Fantasy on the mind!

 

Josephine Wall's Periwinkle 

Fantasy books have been on my mind lately.   Fantasy books entertain my mind as I travel to far away places, introduce me to mythical creatures, take me on fanciful quests and experience battles with  knights, dragons, elves, ogres, warriors, heroes,  apprentices and the fight between Good and Evil.   Edgar Rice Burroughs Barsoom Series,  Margaret Weis's Dragonlance, Charles DeLint's Newford, Mercedes Lackey Valdemar Books,  Christopher Stasheff's Warlock, Piers Anthony's Xanth  and Incarnations of Immortality,  and of course, Mary Stewart's Merlin trilogy and J.R.R. Tolkien's Hobbit and Lord of the Rings are a few that come to mind that I enjoyed reading way back. 

The Fantasy Genre has grown over the past twenty - thirty years with many, many sub genres including 


Romance Fantasy
Fairy Tales
Alternative History
Arthurian Fantasy
Comic Fantasy
Dark Fantasy
Epic Fantasy
Fairy Tales and Mythology
Heroic Fantasy
High Fantasy
Mystery Fantasy
Magic Realism
Modern Fantasy
Sword and Sorcery

I sort of fell away from the Fantasy and Science Fiction genres for a decade or more and recently rediscovered some old authors whom I actually skipped reading for one reason or another way back when.  I just finished reading The Mists of Avalon by Marian Zimmer Bradley and the very first book in Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series The Eye of the World.   I thoroughly enjoyed both and maybe because of age or maybe wisdom appreciated the stories more than I would have at the age of 20.    There are many authors who have stood the test and time and new authors that time is now testing.     There's an interesting list from Mania.com who they consider the top 20 Fantasy writers of all time.

1.  J.R.R. Tolkein
2.  Robert E. Howard
3.  Terry Pratchett
4.  Piers Anthony
5.  Michael Moorcock
6.  Fritz Leiber
7.  Roger Zelazny
8.  Raymond Feist
9.  Terry Brooks
10.  Neil Gaiman
11.  George R.R. Martin
12.  Tanith Lee
13.  Lord Dunsany
14.  Robert Jordan
15.  Marian Zimmer Bradley
16.  Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman
17.  David Eddings
18.  J.K. Rowling
19.  R.A. Salvatore
20.  Katherine Kurtz

I have read at least one book from everyone on the list or have one of their books on my TBR pile waiting to be read.  All except for  Lord Dunsany, whom supposedly influenced Tolkien, Eddings, Moorcock and Gaiman. His Fifty One Tales are on Project Gutenberg so I will be checking him out.

Do you agree with the list and if you don't, who do you think should be considered a top fantasy writer?

Join me in the Red Room to find out what's in store!

2010 is coming up fast and I have some ideas brewing about in my head for our exploration of the galaxy.   Throughout the voyage I'll be posting Author Spotlights on science fiction and fantasy authors, ones that I love and have been reading for many years and also new to me authors I read and discover during the challenge.   For instance, I just discovered Mark Charon Newton who wrote Nights of Villjamur and was named one of the top five reads for 2009 by Speculative Horizons. I will be arranging some guest author interviews and a few book giveaways.  

I would also like all of you who are participating to give some thought to being a guest blogger.   Each of you has something unique to bring to the voyage and it would be interesting to hear about your favorite authors or books, what attracted you to reading Science Fiction and Fantasy or recommendations for books to read.   Also, if you know of an author, writer, publisher, or a visitor from outer space whom you know would love to be a guest blogger or you would like to interview, then by all means ask them, set it up and let me know.   I'm a pretty flexible person and don't have a set schedule for posts, and plan on posting at least once a week,  but don't worry about messing up any schedules.   My posts are spontaneous and off the cuff, generally something that came to mind in the middle of the night. 

I'll be writing about interesting discoveries and challenges related to science fiction and fantasy that I find around the blogosphere.   Such as Carl of Stainless Steel Droppings who is planning on joining the challenge.   Every year during the months of January and February he hosts the Sci fi Experience which all about the pleasure of totally exploring the worlds of science fiction. It is a casual challenge, thing, experience, undertaking, whatever you want to call it,  in which you set your own reading goals and shot for the stars.

There are a couple challenges I found that blend right in with the Mind Voyages challenge of exploring new books,  which call me crazy, I will be joining as well.   BookChickCity is hosting a year long Speculative Fiction Reading Challenge so I will definitely be reading Mark's book among others.   

and Royal Reviews is hosting a Fantasy Reading Challenge for the year which encompasses Science Fiction Fantasy as well. I know I'll end up reading a few sci fi fantasy books

And for those of you hoping to take a side trip reading the 2010 Hugo nominees, Katster is a Hugo voter.  She will be letting us know sometime in March who the top five 2010 Hugo nominees are so we can read them as well.

I'm looking forward to an interesting year of reading and happy to say Santa will be delivering a few Science Fiction books under our tree this year.   What books do you think you will be getting in your Christmas Stocking?