I went to the local bookstore to pick up my copy of Half-Blood Prince back in July 2005 at midnight; I am not going to do that tonight. I'll be there tomorrow to get my reserved copy of Deathly Hallows.
But. I have gotten thoroughly enmeshed in Guy Gavriel Kay's The Fionavar Tapestry. I've read the first two books in the trilogy, and I have to read the final book before I begin Book Seven of the Potter books. I can't bear not to know what's going to happen to all these characters!
If you've never read or even heard of this author and these books, I exhort you to find them and read them. I suspect all hard-core fantasy fans already know all about Kay and his work, but you certainly don't have to be in that group to enjoy the heck out of them.
What's astonishing to me is how well-formed they are, considering that they were Kay's first published works. He's since gone on to write seven more, and once done with Potter #7 I'll be seeking them out.
Posted by Linkmeister at July 20, 2007 08:51 AM | TrackBackAs old as they are, it's entirely possible that I've read them before, but I certainly don't recall the author. I'm torn between hoping that this is one of those series that I remember enjoying immensely as a kid, but can't remember the title or author of - versus, hoping for whole new series to discover and enjoy.
As it stands, I will soon find out - I just put a hold on the first of the trilogy at my library, which, since it's in (at another location) I will have soon. Much, much sooner than Deathly Hollows, for which we are 1391 of 2022 holds, on the first returned of 400 some copies that our library is purchasing. Mind you, I put a hold on it a mere four hours after our system allowed people to.
All in all, it should be in fairly quickly. When Half Blood Prince came out, we were further down the list and it only took five days. The joy of using a library that is frequented by the uber polite, who understand that everyone is desperate to read something and therefore return it asap. Of course, it also helps to use the library system with the largest circulation in the country. Let's just say that my family and I, use it quite frequently. . .
Posted by: DuWayne at July 20, 2007 09:33 AMThere are some pretty adult scenes at the end of Book One, and a little bit of non-graphic sex in Book Two, so don't read to your kids without pre-screening for your comfort level.
Posted by: Linkmeister at July 20, 2007 09:55 AMThanks for the warning, though I don't read anything to kids, without reading it first myself.
I actually didn't assume that it would be a book to read with the munchkins anyways. Though I actually appreciate reading books that involve adult situations, as long as they aren't too graphic. I would much prefer to have the associated conversations based on something they read or I read to them, rather than having them based on bad choices they made, because we never discussed it.
Anywhoo, thanks again for the warning. . .
Posted by: DuWayne at July 20, 2007 11:41 AMAbout Kay -- he is, in my mind the pre-eminent author in the fantasy field today when it comes to the use of language. No one is as lyrical as he is.
For recommendations, I suggest the following order:
Tigana
A Song for Arbonnes
The Lions of Al-Rassan
The Sarantium duet
The Last Light of the Sun (my least-favorite of his works, but still filled with much of what makes him fantastic)
We have Ysabel but haven't read it yet. The top three on the list are sall spectacular. There are scenes in each of them which will leave you breathless and misty-eyed.
Posted by: Scott at July 21, 2007 03:42 AM