Baraka_Guru

Hey, TFP!

I've built a fabulous reading list of fantasy literature that I wish to share with you. I've spent a number of years denying myself the pleasure of reading extensively in this genre, but no more!

I've read The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, by the granddaddy of the genre, J. R. R. Tolkien. I won't be addressing these titles here, as it will be assumed that you too have read these essential works. (If not, get thee to Middle-earth! )

Other works I've read included several of the original Forgotten Realms and Dragonlance series (long ago now), but in hindsight I tend to view these series as either mediocre or particularly bad.

I've more recently read George R. R. Martin's Game of Thrones, book one of his celebrated Song of Ice and Fire series. (Discussion thread coming shortly.) I will be focusing on this series to lead us into the best of the best in fantasy, but not before reading some older pre- and post-Tolkien classics, namely, Mervyn Peake's Gormenghast trilogy, Eddings' Belgariad, and Brooks' original Sword of Shannara trilogy. I will consider these as a part of a "classic fantasy" category, which will serve as a great introduction. Yes, I know other works can be classified as such, but I don't want to put too much into this category for this purpose. These other works can be visited at a later time.

So, I will map out the readings over time, and I hope you will join me for the journey. This thread will be somewhat similar to the TFP Speculative Fiction Book Club, but it will be less formal, perhaps (perhaps not). I will create threads for books after I've read them to have open discussions.

So please join me and have fun! Recommendations are welcome, but I've been rooting around quite a bit now and I have lots to go on already. I will certainly appreciate anything I may have missed.

[Note: For the sake of breadth within the genre and within the context of this thread, I have chosen to cover no more than three books within a particular series.]

Reading List (not definitive)

[Classic Fantasy]

Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin

1. A Wizard of Earthsea (1968)
2. The Tombs of Atuan (1971)
3. The Farthest Shore (1972)

The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, the Unbeliever by Stephen R. Donaldson

1. Lord Foul's Bane (1977)
2. The Illearth War (1978)
3. The Power that Preserves (1979)

The Original Shannara Trilogy by Terry Brooks

1. The Sword of Shannara (1977)
2. The Elfstones of Shannara (1982)
3. The Wishsong of Shannara (1985)

The Belgariad by David Eddings

1. Pawn of Prophecy (1982) [DISCUSSION commenced]
2. Queen of Sorcery (1982) [READING commencing]
3. Magician's Gambit (1983)

[The Essentials]

A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin

1. A Game of Thrones (1996) [DISCUSSION commenced]
2. A Clash of Kings (1998) [DISCUSSION commenced]
3. A Storm of Swords (2000)[DISCUSSION commenced]

The Malazan Book of the Fallen by Steven Erikson

1. Gardens of the Moon (1999)
2. Deadhouse Gates (2000)
3. Memories of Ice (2001)

The Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan

1. The Eye of the World (1990)
2. The Great Hunt (1991)
3. The Dragon Reborn (1991)

The Sword of Truth by Terry Goodkind

1. Wizard's First Rule (1994)
2. Stone of Tears (1995)
3. Blood of the Fold (1996)

The Farseer Trilogy by Robin Hobb

1. Assassin's Apprentice (1995)
2. Royal Assassin (1996)
3. Assassin's Quest (1997)

__________________
Knowing that death is certain and that the time of death is uncertain, what's the most important thing?
—Bhikkhuni Pema Chödrön

Humankind cannot bear very much reality.
—From "Burnt Norton," Four Quartets (1936), T. S. Eliot