I've often mentioned my love of reading, although I'm uncertain where or why I developed that love. Growing up, our house contained very few books outside of the ones we bought at school book fairs. My favorite aunt (technically great aunt) did have several bookcases full of books, so perhaps I acquired this love from her.
My reading has covered the spectrum. From westerns to romance novels, suspense, science fiction to biographies, histories and mysteries, I've enjoyed many books that I never thought I would be interested in. One genre which I've explored extensively is fantasy, fantasy of the J.R.R. Tolkien variety, not the Penthouse Forum variety. Fantasy seldom gets a great deal of respect, and I believe this bias to be unfair. Perhaps you will agree.
All works of fiction, and many non-fiction works are fantasy. They are either based upon events that never happened, or circumstances that never existed, or they are narrow interpretations or opinions that do not take into account contrary beliefs. Even our own lives contain a great deal of fantasy. When we tell our stories, we adjust the events to portray the characters as we want them to be perceived (guilty as charged). We make ourselves look better, and our enemies look worse. We highlight the humor or tragedy to get a better response, and somewhere along the way, the improved version replaces reality in our mind.
Writing a novel is a difficult proposition. Besides developing characters and plot, the author has to maintain consistency. A hero with a debilitating fear of heights does not tightrope walk his way out of an impossible situation. For most works of fiction, the characters are the main concern when it comes to consistency, since the events are taking place in a world we can see. Fantasy, however, takes place in a different type of world, with different plants, animals, and peoples. Even the sky is different, yet certain physical laws remain. Well written fantasy has to pay close attention to all of these details and still tell an engaging story. Much more difficult than making minor alterations to real events.
Probably the best known works of fantasy are the books of J.R.R. Tolkien; "The Hobbit" and the trilogy "The Lord of the Rings". These books, written between 1937 and 1949 (the trilogy was published in 1954 and 1955), have been extremely successful, and their popularity continues to grow. The reason is simple, they are well written and consistent books that tell an engaging story. These books have also become a template for fantasy novels. First, create an ultimate evil, preferably of god-like proportions. Now all you need is an unlikely hero and several contradictory companions. "The Belgariad" by David Eddings, "The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever" by Stephen R. Donaldson and "Shannara" by Terry Brooks are excellent examples of this formula.
Not all works of fantasy are epic adventures, as with all other literature, they run the gamut from romance to mystery. For a quick read when you really need a good laugh, I recommend any of the Discworld books by Terry Pratchett. They are laugh out loud funny and also give some interesting insights into our own world.
This piece came about because of something I wrote not long ago. While writing that piece I recalled a short story that I wanted to tie in, but after finding and reading the story, it ended up not making the cut. The story "Love is an Imaginary Number" by Roger Zelazny, has ties to Greek and Norse mythology and also appears to be the inspiration for the author's most famous work. The text is available online, take a few minutes and give it a quick read.
It seems ridiculous to put an encouragement to read at the end of this, but here it is. Visit your local bookstore, find the discount table and grab a book at random, visit the library and ask a librarian the title of their favorite book, or ask for a recommendation from one of your weird friends (we all either have them or are them). Every book is a fantasy, but every fantasy contains truth and knowledge. The more your read (unless you confine your reading to a very narrow subject), the more you learn.
Besides, if you've managed to make it through this, you can make it through just about anything.
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