Introduce Yourself - And What's This Group All About?

[Simon]

Hmmm....what we need, but don't have, is a thread of recommendations for pre-Tolkien fantasy classics that people such as yourself can perouse at their leisure...

[[deleted user]]

Simon wrote: "Hmmm....what we need, but don't have, is a thread of recommendations for pre-Tolkien fantasy classics that people such as yourself can perouse at their leisure..."

boy, that would be awesome!

[Alex]

Welcome to this slightly inactive group Jocelyn! :D

[[deleted user]]

Thanks!

[Craig]

Hi,

I'm a big fan of Eddison.

[Liza]

Hello there! I'm Liza, an avid Tolkien fan who has found much lacking in the realm of post-Tolkien literature. I am tired of being recommended second-rate series because they have dragons or swords on the cover. I'm looking for real quality literature that is truly creative, takes risks, and dispells more than pure adventure to the reader.

I'm not familiar with pre-Tolkien fantasy literature (unless you count Morris, Chrétien de Troyes, Sir Thomas Malory and Spencer), and am eager to find out what it can offer, and why, it seems, nothing since Tolkien that I have found has been of any significant substance.

[Simon]

Hi Liza,

Take a look around this group and see if you see anything that looks interesting.

Generally, I would also recommend taking a look at the Fantasy Masterworks series. Not all are pre-Tolkien but you should find something of interest there.

Personally, I wouldn't go so far as to say that there hasn't been anything post-Tolkien "of any significant substance" but I know where you're coming from...

[Liza]

Simon wrote: "Personally, I wouldn't go so far as to say that there hasn't been anything post-Tolkien "of any significant substance" but I know where you're coming from... "

Oh, I am sure some is out there! I just have not found it yet, but I am open to suggestions! Thank you for the recommendation, as well. Looking forward to exploring a genre I haven't had the opportunity to before.

[Terry]

Welcome Liza,

Definitely check out the fantasy recommendations thread for some good recs on pre-Tolkien stuff.

[Liza]

Terry wrote: "Welcome Liza,

Definitely check out the fantasy recommendations thread for some good recs on pre-Tolkien stuff."

Will do! Thank you!

[Craig]

Hi Liza,

I suffer from the same syndrome. You might try the Book of Three D
ragons by Morris for a start

[Neil Scott]

Hi, my name is Neil. One of the greatest literary influences on my life is from "The Arabian Nights," which not only predates Tolkien, but also predate Catholicism in the UK isles; Tolkien's chosen religious flavor. This may be a little more towards Sci-fi, but it too predates Tolkien: as you all had the clarity to join this group, I pray Cthulhu eats all our houses last.

[Craig]

Good pick Neil. I favour Burton's version.

[Hayley]

Howdy. I'm Hayley and I love, love, love Lord Dunsany. I also love 19th and early 20th century authors who wrote fantasy for children, like Katherine and Howard Pyle, Frances Browne, Hans Christian Andersen, and Oscar Wilde. I am also a huge fan of the Celtic Literary Renaissance, in general, but in particular of W.B. Yeats and James Stephens whose fantastical poems and tales I devour. I love all types of fantasy and am excited to join this group.

[Simon]

Welcome!

[Craig]

Hi Hayley

[Maggie]

Hi Hayley!

[Peter]

Hello, I am Peter and i live in Sweden. My introduction to fantasy litterature was CS Lewis Narnia-books when I was a kid. I still love them. Then I started reading Tolkien, and he was good too. I have not read that many modern fantasy, since it all seem very boring to me, with series that never ends. I have recently discovered lord Dunsany, and I loved The King of Elflands Daughter so much I translated it to swedish and founded a very small publising office all on my own to have it published. That was just recently.

[Hayley]

Hi back!!!! And hello fellow newcomer!

[Simon]

Peter wrote: "I have recently discovered lord Dunsany, and I loved The King of Elflands Daughter so much I translated it to swedish and founded a very small publising office all on my own to have it published. That was just recently. "

Hi Peter,

That must have been a challenge. Not being multi-lingual myself I can't imagine how one would translate such a work whilst still capturing all it's subtle nuances in the prose.

[Kimberly]

So I read an article today in Huffington Post comparing Lord of the Rings to Game of Thrones. I blogged about it and set up a poll. I'd love for everyone to take the poll under my page. Comments welcome!

http://beautifulreaderkimmie.wordpres...

[Peter]

Hi Simon,
yes it was truly a challange. However a very stimulating challange. Before I have done some translating of Edgar Allan Poes poems, and that was an even worse challange. So I guess you can say I really love when I have to make a great effort.

[Nemo]

In view a humble science fiction fanboy and occasional fantasy reader that also enjoys a decent thriller, and horror story and non-fiction books about history and economics.
UNIX and Linux enthusiast, in that exact order, follower of the kiss principal, and no fan of supersized world-building that is basically copy-pasted from Tolkien, as is the case with most modern fantasy.
A Game of Thrones was a breath of fresh air in the fantasy world, until it became just another cash cow slog IMO.

I would like to add Jack Vance to the list, The Dying Earth was out years before LotR.

[Lee]

Hello, I'm Lee, I read T H White and C S Lewis before I read Tolkien and then discovered E R Eddison. Currently ploughing through Gormenghast with an eye on Lord Dunsany for the future. I'm also a fan of Alexandre Dumas, but I don't remember many elves in The Man In The Iron Mask...

[James]

1. Hello
2. Name: James
3. Am reading: "The Worm Ouroboros", "That Hideous Strength", "The Two Towers"
4. Hope to read: "Mistress of Mistresses", "Last and First Men", "Voyage to Arcturus", "The King of Elfland's Daughter".

I was bowled over when I read "The Lord of the Rings" for the second time, years and years ago; I'm still bowled over. Years before that, I had read the Narnia books, and the space trilogy.

My favourite authors are Dante, & Homer.

[Maggie]

welcome James!

[Peter]

Hi I'm Peter,
I do enjoy Tolkien's writing, but love so much more of the low fantasy style fiction that came before and seems to have been stuck in the shadows ever since.

I particularly enjoy the works of H. Rider Haggard, John Buchan, Alexander Dumas, Jules Verne, E.R. Eddison, Mervyn Peake, H.G. Wells, R.L.Stevensen, Edgar Rice Burroughs, and of course countless others.

Going back to the first post in this thread I hadn't come across the Ballantine series before, so much exploring for me to do there.

I'd really like to discover new or contemporary authors writing in this style, if any exist.

[Hayley]

Peter wrote: "Hi I'm Peter,
I do enjoy Tolkien's writing, but love so much more of the low fantasy style fiction that came before and seems to have been stuck in the shadows ever since.

I particularly enjoy the..."
Welcome, Peter! Yes, there are so many treasures waiting for us to find them

[Peter]

Thanks Hayley,
Do you have any particular favourites you'd care to recommend.

Peter

[Hayley]

Peter wrote: "Thanks Hayley,
Do you have any particular favourites you'd care to recommend.

Peter"

If you haven't read Lord Dunsany, you must. His writing is beautiful. I recommend two of his novels, The King of Elfland's Daughter, and The Charwoman's Shadow. He wrote countless short stories and you cannot go wrong there.

[Harley]

Hi, I'm a compulsive completist, so I am always looking for the odd recommendation of works from my favorite authors. Lord Dunsany has been one of my favorites, both his fantasy and his modern-day novels for many years. I had the good luck last year to find and read his work; 'Nowadays' in the University of Oregon library, there were only 500 ever printed. Just purchased "The Last Revolution" and getting ready to read it.

[Hayley]

Harley wrote: "Hi, I'm a compulsive completist, so I am always looking for the odd recommendation of works from my favorite authors. Lord Dunsany has been one of my favorites, both his fantasy and his modern-day ..."

That was some find at the university; very cool! Yeah, I'm jealous. Have you read Evangeline Walton? She's best known for her adaptations of the Mabinogion, but has written many other novels that can be found in used bookstores.