Fantasy Genre and change in Halloween plans
1. So, I was wondering the other day whether I do like fantasy novels ... or not. Generally speaking that is.
See, in thinking about 2 of my favorite authors, Rowling and Stephenie Meyer, it strikes me that they are probably more non-traditional fantasy. Fantasy, yes ... to the extent one doesn't *really* believe in wizards, hippogriffs and werewolves, that is. But, yet, both these authors have structured their novels so that the fantastic co-exists alongside the ordinary. They are both set in the current time period; both have a protagonist who discovers other beings, another world, that coexists with the normal human world.
So, what other novels might I like, since I adore both of these authors?
When people hear I'm a fan of HP, they tend to recommend books like Narnia, His Dark Materials, The Dark is Rising, LOTR, etc. I liked all of those well enough (well, in the case of LOTR, I confess that I've never yet managed to *read* the books ... but loved the movies). But, I didn't LOVE them to distraction, like I do HP and Meyer's work. I really would like to find more of what I'm calling "non-traditional fantasy" for lack of a more educated label. Speaking of which, if I wanted to learn more about the fantasy genre in general, are there any good companions, encyclopedias, references that anyone can recommend?
2. So, I did end up bidding on a dragon costume (#4 I think) on ebay. Elizabeth had an early dismissal day today, and Harry was still in preschool, so I took her to look for a Halloween costume as a fun outing. I assumed she would be some sort of princess again. She chose to be Minnie Mouse and then excitedly exclaimed, "And Harry can be Mickey, Mommy!"
Well, how can I resist *that*? Sigh. If I win the dragon costume, I suppose I could dress him up in that for a few pictures, but it sounds like he will be trick-or=treating as Mickey Mouse (we now own both the Mickey and Minnie costumes). Well, at least I got one Hedwig and one Golden Snitch before my kids became a parade of Disney characters. :D
See, in thinking about 2 of my favorite authors, Rowling and Stephenie Meyer, it strikes me that they are probably more non-traditional fantasy. Fantasy, yes ... to the extent one doesn't *really* believe in wizards, hippogriffs and werewolves, that is. But, yet, both these authors have structured their novels so that the fantastic co-exists alongside the ordinary. They are both set in the current time period; both have a protagonist who discovers other beings, another world, that coexists with the normal human world.
So, what other novels might I like, since I adore both of these authors?
When people hear I'm a fan of HP, they tend to recommend books like Narnia, His Dark Materials, The Dark is Rising, LOTR, etc. I liked all of those well enough (well, in the case of LOTR, I confess that I've never yet managed to *read* the books ... but loved the movies). But, I didn't LOVE them to distraction, like I do HP and Meyer's work. I really would like to find more of what I'm calling "non-traditional fantasy" for lack of a more educated label. Speaking of which, if I wanted to learn more about the fantasy genre in general, are there any good companions, encyclopedias, references that anyone can recommend?
2. So, I did end up bidding on a dragon costume (#4 I think) on ebay. Elizabeth had an early dismissal day today, and Harry was still in preschool, so I took her to look for a Halloween costume as a fun outing. I assumed she would be some sort of princess again. She chose to be Minnie Mouse and then excitedly exclaimed, "And Harry can be Mickey, Mommy!"
Well, how can I resist *that*? Sigh. If I win the dragon costume, I suppose I could dress him up in that for a few pictures, but it sounds like he will be trick-or=treating as Mickey Mouse (we now own both the Mickey and Minnie costumes). Well, at least I got one Hedwig and one Golden Snitch before my kids became a parade of Disney characters. :D