If you like this, then you'll like that

[mmcirvin]

Here's a nice page of suggestions of classic stuff to read. Also contains a list of tortured and contradictory definitions of science fiction, and the following priceless quote from J. R. R. Tolkien:

"Fantasy is a natural human activity. It certainly does not destroy or even insult Reason; and it does not either blunt the appetite for, nor obscure the perception of, scientific verity. On the contrary: the keener and clearer is the reason, the better fantasy it will make. If men were ever in a state in which they did not want to know or could not perceive the truth (facts or evidence), then Fantasy would languish until they were cured. If they ever got into that state (it would not seem at all impossible), Fantasy will perish, and become Morbid Delusion."

-- J. R. R. Tolkien, "On Fairy Stories", in "Tree and Leaf", [London: 1964, New York: 1965]

Comments

[urbeatle.livejournal.com]

there's something wrong with the section on heroic fantasy.

it's not that they seem to lump together epic fantasy and swords & sorcery, each of which has quite different feel from the other. I've run into people before who can't tell the difference between T. H. White and Robert E. Howard.

it's not even that the majority of the authors listed are women, in what historically has been a very male-dominated field. I haven't been following the field in the last 10-20 years, but it does seem to have a lot more women than men these days... and I'm glad someone's listing which women heoric fantasists are "must-reads".

however, the *men* listed are a little suspect. I haven't heard of many of them. ok, maybe that's because I haven't been following the field lately, as I said... but then why aren't the better known names in the field listed? why are Michael Moorcock, Fritz Lieber, Roger Zelazny, Jack Vance, John Brunner, L. Sprague De Camp, and Clark Ashton Smith missing? why did they feel the need to add Mark Twain to the list, when "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court" doesn't resemble either epic fantasy or swords & sorcery? heck, why are some women missing? Ursula K. LeGuin?

can't be because they are avoiding older writers, or concentrating on those that aren't as famous; Robert E. Howard is on the list, and so is C. S. Lewis and T. H. White (although I'm going to have to go back and check, since I don't remember Tolkien being listed...)

it's a very curious list.

[mmcirvin.livejournal.com]

Oh, there are lots of problems with that list; several sections of it have weird sampling anomalies, and I found a few factual errors in it, too. ("The Tachypomp" isn't about what they say it's about at all; they seem to have confused it with some other story.)

Le Guin is mentioned, just not in that section.

I think it may have been compiled from reader-submitted odds and ends with varying degrees of detail.

[paracelsvs.livejournal.com]

The biggest problem seems to be that it's a HUGE LIST with MILLIONS OF CATEGORIES.

It's about as useful as a library card index. There's so much in there that there's no way to actually use the information.