Reading
First, there came the Kindle. Then, there came the ebooks. Then, for I am a giant nerd and it really was inevitable, came A Song of Ice and Fire.
It's a rare thing for me to get so thoroughly book-hooked that I put off things like eating. I didn't read much at all until 8th grade, when I discovered Garth Nix's Sabriel and read through a math quiz (and I like math) because I needed to know what was up with Mogget. Since then, it's only been Naomi Novik's Temeraire series that has actually kept me from doing life things. I think Erin wants to have some words with George RR Martin.
This has made me ask, what do I like in books, particularly, what do I like in fantasy books?
1. I like worlds that I can believe.
I can believe in worlds where all countries have problems and serious flaws, apart from/ in addition to the author's pet political cause. Gender issues can't be the only thing amiss.
I can believe in worlds where technology does not freeze for thousands of years. Honestly, your medicine has been the same for 500 years? And you have a University?
I can believe in worlds where there is pluralism. Because no one leaps from their mother's womb crying that they are [insert ethnicity here] and cannot live amongst others. Throughout human history, ethnic pluralism has been the norm, both a result of and catalyst for the spread of products and ideas.
2. I like villains who have more going for them than elegant cruelty. (I'm looking at you, Valdemar.) Moral ambiguity is much, much more interesting to me than the villain just being evil. It's especially interesting when very, very little seperates villain and protagonists.
3. I like a variety of female characters. Not all women are warriors, or want to be--some find their strength in politics, law, academia, and, yes, in fantsy world "girly" things like healing or having families. I like it when the non-warriors do not entirely drop out of the cast, but come into their own and play an active part while doing so.
So, these are some of the things I've most enjoyed in the fantasy books I've read.
Part of why I love the Song of Ice and Fire series is because it does all this--the world is believable, anyone could be a hero or villain depending on your point of view, and there are girls with swords, girls with dreams, girls with romances, and girls with hella political clout. It's a complicated book, I suppose, and how seemlessly it flows together despite the large cast and complex world is part of why I'm glued to my Kindle, awestruck under my blankets.
It's a rare thing for me to get so thoroughly book-hooked that I put off things like eating. I didn't read much at all until 8th grade, when I discovered Garth Nix's Sabriel and read through a math quiz (and I like math) because I needed to know what was up with Mogget. Since then, it's only been Naomi Novik's Temeraire series that has actually kept me from doing life things. I think Erin wants to have some words with George RR Martin.
This has made me ask, what do I like in books, particularly, what do I like in fantasy books?
1. I like worlds that I can believe.
I can believe in worlds where all countries have problems and serious flaws, apart from/ in addition to the author's pet political cause. Gender issues can't be the only thing amiss.
I can believe in worlds where technology does not freeze for thousands of years. Honestly, your medicine has been the same for 500 years? And you have a University?
I can believe in worlds where there is pluralism. Because no one leaps from their mother's womb crying that they are [insert ethnicity here] and cannot live amongst others. Throughout human history, ethnic pluralism has been the norm, both a result of and catalyst for the spread of products and ideas.
2. I like villains who have more going for them than elegant cruelty. (I'm looking at you, Valdemar.) Moral ambiguity is much, much more interesting to me than the villain just being evil. It's especially interesting when very, very little seperates villain and protagonists.
3. I like a variety of female characters. Not all women are warriors, or want to be--some find their strength in politics, law, academia, and, yes, in fantsy world "girly" things like healing or having families. I like it when the non-warriors do not entirely drop out of the cast, but come into their own and play an active part while doing so.
So, these are some of the things I've most enjoyed in the fantasy books I've read.
Part of why I love the Song of Ice and Fire series is because it does all this--the world is believable, anyone could be a hero or villain depending on your point of view, and there are girls with swords, girls with dreams, girls with romances, and girls with hella political clout. It's a complicated book, I suppose, and how seemlessly it flows together despite the large cast and complex world is part of why I'm glued to my Kindle, awestruck under my blankets.