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Fifteen questions for lovers of fantasy
Aug. 20th, 2009 09:38 am. What was the first fantasy series you read from start to finish?
The Lord of the Rings in 1966. My sister brought it home from the '66 Worldcon. I met my future husband while reading The Two Towers sitting in the hall at high school after lunch - he was initially attracted to the book, not to me.
2. Who is your favorite character in the world of fantasy?
Perhaps Tenar from Earthsea - in all of her different stages. Perhaps Orual in Till We Have Faces. Perhaps Aslan.
3. Have you ever been embarrassed by a certain author or book?
yes.
4. Favorite fantasy book?
I re-read the Belgariad every few years. I used to do that with The Lord of the Rings, but not so much recently.
5. Best recent author find?
Wen Spencer and A Brother's Price. Kage Baker's children's fantasy The Hotel in the Sand. Elizabeth Vaughan's Warprize.
6. What book do you most want to see made into a movie?
Waiting eagerly for The Hobbit, but I really have mixed feelings about fantasy books being made into movies.
7. What series do you tell people to stay away from?
Possibly Katherine Kurtz's Deryni books. I enjoyed them at the beginning but they became so full of evil and torture that I can barely pick one up anymore. Not to mention that the story progresses SO SLOWLY that the end of book 11 was EXACTLY the same as the end of book 3.
8. What was your favorite fantasy series in junior high school?
I don't think I read high fantasy in junior high school (1963-1965). I don't think it really existed. I found Lord of the Rings in Ace paper in 1966. I read Edward Eager and E. Nesbit, but was really a little past reading the Oz stories at that point. If you can categorize ERB's Mars and Venus books as heroic fantasy (and I think you can), I read them with great delight in junior high. I think it's an interesting point that there is such a clear "before Tolkien" and "after Tolkien" line. Although there are certainly a few exceptions, high fantasy as an adult genre genuinely did not exist before Tolkien.
9. Favorite fantasy movie?
Lord of the Rings, the whole thing, extended version, despite all the problems. Although the latest Peter Pan is right up there.
10. Worst fantasy movie?
Lord of the Rings, Bakshi. The disappointment of a lifetime.
11. Fantasy series everyone should read?
Well, everyone should not read fantasy. But The Hobbit ,Arrows of the Queen, Belgariad, Narnia (but you need to read it them YOUNG), Red Moon Black Mountain, Earthsea.
12. How many times have you read your favorite fantasy novel?
I've certainly read Lord of the Rings at least 20 times. Probably nearly a dozen times for The Belgariad.
13. Series you are currently waiting to finish?
I haven't read the third Elizabeth Vaughan book, and there are lots of Mercedes Lackey I haven't read, but nothing that I'm waiting urgently for.
14. What fantasy book are you currently reading (or what is the last one you read)?
The Hotel in the Sand by Kage Baker. The Crystal Cave by Mary Stewart.
15. Hardcover or paperback?
Hardbacks have larger print, which I like. Paperbacks are cheaper. I'm getting to the place where I'm more comfortable reading e-books because of the backlighted screen, but I am disappointed in my lack of permanent "ownership" of the book and the ability to lend it.
The Lord of the Rings in 1966. My sister brought it home from the '66 Worldcon. I met my future husband while reading The Two Towers sitting in the hall at high school after lunch - he was initially attracted to the book, not to me.
2. Who is your favorite character in the world of fantasy?
Perhaps Tenar from Earthsea - in all of her different stages. Perhaps Orual in Till We Have Faces. Perhaps Aslan.
3. Have you ever been embarrassed by a certain author or book?
yes.
4. Favorite fantasy book?
I re-read the Belgariad every few years. I used to do that with The Lord of the Rings, but not so much recently.
5. Best recent author find?
Wen Spencer and A Brother's Price. Kage Baker's children's fantasy The Hotel in the Sand. Elizabeth Vaughan's Warprize.
6. What book do you most want to see made into a movie?
Waiting eagerly for The Hobbit, but I really have mixed feelings about fantasy books being made into movies.
7. What series do you tell people to stay away from?
Possibly Katherine Kurtz's Deryni books. I enjoyed them at the beginning but they became so full of evil and torture that I can barely pick one up anymore. Not to mention that the story progresses SO SLOWLY that the end of book 11 was EXACTLY the same as the end of book 3.
8. What was your favorite fantasy series in junior high school?
I don't think I read high fantasy in junior high school (1963-1965). I don't think it really existed. I found Lord of the Rings in Ace paper in 1966. I read Edward Eager and E. Nesbit, but was really a little past reading the Oz stories at that point. If you can categorize ERB's Mars and Venus books as heroic fantasy (and I think you can), I read them with great delight in junior high. I think it's an interesting point that there is such a clear "before Tolkien" and "after Tolkien" line. Although there are certainly a few exceptions, high fantasy as an adult genre genuinely did not exist before Tolkien.
9. Favorite fantasy movie?
Lord of the Rings, the whole thing, extended version, despite all the problems. Although the latest Peter Pan is right up there.
10. Worst fantasy movie?
Lord of the Rings, Bakshi. The disappointment of a lifetime.
11. Fantasy series everyone should read?
Well, everyone should not read fantasy. But The Hobbit ,Arrows of the Queen, Belgariad, Narnia (but you need to read it them YOUNG), Red Moon Black Mountain, Earthsea.
12. How many times have you read your favorite fantasy novel?
I've certainly read Lord of the Rings at least 20 times. Probably nearly a dozen times for The Belgariad.
13. Series you are currently waiting to finish?
I haven't read the third Elizabeth Vaughan book, and there are lots of Mercedes Lackey I haven't read, but nothing that I'm waiting urgently for.
14. What fantasy book are you currently reading (or what is the last one you read)?
The Hotel in the Sand by Kage Baker. The Crystal Cave by Mary Stewart.
15. Hardcover or paperback?
Hardbacks have larger print, which I like. Paperbacks are cheaper. I'm getting to the place where I'm more comfortable reading e-books because of the backlighted screen, but I am disappointed in my lack of permanent "ownership" of the book and the ability to lend it.
