Reading is Escapism
So I have gotten into reading again. I still don't read everyday or anything but I am doing it more frequently than when I was forced to growing up in school. I am currently reading the Chronicles Of Narnia which I am loving. It is fantastic and deeply laced with religious and mythological references which intrigues me.
Here are a few of my favorite authors:
J. K. Rowling
Jules Verne
C. S. Lewis
Ray Bradbury
J. R. R. Tolkien
Eoin Colfer
Douglas Adams
I plan on trying to broaden my readings within these few authors' works for a while then I want to go to other similar authors. Does anyone have any suggestions based on the authors I'm already fond of?
posted by K- @ 5/01/2006 12:00:00 PM
4 Comments
4 Comments:
some people say the harry potter series is based on a novel called the wizard of earthsea by ursula le guin. i'm a harry potter nut, so i read it. didn't think it was that great, but it's a short read if you're interested.
sounds like you enjoy young adult fantasy...in which case:
elsewhere by gabrielle zevin
terry pratchett
clive barker
phillip pullman
christopher paolini
if you want something other than fantasy, let me know...i've got about a million suggestions. some i've read, and some i've heard about from other people.
The earthsea trilogy was OK, but not great. In that genre, you've got Tolkien and a bunch of poor imitators. David Eddings had a good start with the Belgariad, but has since disappeared after an awful sequel. Pratchett and the guy who wrote the Wheel of Time series just can't write. They're almost as bad as Crichton.
Clive Barker is pretty good. His best stuff was made into the Hellraiser movies. If you like horror, try Stephen King. Several of his books are pretty good, and almost all are readable.
For scifi, check out
http://baen.com/library/
it's a scifi printing house that publishes books free online to try to stir interest. Eric Flint has some decent stuff. I liked 1632 and most of its sequels. John Scalzi has two pretty good scifi books out as well. "Old Man's War" and "The Ghost Brigades". I liked the former better, but most people I know liked the latter more.
Now for the better stuff; Kelly Link has writen some strange but good stuff. Cory Doctorow and Neil Gaiman are both excellent. You can read some Doctorow at craphound.com. Neverwhere (by Gaiman) is an excellent book. Everything else I've ever read by him kicks ass too.
Other than the three I mentioned in the last paragraph, I really don't much recommend the authors I've mentioned, but you asked for writers in these genres.
For good books, read the classics. there are reasons they're in the canon. For funny stuff, read Wodehouse, Twain, "The Three Musketeers" or "The Sot-Weed Factor". For drama, read Fitzgerald or Hemingway or Steinbeck. For kids' books, read Beverly Cleary or SE Hinton or "The Phantom Tollbooth." For some practical knowledge, read "Basic Economics" by Sowell.
I can ramble for hours about books, and I've come close here, so I'll shut up now. :)
Alright so I am a little late on this post but since I am a huge fan of Bradbury's short stories, I'd like to suggest James Patrick Kelly's short fiction.
Thanks for the ideas everyone!
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