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Oct 17, 2011

Myles rated it:

DWJ Book Toast, #5

Diana Wynne Jones is one of my favorite fantasy authors, growing up and now, and I was saddened by the news of her death. I can't say I'm overcome with emotion - as personal as some of her work is to me, its not like I knew her after all - but I wish I could put into words how I feel about her no longer being out there, writing new adventures and laughing at all of us serious fans thinking so hard about her words when we should simply get on with the business of enj More...

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Aug 27, 2008

Sandi rated it:

I'm cheating. I'm moving this book to my read shelf and giving it a rating even though I haven't finished it. I don't think you can finish reading this book any more than you can finish reading a dictionary, an encyclopedia, or a tour guide. I can't even tell you how much of this book I have read. This is like a mini-dictionary of fantasy concepts. You'll be reading an entry and it will refer to other entries. You'll read those entries and jump to yet other ones. The next thing you know, More...

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Dec 12, 2011

Meagan rated it:

To be honest for a writing guide, this is a very unusual book because it's like a dictionary. However most dictionaries don't have humor or offer tips about being in a fantasy world.

Since this is a dictionary-like guide, I wasn't sure about needing it for writing help. I did find it useful for research about common fantasy cliches and trophes, and for that I'm glad that I found this book in a used book store. If I was new at writing fantasy, I would have found this book more informa More...

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Apr 08, 2011

Chris rated it:

Helpful tips for travellers to Fantasyland that I've picked up from this guide by the late great Diana Wynne Jones:
(1) Get immunised by reading a wide range of fantasy, both good and bad: you never know what bugs you will be exposed to in Fantasyland.
(2) Remember to have an up-to-date passport: you'll need either your own unread fantasy book (preferably with your own bookplate stuck in the front) or a library book with plenty of entry/exit stamps from previous travellers' visits.
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Aug 11, 2010

Anne rated it:

This was a fun read. It sends up everything in the fantasy genre. I did however, find it more of a book to dip into rather than read start to finish so it's been sitting while I did that here and there over a few weeks. Most of the entries were very familiar, having read exactly that in a fantasy novel or written that. That was the fun part with this, how much you could relate to. The tone of it is brilliant, written like an actual tough guide but very much a piece of fiction.

One I'd More...

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May 12, 2010

Amber rated it:

Imagine if they built Jurassic park, but it instead revolved around the Fantasy World, a sort of Middle Earth. This would be your guide book or what to expect. IT IS HILARIOUS!!!! After reading this book you will realize how similar all fantasy genre books are and how many cliches can be found in them. For example:

"CLOAKS are the universal garb of everyone who is not a barbarian. It is hard to see why. They are open in the front and require you at most times to use one han More...

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Mar 31, 2009

Cynx rated it:

First the German review, I'll update to an English one later...

Der "Tough Guide to Fantasy Land" ist kein Roman, sondern präsentiert sich in Form eines Lexikons, das dem Leser die wichtigsten Begriffe und Ereignisse, die ihm innerhalb eines Fantasyromans begegnen können, näher bringt. Nichts zum durchlesen von vorne nach hinten, aber ein großer Spaß in kleinen Häppchen (immer wieder) zu lesen. Die ideale Klolektüre könnte man sagen.

Diana Wynne Jones ist di More...

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Oct 16, 2010

Robin rated it:

Finished reading!

Some entries randomly picked from the Guide:

'ENCHANTRESS is another word for "seductress", only with more punch.'

'MISSING HEIRS occur with great frequency. At any given time, half the COUNTRIES in Fantasyland will have mislaid their Crown PRINCESS/PRINCE, but the rule is that only one Missing Heir can join your Tour at a time.

Yours will join as a COMPANION selected from among the CHILD, the TALENTED GIRL, or the TEENAG More...

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Aug 12, 2009

Alisha rated it:

I love thumbing through this book in my spare time and imagining Derk in some of the more outlandish themes. Derk of course being from ‘Dark Lord of Derkholm’ it does make me wonder, with Mrs. Jones’ evil imagination, why or how did he ever survive being a Dark Lord? :)
In any case this book seems to be written much like I imagine the actual ‘Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy’ would be written. It’s full of Mrs. Jones’ wry humor and it’s extremely hard to put down once you’ve picked it up.
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Dec 17, 2009

Lorraine rated it:

Hilarious! This is a wonderful book. I loved the section on Ecology (hey, it works out so prettily) and in general, it's very clever and post-modern and what have you... not in a bad "look how clever I am" sense but a "look how cliched things have become" sense. To me the latter is always good... (though I have my stances on the irony, but that's another matter, isn't it?)

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Jul 09, 2011

Andrea rated it:

This mock travel guide gives the reader advice on how to "tour" Fantasyland, a generic world based on all the tropes and cliches from numerous fantasy novels. The result is part criticism, part loving tribute, and more often than not a humorous poking fun at cliches of the genre the author clearly loves.

As much as this book will be enjoyed by readers of fantasy, it is also rather invaluable to writers of fantasy, as its a rather thorough list of all the things that have be More...

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Nov 20, 2011

Mizumi rated it:

This was absolutely lovely! It's pretty tongue-in-the-cheek about commonly used patterns found in fantasy (I personally found myself comparing it to TV tropes, only without specific mentions of certain novels). Some terms actually got me thinking: yes, they tend to use leather and cotton in fantasy lands, but where exactly do these come from as we never see cotton fields or herds of cows?
The book is written as though you are on a Tour through Fantasyland yourself, filled with helpful entri More...

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Dec 17, 2009

elvedril rated it:

This joking encyclopedia of fantasy tropes is filled with good jokes, and is really funny to browse through. However, like many works which rely upon a simple parody premise, the joke gets a little tired sometime before the end. As such reading it quickly is not encouraged.

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Mar 13, 2011

Smilingplatypus rated it:

This book is a must-read for anyone who reads fantasy books, especially of the Lord of the Rings/"let's go on a quest" type. Written as though it's a tourist guide to "Fantasyland", it hilariously lampshades the genre's recurring tropes and character types. Because of its format, it's not really the sort of book that you read from start to finish -- I tried that initially and kept getting sidetracked by the cross-references, so eventually I gave it up and chose entries at r More...

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Apr 25, 2010

Julie rated it:

Diana Wynne Jones provides a humorous, tongue-in-cheek guide for Tourists of Fantasyland, a generic fantasy world incorporating every element of every fantasy novel ever... The guide gives and advice on and reveals pertinent information about all sorts of topics (from Adepts to Zombies) as well as describing how any circumstance will likely turn out. (Will you die during the Pirate Attack? Will you lose a Tour Companion in the incident involving Leather-Winged Avians? Is the red-haired girl in y More...

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Jan 10, 2012

Abigail rated it:

"The Tough Guide to Fantasyland," written in an encyclopedia format, is a very enjoyable parody of fantasy novels. It isn't the sort of book to be read straight through, any more than you would read a dictionary (if you're normal), but you can pick it up and read an entry or two for some amusement. Quite apart from its humour, it could also easily be a useful book for writers of fantasy in steering clear of cliches in world-building, plot, and just turns of phrase. Not all of the de More...

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Jan 03, 2010

Seth rated it:

This book is filled with quite a few laughs and can change the way you perceive the fantasy genre. Written by someone who has been writing fantasy for years, The Tough Guide to Fantasy-land brings to light and openly mocks many cliches and over-used conventions in the fantasy genre. To people planning on writing fantasy, this book is worth your time. To those that don't want their ignorance violated, you might want to avoid this book. My head is filled with many more questions as I read through More...

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Jan 11, 2012

Robyn rated it:

One of the reviews on the inside front cover of the book is quoted as saying: "Fantasy fans with a sense of humor should enjoy this one. Ex-fantasy fans, who came to their senses, should enjoy it even more." (Analog)

This is completely true. This book is like tvtropes.org for fantasy books, a loving send-up of the genre. I especially enjoyed reading this right after having re-watched the Lord of the Rings film trilogy, because it reminded me just how many of these trope More...

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Feb 08, 2010

John rated it:

This is a great read for anyone who loves fantasy. An A-Z guide to tours of Fantasyland, including helpful information about the Dark Lord, inns and innkeepers, swords, and anything else you might encounter on a tour of Fantasyland. (Remember that Fantasyland tours always come in threes, and you likely will not meet the Dark Lord until the final confrontation at the end of your third tour.)

A sample at random:
"Tree Homes are mostly what trees are for, except when the tree More...

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Apr 26, 2011

Gavin rated it:

It's not really a novel as such, hence the three stars.

It's a straight encyclopaedia of fantasy "tropes" (see tvtropes.org), covering the practical minutiae of Fantasyland and it's denizens. In places it comes across as nit-picky (I'm not very interested in how fabric gets made & sold, or animals breed, so I appreciate that authors don't often write about it), but 8/10 times what is on the page is wince-inducing, highly accurate stuff. Colour Coding and Scurvy in particular.
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Dec 28, 2011

Patricia rated it:

I have adored Diana Wynne Jones ever since I read Howl’s Moving Castle over a decade ago. Her stories are so imaginative that she is one of my favorite fantasy authors. When I finally got my hands on The Tough Guide to Fantasyland I was a little surprised to find the book had been written like an encyclopedia. There is a small introduction and then the rest of the book is done alphabetically. Fortunately, the author has seemed to master some strange skill in writing a story without actually writ More...

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Feb 19, 2009

Sarallyn rated it:

Hilarious and yet enlightening this book gives any fantasy author a good idea of what cliches to avoid and which ones are worth keeping. Going through the guide you can see how J.R.R. Tolkein and C.S.Lewis' works have influenced this genre and how some of their concepts are now tired and worn out. If you think you are bringing new ideas to the genre, you'll know differently after reading this. However, by reading it you will start to see where you can develop new ideas or concepts within the More...

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Jul 22, 2008

Scurra rated it:

You'd never get the impression from reading her other books that Diana Wynne Jones could possibly write anything like this - not in the humorous element, because that's evident from everything she does, but in the viciousness with which she attacks and brilliantly dissects everything that's wrong in "fantasy"; even the acknowledged classics come in for a little bit of a subtle beating here.

I understand that the genesis for this book arose from research she did for the wonde More...

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Oct 21, 2007

Nicholas added it

http://nhw.livejournal.com/447134.html[return][return]Everyone should rush out and get this. At least, anyone who's ever enjoyed more than one of the great fantasy series. Diana Wynne Jones is, of course, a superlative author of fantasy novels for younger readers (and one of two for older readers as well - I particularly enjoyed Deep Secret which my sister got for me a few birthdays ago). But here she takes an affectionate but acerbic look at the cliches of fantasy fiction. To take one example f More...

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Jan 02, 2012

Eloise rated it:

Oh my. If you have even the slightest interest in/experience of reading fantasy and a sense of humour you have to read this. You will be splitting your sides - and those of anyone in the same room, as this is one of those books you just can't resist reading out loud in bits. It's all so true! Does for fantasy what the film Galaxy Quest does for TV sci-fi - and you can tell DWJ both likes fantasy and knows it well.

Also highly recommended are its fictional companions, the Derkholm serie

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May 31, 2011

Rob rated it:

...I guess I have to say I am mildly disappointed by The Tough Guide to Fantasyland. Yes, it is very funny at time, but offers the reader little more than brief entertainment. I guess it is good to look at a preferred genre in an other light once in a while. Jones does a good job of pointing out all the stereotypes and clichés that cling to epic fantasy. Nevertheless, I don't consider it a must read for fantasy fans.

Full Random Comments review More...

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Oct 02, 2007

Janet rated it:

Read fantasy? Do they all start to have a certain sameness? Read this, preferably aloud to another fantasy lover. You will laugh. Treat it more like a website than a book, and jump around in it. Jones accurately skewers all the tired conventions in this travel guide to fantasy.

My favorite entry is "Unfriendly Stranger." This person will either be a spy or a embittered dispossessed king who will save the day. How do you tell the difference? The hair. Both will have More...

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Nov 26, 2008

Amy rated it:

To recommend that someone read this book from cover-to-cover would be like recommending that they read the dictionary or the encyclopedia. That being said, I read it cover to cover and loved every minute. I found the writing to be clever and funny and ended up reading this book in small pieces (definately not a book to curl up next to the fire and read straight through).

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Aug 18, 2011

Calen rated it:

I was lead to believe this was a humorous romp through fantasy tropes... and it is, in the form of a glossary. As such, the intro is the best bit followed by definitions, the cuteness and novelty of which become decreasingly amusing. It gets 3 stars simply for the idea, effort and a few laughs, but I'm not sure it's something anyone has the patience to actually finish.

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Dec 25, 2009

Leif rated it:

"Liked it". Yes, yes I liked it a lot. Jones is satirical and understanding, funny and compresensive. Fantasyland has changed a bit since the writing of this commentary, but still much of the humor is on on the mark and very, very droll. If you can find a copy I urge you to check it out - especially if you were raised on Tolkein et al, as I was.

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