
Tea with the Black Dragon by R. A. MacAvoy
Mythago Wood by Robert Holdstock
Neuromancer by William Gibson
Fire and Hemlock by Diana Wynne Jones
The Fionavar Tapestry by Guy Gavriel Kay
The Black Company by Glen Cook
Archer's Goon by Diana Wynne Jones
A Blackbird in Silver (Blackbird Quartet) by Freda Warrington
Wizard of the Pigeons by Megan Lindholm
Soldier of the Mist by Gene Wolfe
Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
Arrows of the Queen by Mercedes Lackey
War for the Oaks by Emma Bull
Jack, the Giant Killer by Charles De Lint
The Healer's War by Elizabeth Ann Scarborough
The Dragonbone Chair by Tad Williams
The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie - 1989
Again, this list was pulled from the following two books: Fantasy: The Liberation of Imagination by Richard Mathews and A Short History of Fantasy by Farah Mendlesohn and Edward James.
Keep reading fantasy, past and present!
UP NEXT: An essay on The Anubis Gates.
Writing, Fantasy, Gaming, Life.
Wednesday, December 07, 2011
Monday, November 28, 2011
Review: Grimm - Pilot
Grimm is another new fantasy TV series that just started a few weeks ago. I was quite happy to see that there were two more fantasy based series coming out this year, even if they started later in the season.
Unlike Once Upon A Time, though, I'm still not sold on Grimm after watching the Pilot. Right now, I consider Grimm a mash between Charmed and Supernatural. Now, both of those shows have a special place in my heart, but Grimm feels much like the cliche I just used.
Here is our premise. Nick is a homicide cop, and he is supposedly a Grimm. This is something that is hereditary, and it's his responsibility, since his aunt, his last living relative, is dying of cancer, to hunt down the scary creatures--all those frightening fairytale creatures that no one believes are real.
Now Charmed had several cops throughout the series helping out the sisters. The Halliwells also had their awesome old Victorian they lived in (so does Nick!), and they had to keep everything a secret. And Supernatural, the Winchester brothers are always hunting down those scary creatures, and of course impersonating law enforcement in the process.
So, you see how I made the connections? Right now, the protagonist as cop has been way overdone. There are enough cop shows on TV (some very good, and I happily watch them), so why did Nick have to be a cop? What makes these nasties he's hunting any different than the ones that the Halliwells and Winchesters have beaten down repeatedly? I guess I am looking for something to lift Grimm out of the world of predictability, to surpass the "been there, done that" feeling.
Did I totally dislike Grimm? No. It did have some good points. I particularly liked Nick's partner, Hank. Not only was he willing to put up with a little of Nick's craziness, he was shown to be a smart and observant cop. He noticed the song that the "Big Bad Wolf" was humming. Unfortunately, Hank's smarts kind of reflected badly on Nick. Nick wasn't looking close enough for the proof, throughout the entire episode. It was like once he learned about the monsters and that he was a Grimm, he forgot that he was also a cop and should act like one.
I also liked the music frame of the episode. At the beginning is "Sweet Dreams" by the Eurythmics, and then at the end is the cover of the same song my Marylin Manson. Although I am not a fan of the cover song (kind of creeps me out, even though I love the original), I did think that was a nice frame to use for the episode. Heck, that was the best part of the episode for me.
I am hoping the second episode will show more promise. I'm giving it two more episodes before giving up on it.
Overall rating: 2 of 5 Stars
NEXT UP: Classic Fantasy from 1975-1989.
Unlike Once Upon A Time, though, I'm still not sold on Grimm after watching the Pilot. Right now, I consider Grimm a mash between Charmed and Supernatural. Now, both of those shows have a special place in my heart, but Grimm feels much like the cliche I just used.
Here is our premise. Nick is a homicide cop, and he is supposedly a Grimm. This is something that is hereditary, and it's his responsibility, since his aunt, his last living relative, is dying of cancer, to hunt down the scary creatures--all those frightening fairytale creatures that no one believes are real.
Now Charmed had several cops throughout the series helping out the sisters. The Halliwells also had their awesome old Victorian they lived in (so does Nick!), and they had to keep everything a secret. And Supernatural, the Winchester brothers are always hunting down those scary creatures, and of course impersonating law enforcement in the process.
So, you see how I made the connections? Right now, the protagonist as cop has been way overdone. There are enough cop shows on TV (some very good, and I happily watch them), so why did Nick have to be a cop? What makes these nasties he's hunting any different than the ones that the Halliwells and Winchesters have beaten down repeatedly? I guess I am looking for something to lift Grimm out of the world of predictability, to surpass the "been there, done that" feeling.
Did I totally dislike Grimm? No. It did have some good points. I particularly liked Nick's partner, Hank. Not only was he willing to put up with a little of Nick's craziness, he was shown to be a smart and observant cop. He noticed the song that the "Big Bad Wolf" was humming. Unfortunately, Hank's smarts kind of reflected badly on Nick. Nick wasn't looking close enough for the proof, throughout the entire episode. It was like once he learned about the monsters and that he was a Grimm, he forgot that he was also a cop and should act like one.
I also liked the music frame of the episode. At the beginning is "Sweet Dreams" by the Eurythmics, and then at the end is the cover of the same song my Marylin Manson. Although I am not a fan of the cover song (kind of creeps me out, even though I love the original), I did think that was a nice frame to use for the episode. Heck, that was the best part of the episode for me.
I am hoping the second episode will show more promise. I'm giving it two more episodes before giving up on it.
Overall rating: 2 of 5 Stars
NEXT UP: Classic Fantasy from 1975-1989.
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Coming-of-Age and Balance in A Wizard of Earthsea
SPOILER ALERT! If you have not read A Wizard of Earthsea there are spoilers in this essay.
* * * * *
Ah, A Wizard of Earthsea. I've read the initial Earthsea trilogy before (I have yet to read the newer two books in the series, though), and it's another story that I enjoyed reading again, especially since Ursula K. Le Guin is one of my favorite authors. A Wizard of Earthsea is a true coming-of-age story for the wizard Ged. Le Guin also does an excellent job structuring her magic system--it perfectly reflects what Ged becomes at the end of the novel.
"The first two books of the Earthsea cycle thus recount coming-of-age stories for two children, a male and a female" (145). What Richard Mathews states here is simple truth--it's hard not to see the coming-of-age story in A Wizard of Earthsea (and the female coming-of-age story in The Tombs of Atuan is a wonderful mirror to the first novel). We meet Ged when he's still a boy, still unnamed, and as he learns his magic, he goes through many stages and emotions to finally reach adulthood.
When Ged first becomes Ogion's apprentice, he's an impatient child. He wants to learn everything, and he wants to learn it immediately. The childish impatience gets in the way of what Ogion is trying to teach him. It's not until far later in the novel that Ged finally accepts and craves learning by listening and watching as Ogion originally wished. That impatience also sends him straight to Roke.
Once on Roke, Ged develops a disdain for his fellow student, Jasper. It's another emotion and impulse of childhood or even adolescence. And it leads him to believe that anything that goes wrong isn't his own fault, but the fault of another. When Ged looks like a fool his first day at Roke, he doesn't take responsibility for his own actions. "And Ged followed sullen and sore-hearted, knowing he had behaved like a fool, and blaming Jasper for it" (Le Guin 41). It was Ged himself who actually chose how to respond to Jasper's questions and made himself look the fool, yet Ged blames Jasper.
And the next stage in Ged's life is his fall, which comes about due to his pride. Like a pompous teenager, he boasts and shows off, which then comes back to tear him down. His spell causes the shadow to enter the world. Ged's pride comes crashing down, and instead of simply learning from his mistakes, he feels as though he needs to be constantly punished. Initially he was so high on himself, and now he drags the perception of himself to rock bottom.
Then Ged runs. He attempts to hide from his mistakes in a literal sense, by running from the shadow that pursues him. This is yet another stage in his growth.
Finally, when he's ready to accept the mistakes he's made, he decides to face them head on. He chases the shadow to the ends of Earthsea because he knows he must face the truth about himself. And once he finally meets face to face with the shadow, he realizes he is made up of his successes, failures, and mistakes; that there is a balance inside of him between good and evil, just like there is in everyone. This realization is Ged's step into adulthood. "Ged has completed one stage of his life and is ready for the next" (Mathews 141).
The balance that Ged attains at the end is a reflection on the entire magic system of the book. Le Guin masterfully outlines just what and what not magic users can do in Earthsea. You can't get something out of nothing, you can't change something without it effecting something else. There must always be a balance. And when Ged takes the shadow into himself, he's righting that balance inside of himself, just like magic.
A Wizard of Earthsea is a great high fantasy that shows that coming-of-age arc, and that's only emphasized by the magic Le Guin weaves into the story. The following novel focuses on the other side of the coin, the growth of a female protagonist, making both books powerful reads in a great series. Le Guin is an author that I think should be read by any fantasy or science fiction writer (or reader) since she is an exceptional storyteller.
Works Cited
Le Guin, Ursula K. A Wizard of Earthsea. Bantam Books: New York, 1975.
Mathews, Richard. Fantasy: The Liberation of Imagination. Routledge: New York, 2002.
NEXT UP: A review of the first episode of Grimm.
Ah, A Wizard of Earthsea. I've read the initial Earthsea trilogy before (I have yet to read the newer two books in the series, though), and it's another story that I enjoyed reading again, especially since Ursula K. Le Guin is one of my favorite authors. A Wizard of Earthsea is a true coming-of-age story for the wizard Ged. Le Guin also does an excellent job structuring her magic system--it perfectly reflects what Ged becomes at the end of the novel.
"The first two books of the Earthsea cycle thus recount coming-of-age stories for two children, a male and a female" (145). What Richard Mathews states here is simple truth--it's hard not to see the coming-of-age story in A Wizard of Earthsea (and the female coming-of-age story in The Tombs of Atuan is a wonderful mirror to the first novel). We meet Ged when he's still a boy, still unnamed, and as he learns his magic, he goes through many stages and emotions to finally reach adulthood.
When Ged first becomes Ogion's apprentice, he's an impatient child. He wants to learn everything, and he wants to learn it immediately. The childish impatience gets in the way of what Ogion is trying to teach him. It's not until far later in the novel that Ged finally accepts and craves learning by listening and watching as Ogion originally wished. That impatience also sends him straight to Roke.
Once on Roke, Ged develops a disdain for his fellow student, Jasper. It's another emotion and impulse of childhood or even adolescence. And it leads him to believe that anything that goes wrong isn't his own fault, but the fault of another. When Ged looks like a fool his first day at Roke, he doesn't take responsibility for his own actions. "And Ged followed sullen and sore-hearted, knowing he had behaved like a fool, and blaming Jasper for it" (Le Guin 41). It was Ged himself who actually chose how to respond to Jasper's questions and made himself look the fool, yet Ged blames Jasper.
And the next stage in Ged's life is his fall, which comes about due to his pride. Like a pompous teenager, he boasts and shows off, which then comes back to tear him down. His spell causes the shadow to enter the world. Ged's pride comes crashing down, and instead of simply learning from his mistakes, he feels as though he needs to be constantly punished. Initially he was so high on himself, and now he drags the perception of himself to rock bottom.
Then Ged runs. He attempts to hide from his mistakes in a literal sense, by running from the shadow that pursues him. This is yet another stage in his growth.
Finally, when he's ready to accept the mistakes he's made, he decides to face them head on. He chases the shadow to the ends of Earthsea because he knows he must face the truth about himself. And once he finally meets face to face with the shadow, he realizes he is made up of his successes, failures, and mistakes; that there is a balance inside of him between good and evil, just like there is in everyone. This realization is Ged's step into adulthood. "Ged has completed one stage of his life and is ready for the next" (Mathews 141).
The balance that Ged attains at the end is a reflection on the entire magic system of the book. Le Guin masterfully outlines just what and what not magic users can do in Earthsea. You can't get something out of nothing, you can't change something without it effecting something else. There must always be a balance. And when Ged takes the shadow into himself, he's righting that balance inside of himself, just like magic.
A Wizard of Earthsea is a great high fantasy that shows that coming-of-age arc, and that's only emphasized by the magic Le Guin weaves into the story. The following novel focuses on the other side of the coin, the growth of a female protagonist, making both books powerful reads in a great series. Le Guin is an author that I think should be read by any fantasy or science fiction writer (or reader) since she is an exceptional storyteller.
Works Cited
Le Guin, Ursula K. A Wizard of Earthsea. Bantam Books: New York, 1975.
Mathews, Richard. Fantasy: The Liberation of Imagination. Routledge: New York, 2002.
NEXT UP: A review of the first episode of Grimm.
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