Adults love fantasy, and what’s not to love? A book or a movie can transport us to another reality with magic and dragons; brave warriors and mythical creatures; unlikely heroes and dastardly villains; castles and enchanted forests.
It’s the fairy tales we loved as children on steroids, and sometimes with an R rating – sometimes not. Who didn’t read The Hobbit in middle school?
Fantasies are larger than life and for those of us who love reading, we usually get at least three books in a series. We get to experience new worlds with mythical creatures and epic battles between good and evil without leaving the comfort of our chairs. Let me remind you, the book is aways better than the movie or the mini-series because it explains many of the details a screen adaptation must assume you already know.
This month, instead of recommending specific books, I’m recommending fantasy authors and their series if applicable. Apologies if you don’t see your favorite fantasy author or book. Enjoy!
Peter Beagle - The Last Unicorn
Lord Dunsany (Edward Plunkett) – The King of Elfland’s Daughter
Neil Gaiman – Beowulf, American Gods, Marvel 1602, The Graveyard Book, Coraline,
J.R. Hilliard – The Warminster Series
Robin Hobb – The Farseer, Royal Assassin, Assassin’s Apprentice
Ursula K. Le Guin - The Left-Hand of Darkness, The Dispossessed, The Wizard of Earthsea
C.S. Lewis – The Chronicles of Narnia
George MacDonald – Phantastes: A Faerie Romance for Men and Women, The Princess and the Goblin, The Princess and the Curdie
Thomas Malory – Le Morte D’Arthur
George R.R. Martin – A Song of Ice and Fire, Fevre Dream, The Armageddon Rag, A Game of Thrones, A Dance with Dragons
Anne McCaffrey – The Weyr Search, Dragonflight
William Morris – The Well at the World’s End
E. Nesbit – Five Children and It
J.R.R. Tolkien – The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, The Silmarillion
Edmund Spenser – The Faerie Queen