What other fantasy books do YOU read?

[Lalwendë]

Originally Posted by Galadriel55

That's interesting. My experience went the opposite way: at first I way drawn to the magic and adventure, then I sort of cooled off because it was a bit too childish, but now I have a kind of nostalgic-y feeling about that childish tone and I almost like and appreciate it more now than I did at first.

If the little chap ever wants them reading to him then I suppose I might get another go at them. And I'd rather he attempted them before reading anything by Tolkien, because I think this also spoiled them for me. After reading Lord of the Rings when I was 12, I've been an extremely critical reader of other fantasy works. In fact in the immediate aftermath, the one fantasy epic which did manage to grab me was Gormenghast by Mervyn Peake.

Since then, I've enjoyed other fantasy series and novels, notably His Dark Materials, A Song of Ice and Fire, Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, Harry Potter (I have a deep admiration for JK Rowling as a person) and Earth's Children. I've never really got on with Narnia, Discworld or Shannara - for example. Maybe it's just personal taste...