An unnamed publication asked me to select what I considered the 6 greatest fantasy novels of all time. Because my hunger for money and fame cannot and will never be satisfied, I agreed. Feel free to weigh in if you have thoughts.
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I'm torn between Tim Powers' The Anubis Gates and Christopher Priest's The Prestige.
ronhogan
Oct. 16, 2009 11:24:am
at 11:24:am
I assume you are looking for post 17th-century-ish, non-SF. Assuming that, aside from Potter, LOTR, Narnia, and Earthsea: I'd include S. King's Dark Tower series, maybe include Jonathon Strange & Mr. Norrell, and snub Gormenghast.
ptallon
Oct. 16, 2009 11:27:am
at 11:27:am
Fledgling by Octavia Butler
lechicbatik
Oct. 16, 2009 11:27:am
at 11:27:am
@ptallon I was thinking of going back to the Odyssey, Paradise Lost, etc. Then I thought that was just making trouble for myself. So yeah.
Lev Grossman
Oct. 16, 2009 11:36:am
at 11:36:am
Well, Tolkein and Carroll would have to top it. Butler (Kindred, particularly) should be on there. I'm not personally familiar with Oz and Narnia, except via osmosis, so I can't comment on those. I'd mention Pern, but it's really SciFi. Maybe Miracleman, if you're willing to include graphic novels.
Oh, and this one.
Church
Oct. 16, 2009 11:37:am
at 11:37:am
what constitutes fantasy, by definition? Is it when the entire world of the work is made-up, rather than using our own world with fantastical differences?
papscott
Oct. 16, 2009 11:39:am
at 11:39:am
Lewis Carroll. Jeez, how did I miss that?
@papscott, I'm not willing to be persnickety about definitions. I'm going with I-know-it-when-I-see-it.
Lev Grossman
Oct. 16, 2009 11:45:am
at 11:45:am
Oh, no, you can't snub Gormenghast! That series was like one long acid trip for me. I loved that psycho cook. What was his name again?
Seriously though, I'd vote for Ursula Le Guin's Wizard of Earthsea.
And on a completely unrelated side note -- Hey, Lev, did you get & sign my copy of The Magicians yet? I had to interrupt my sister's reading of it and she's getting ancy to have it back.
michellekerns
Oct. 16, 2009 11:45:am
at 11:45:am
I maintain and have always maintained that nobody can possibly finish the Gormenghast books (by Mervyn Peake) page for page. It is not possible.
Hi Michelle. Will send your book back today, honest.
Lev Grossman
Oct. 16, 2009 11:52:am
at 11:52:am
Well, I admit, I listened to Gormenghast as an audiobook. And I slept through some portions of it. Maybe that's why it seemed so odd to me.
michellekerns
Oct. 16, 2009 11:56:am
at 11:56:am
Paradise Lost would be a brilliant one for the list. If you included it, I'd promise to make you a household name. (Well, in my household, at least. Which would involve, I suppose, teaching my dog your name. Which is probably not the sort of fame for which you yearn.)
jenmarron
Oct. 16, 2009 12:37:pm
at 12:37:pm
"Daughter of the Empire" by Feist/Wurts, or even just "Magician" by Feist for the other side of the Riftwar Saga.
LeeJH
Oct. 16, 2009 13:13:pm
at 13:13:pm
Unfortunately, neither Paradise Lost nor The Bible are novels. It all, however, goes back to Don Quixote.
ckrisos
Oct. 16, 2009 13:17:pm
at 13:17:pm
The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath by H.P. Lovecraft.
Don't front. Abso-fracking-lutely.
byron12
Oct. 16, 2009 13:35:pm
at 13:35:pm
Actually, I'm going to forgo any lame suggestion of my own and go with byron12's. I adore that book. Neil Gaiman spent an entire chapter of The Graveyard Book paying homage to it, that's gotta count for something, right?
karuben
Oct. 16, 2009 14:43:pm
at 14:43:pm
Something by Jules Vernes or possibly HG Wells.
Brew
Oct. 16, 2009 14:59:pm
at 14:59:pm
If we're including graphic novels, my vote's for Sandman.
alaskanturkey
Oct. 16, 2009 15:24:pm
at 15:24:pm
Oh yeah, Sandman trumps everything if you're willing to go there.
Church
Oct. 16, 2009 15:42:pm
at 15:42:pm
Temeraire! Temeraire! Temeraire!
niobe23
Oct. 16, 2009 16:17:pm
at 16:17:pm
His Dark Materials and The Neverending Story.
ckrisos
Oct. 16, 2009 16:24:pm
at 16:24:pm
Would Charles Williams be too idiosyncratic? I would want to put his All Hallow's Eve on my list, but I can see the arguments against it, particularly if you want both Tolkien (a must, I think) and Lewis.
qbertina
Oct. 16, 2009 16:41:pm
at 16:41:pm
Tolkien, Carroll would be good as well, Pratchett (Small Gods! Although some of his stuff is better than others), the Belgariad from Eddings, the Harry Potter novels, the Majipoor series, Jordan's Wheel of Time (I know some people have issues with him, I happen to enjoy the series!), Terry Brooks and Dream Park by Niven.
gmiverson
Oct. 16, 2009 16:53:pm
at 16:53:pm
Gene Wolfe's Book of the New Sun, G.G. Kay's Tigana (although you could justifiably claim Lions of Al-Rassan for the list), Barry Hughart's Bridge of Birds...argh I know I'm forgetting something....
jessnevins
Oct. 16, 2009 16:54:pm
at 16:54:pm
The choices, the choices. I have always loved The Book of the New Sun by Gene Wolfe (damn, you beat me too it jessnevins), although I admit that is bordering on SF rather than Fantasy, but the ideas in it are truly amazing.
For modern Fantasy I really love the Malazan Book of the Dead series by Steve Eriksson, which are in my opinion the new bar for dark fantasy fiction.
hambyiii
Oct. 16, 2009 16:59:pm
at 16:59:pm
God I love Dream Park. The year after I graduated college I literally spent my last $25 on one of the Dream Park sequels.
I'm not hearing Kelly Link, Fritz Leiber, TH White ...
Lev Grossman
Oct. 16, 2009 17:12:pm
at 17:12:pm