Despite the less than stellar quality of literature, I found that I greatly enjoyed series such as Harry Potter and His Dark Materials because I could immerse myself in the story and be very entertained by them. For example, When I picked up HDM, I read all three books in less than 3 days, and then went on the wikis and the community forums and took in as much periphery information as I could.
Can anyone recommend fantasy books or series which will have this effect with the added bonus of being high-quality literature? What is the cream of the crop for the fantasy genre?
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Anonymous2009-07-14 0:24
Try _Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrel_ by Susanna Clark. It's a big book but is great writing. You won't feel embarassed carrying this book around or talking to people about it.
It's set in the Victorian era, centered around London.
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell is the first novel by British writer Susanna Clarke. An alternate history set in 19th-century England during the Napoleonic Wars, it is based on the premise that magic once existed in England and has returned with two men: Gilbert Norrell and Jonathan Strange. Centering on the relationship between these two men, the novel investigates the nature of "Englishness" and the boundary between reason and madness. It has been described as a fantasy novel, an alternate history, and an historical novel.
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Anonymous2009-07-14 4:54
My sister certainly described the JS&MN as boring however.
And I can see why that would be. Although the book is quite interesting by its theme and settings, it gets quite dull at times. There's a lot of details on the history of the world and such.. It's not quite as entertaining as Harry Potters etc can be.
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Anonymous2009-07-15 0:45
I've started reading Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell on recommendation of >>2 and several friends. Thanks!
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Anonymous2009-07-18 23:29
Try the Bartimaeus trilogy by Jonathan Stroud. I'd compare it to HDM.