"This book explores their lives, unfolding the extraordinary story of their complex friendship that lasted, with its ups and downs, until Lewis's death in 1963. Despite their differences - of temperament, spiritual emphasis, and storytelling style - what united them was much stronger: A shared vision that continues to inspire their millions of readers throughout the world."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved
Terry Brooks. David Eddings. George R. R. Martin. Robin Hobb. The top names in modern fantasy all acknowledge J. R. R. Tolkien as their role model, the author whose work inspired them to create their own epics. But what writers influenced Tolkien himself? Here, internationally recognized Tolkien expert Douglas A. Anderson has gathered the fiction of authors who sparked Tolkien’s imagination in a collection destined to become a classic in its own right. Andrew Lang’s romantic swashbuckler, “The Story of Sigurd,” features magic rings, an enchanted sword, and a brave hero loved by two beautiful women— and cursed by a ferocious dragon. Tolkien read E. A. Wyke-Smith’s “The Marvelous Land of Snergs” to his children, delighting in these charming tales of a pixieish people “only slightly taller than the average table.” Also appearing in this collection is a never-before-published gem by David Lindsay, author of Voyage to Arcturus, a novel which Tolkien praised highly both as a thriller and as a work of philosophy, religion, and morals. In stories packed with magical journeys, conflicted heroes, and terrible beasts, this extraordinary volume is one that no fan of fantasy or Tolkien should be without. These tales just might inspire a new generation of creative writers. Tales Before Tolkien: 22 Magical Stories “The Elves” by Ludwig Tieck “The Golden Key” by George Macdonald “Puss-Cat Mew” by E. H. Knatchbull-Hugessen “The Griffin and the Minor Canon” by Frank R. Stockton “The Demon Pope” by Richard Garnett “The Story of Sigurd” by Andrew Lang “The Folk of the Mountain Door” by William Morris “Black Heart and White Heart” by H. Rider Haggard “The Dragon Tamers” by E. Nesbit “The Far Islands” by John Buchan “The Drawn Arrow” by Clemence Housman “The Enchanted Buffalo” by L. Frank Baum “Chu-bu and Sheemish” by Lord Dunsany “The Baumhoff Explosive” by William Hope Hodgson “The Regent of the North” by Kenneth Morris “The Coming of the Terror” by Arthur Machen “The Elf Trap” by Francis Stevens “The Thin Queen of Elfhame” by James Branch Cabell “The Woman of the Wood” by A. Merritt “Golithos the Ogre” by E. A. Wyke-Smith “The Story of Alwina” by Austin Tappan Wright “A Christmas Play” by David Lindsay
The must-read new bold and immersive West African-inspired fantasy series, as featured on Cosmo, Bustle and Book Riot. In this world, girls are outcasts by blood and warriors by choice, perfect for fans of Children of Blood and Bone and Black Panther. "Namina Forna Could Be The Toni Morrison Of YA Fantasy." Refinery 29 Sixteen-year-old Deka lives in Otera, a deeply patriarchal ancient kingdom, where a woman's worth is tied to her purity, and she must bleed to prove it. But when Deka bleeds gold - the colour of impurity, of a demon - she faces a consequence worse than death. She is saved by a mysterious woman who tells Deka of her true nature: she is an Alaki, a near-immortal with exceptional gifts. The stranger offers her a choice: fight for the Emperor, with others just like her, or be destroyed... "An enthralling debut. The Gilded Ones redefines sisterhood and is sure to leave readers both inspired and ultimately hopeful." Stephanie Garber, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Caraval "Haunting, brutal, and oh-so-relevant. This book will suck you into a world where girls bleed gold, magic fills the air, and the real monsters hide behind words instead of claws." Roseanne A. Brown, New York Times bestselling author of A Song of Wraiths and Ruin "The Gilded Ones is a fierce, unflinching fantasy that marks Forna as a debut to watch." Kiersten White, New York Times bestselling author of And I Darken
The birth of modern fantasy in 1930s Britain and America saw the development of new literary and film genres. J.R.R. Tolkien created modern fantasy with The Lord of the Rings, set in a fictional world based upon his life in the early 20th century British Empire, and his love of language and medieval literature. In small-town Texas, Robert E. Howard pounded out his own fantasy realm in his Conan stories, published serially in the ephemeral pulp magazines he loved. Jerry Siegel created Superman with Joe Shuster, and laid the foundation for perhaps the most far-reaching fantasy worlds: the universe of DC and Marvel comics. The work of extraordinary people who lived in an extraordinary decade, this modern fantasy canon still provides source material for the most successful literary and film franchises of the 21st century. Modern fantasy speaks to the human experience and still shows its origins from the lives and times of its creators.
Contains four volumes of stories, poems, commentaries, unpublished manuscripts, and translations of medieval poems by Tolkien, including tales of Middle-earth, the setting of his Lord of the Rings novels.
Award-winning author Robin McKinley tells an enthralling story of magic, love, and redemption, based on the classic tale of Beauty and the Beast. Once upon a time, a wealthy merchant had three daughters. When his business failed, he moved his daughters to the countryside. The youngest daughter, Beauty, is fascinated by the thorny stems of a mysterious plant that overwhelms their neglected cottage. She tends the plant until it blossoms with the most beautiful flowers the sisters have ever seen—roses. Admiring the roses, an old woman tells Beauty, “Roses are for love.” And she speaks of a sorcerers’ battle many years ago that left a beast in an enchanted palace, and a curse concerning a family of three sisters . . . The Newbery Medal–winning author’s charming retelling of the classic fairy tale weaves a tangled story of sorcery, loyalty, and love that is sure to cast a spell on readers.
The Book of Wonder is one of Lord Dunsany’s many collections of fantasy short stories. While many of his collections were illustrated, this particular one is different—the illustrations were completed first. Dunsany then used the illustrations as inspirations for the stories around them. This collection features fourteen short stories, all of them whimsical, imaginative, and deeply strange. Dunsany writes stories that don’t always have a happy ending, and these are no exception—though they’re written in an almost fairytale or allegorical style, they each have a melancholy, vengeful, or even mad edge to them.
The definitive Tolkien companion—an indispensable guide to The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and more, from the author of The Road to Middle-earth. This “highly erudite celebration and exploration of Tolkien’s works [is] enormous fun,” declared the Houston Chronicle, and Tom Shippey, a prominent medievalist and scholar of fantasy, “deepens your understanding” without “making you forget your initial, purely instinctive response to Middle-earth and hobbits.” In a clear and accessible style, Shippey offers a new approach to Tolkien, to fantasy, and to the importance of language in literature. He breaks down The Lord of the Rings as a linguistic feast for the senses and as a response to the human instinct for myth. Elsewhere, he examines The Hobbit’s counterintuitive relationship to the heroic world of Middle-earth; demonstrates the significance of The Silmarillion to Tolkien’s canon; and takes an illuminating look at lesser-known works in connection with Tolkien’s life. Furthermore, he ties all these strands together in a continuing tradition that traces its roots back through Grimms’ Fairy Tales to Beowulf. “Shippey’s commentary is the best so far in elucidating Tolkien’s lovely myth,” wrote Harper’s Magazine. J.R.R. Tolkien: Author of the Century is “a triumph” (Chicago Sun-Times) that not only gives readers a deeper understanding of Tolkien and his work, but also serves as an entertaining introduction to some of the most influential novels ever written.
