And now for something completely different!
At the beginning of this year, we started a new feature called Old School Wednesdays. We came up with the idea towards the end of last year, when both of us were feeling not only exhausted from the never-ending inundation of new and shiny but also disappointed with the quality of these often over-hyped books. More and more we began to find relief and comfort by reaching to our TBR Mountain and reading older books. That was when we decided to turn this into a regular feature.
The thing is though, we completely underestimated both how much we’d love doing these post but also how popular they’d become. Every post has sparked conversation – the type that can only happen when people are sharing love for their favourites. As much as we like New and Shiny books, sometimes we feel that conversation in these posts don’t flow as easily – possibly because most people have yet to read New and Shiny.
Today we wanted to share with you some of the books we have lined up in our Old School Wednesdays (OSW) shelves, but also open the floor to your recommendations!
Ana’s OSW TBR:
Those are only physical copies. I also have quite a few on my virtual OSW TBR including:
Lord of the Two Lands by Judith Tarr
Cordelia’s Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold
City of Bones by Martha Wells
Fires of Nuala by Katherine Kimbriel
Thea’s OSW TBR:
(Apologies, there are some newer titles mixed in with the old!)
Like Ana, this is just the print, physical component of my OSW TBR – there are plenty more where these came from on my ebookshelf, including:
ALL the Vorkosigan books by Lois McMaster Bujold
Point of Honor by Madeline E. Robbins
Tooth and Claw by Jo Walton
Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos by R.L. LaFevers
Dragon’s Keep by Janet Lee Carey
The Price of the Stars by Debra Doyle and James D. Macdonald
Beggars in Spain by Nancy Kress
Birth of the Firebringer by Meredith Ann Pierce
Green Witch, Green Angel by Alice Hoffman
Aurelie by Heather Tomlinson
Bloody Jack by L.A. Meyer
And many, many more. (Yes, we have impulse control problems. DON’T JUDGE US!)
Your recommendations:
We now open the floor to you! See anything on our shelves that you think we should read next? Got any other burning recommendations? Please do share with us books that you’ve read, loved, and want to see reviewed here.
Your recommendations can be from ANY genre for adults, young adults or middle grade audiences. The only mandatory criteria: the book must be at least 5 years old.
And now…we open up the floor to you!
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The Book Thief, Marcus Zusak.
I’m not sure if you’ve read it already, but I really enjoyed it!
Flora Segunda by Ysabeau S. Wilce.
I read that trilogy last year and I still can’t believe how underloved and unknown it is. Plus, judging from what you guys like, I believe you will love the series. Book 2 was my favorite of the trilogy but they each possess an abundance of charms and magic and originality.
I love the idea of Old School Wednesday! Here are just a few favorites that come to mind:
Tamora Pierce’s Protector of the Small quartet (YA fantasy)
Robin McKinley’s The Blue Sword and/or Spindle’s End (YA/adult fantasy)
John Christopher’s Tripod trilogy (MG/YA SF)
Joan Aiken’s The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, Black Hearts in Battersea, and Nightbirds on Nantucket (There are more in the series, but these three are my favorites. Well, I’m rather fond of The Cuckoo Tree, too.) (MG alternate-history with a touch of fantasy)
Stardance, by Spider and Jeanne Robinson (adult SF)
The Vorkosigan series is fantastic, and the Cordelia’s Honor omnibus and first two books about Miles (Young Miles omnibus) have held up really well.
I also love the Perilous Gard, so well-written and a great, very sensible female protagonist.
For new suggestions,
Fantasy: Sharon Shinn’s standalone romantic fantasy “Summers at Castle Auburn”
Science Fiction: Sharon Shinn wrote a retelling of Jane Eyre set in the future called “Jenna Starborn”, really interesting take on class dynamics as personhood dynamics
Also, if you haven’t read any of Sharon Lee and Steve Miller’s (husband and wife team) Liaden Universe books you really should. Start with “Cordelia’s Honor” or the “Agent’s Gambit” omnibus, fantastic settings, interesting language and cultural system, nice romantic aspects without overwhelming the actual action and plot
I’m vociferously seconding the recommendations for Ysabeau Wilce’s Flora Segunda trilogy and Joan Aiken’s Wolves series.
I’d also recommend Philip Reeve’s Mortal Engines quartet, which is about a ravaged earth where most cities are mobile and predatory — the largest cities (like London) roam the earth, preying on the smaller ones.
For something a bit different, I’d recommend Jean Merrill’s The Pushcart War, a middle-grade novel about a feud between pushcart peddlers and massive trucks in NYC. It’s sharp, funny, and smart, too.
And in a similar vein, Joan Aiken’s Arabel and Mortimer series, about a young girl in London, her pet raven, his bottomless appetite, and the havoc the two of them manage to wreak on her family. Bonus: some of Quentin Blake’s best illustrations ever.
I’d be interested in your reviews on the Sarah Tolerance series, Perilous Gard, and the Theodosia series. And Tooth and Claw by Jo Walton has been on my to read list forever, so also that.
And a few others: Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn, Emergence by David Palmer (this is out of print though), Young Wizards series by Diane Duane, Tillerman cycle and Kingdom series by Cynthia Voigt.
You may have already read it but I would like to recommend first The Count of Monte Cristo, it’s a thrilling revenge book. Or any Chrestomanci or House book from Diana Wynne Jones, or at least the Time of Ghost for a one stand-alone book of hers.
Or Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami, the story of an male teenager looking for her mother or maybe he just wanted to leave his father. We also follow a old man that talks to cats.
C J Cherryh’s “Angel with the Sword”. [It's SF which reads like fantasy.]
You haven’t read FINGERSMITH yet? Get on that!
I think I see The Fox Woman on the edge on Anas shelf? If so, I would very much recommend it
I read it a few years ago after reading “The Other Ana’s” review on Things Mean A Lot, and just fell in love with the writing. Kij Johnson also has some of her short stories free to read on her website which give you some idea of her style, although her range is quite wide so some would be more indicative than others…
I’ll second the Tamora Pierce books. And how about (1) I was a Rat by Philip Pullman, (2) Dave at Night by Gail Levine, or (3) Half Magic by Edward Eager. Can you tell I work in an elementary school library?
The Last Unicorn by Peter Beagle
The Once and Future King by T.H. White
And I second Lark’s Robin McKinley suggestions (to which I would sneakily add Sunshine .
I am so good because I am restraining myself from phoning you in the middle of the work day and screaming ‘Temeraire!’ at you Ana
The first book is the best, but if you don’t fancy reading on it totally works as a standalone. I also thought The Fox Woman was really satisfying in terms of ideas and the fantasy story line. Theas list is just adding new books to mine, so I’m no help there, but I hear great things about Tooth and Claw which is on my own bookshelves.
As for my recs for old school books I will go away and consider, but if you’re thinking about Fingersmith you really should consider The Night Watch (weeps, so wonderful) and The Little Stranger (ghosts and unreliable narrators who are creepy and different ways fo reading the ending). Again – must restrain myself from throwing piles of world war books at you based on your love for Codename Verity.
I second Lenore; you will LOVE Fingersmith! Such an amazing book: Victorian London, thievery, disguises, lesbians–it’s got everything, and a page-turning plot to boot!
And SINCE YOU ASKED!, one of my all time favorites, from when I was growing up, is Margaret Weis’ The Lost King, first in the Star of the Guardians trilogy. It’s adult space opera with a strong female character, diversity, romance, aliens, and lots of passion and humor. Weis is better known for her pairing with Tracy Hickman to write the Dragonlance books, but I can’t believe more people haven’t read The Lost King.
Thanks everybody for the AWESOME recommendations so far!I will try to reply to everybody.
Anon – Thea has read The Book Thief. I have yet to read it but admit to be daunted by that book for some reason
Nadine – I am trying to make Thea read Flora Segunda ASAP! I think she will love it!
Lark – Thank you. I have added those to The List. I know Thea LOVES The Blue Sword (which is one of the first books we ever reviewed back in 2008! http://thebooksmugglers.com/2008/01/book-review-blue-sword.html) and I am actually planning on reading The Wolves of Willoughby Chase next week!
TeresaN – “Sharon Shinn wrote a retelling of Jane Eyre set in the future called “Jenna Starborn”, really interesting take on class dynamics as personhood dynamics” WHAT. now I want : )
Out of all the reading I did as a teenager, three books really stuck with me:
The Merro Tree by Katie Waitman (her book The Divided is good as well)
The Wood Wife by Terri Windling
Crown Duel by Sherwood Smith
It’s been more than a decade since I’ve read any of those, so I can’t really say WHY I loved them so much, but they were all good enough for me to remember the name (and keep copies of the books, which is very rare for me).
Ooooh, shiny.
First off, the Terrier/Bloodhound/Mastiff (Bekah Cooper) series by Tamora Pierce. Even being able to see the problems (and there were many, including useless prologues and diary-style format) I absolutely LOVED those books. It squeaks under the 5 year rule. YA high fantasy, with a realistic heroine.
My favorite book of all time — Watership Down by Richard Adams. Much older, and with a storyline that takes a criminally long time to really suck me in (it wasn’t till they met Strawberry that I started to understand just how incredible the book was). Not sure where to genre this one. It’s fiction with a leaning towards readers who like fantasy with animals. Main characters are rabbits, but they’re RABBITS, not people in rabbit shape. Gritty, hard-hitting, and incredible.
The Codex Alera series by Jim Butcher. Book 1 is Furies of Calderon. This is “YA” (in quotes because it’s not today’s YA kissing book style) epic fantasy, with wars and magic and politics and multiple PoV swapping. The coming of age of a boy named Tavi in a world where everyone is bonded to elementals in order to do magic … everyone but him. My understanding is that this was the series Jim Butcher WANTED to write, but he got sucked into doing Urban Fantasy in order to sell. Not that he doesn’t love his UF series as well, but this one definitely has a lot of love behind it. And a loooot of words. Not small books, but the series does cap at 6 and is complete.
For something VERY different, a light and fluffy whipped cream topping of a series. The Enchanted Forest Chronicles by Patricia Wrede. First book is Dealing With Dragons and it’s very old and finished a long time ago. First three books are the best, but I love Wrede’s writing style enough that I finished the series AND snatched up a few others I found by her. Funny, cute, and lays fairy tale tropes on their ears. The incredibly pragmatic princess Cimerone decides to take her future into her own hands and volunteers to becomes a princess for the dragon Kazul. And it only gets better when you meet Morwen the witch and her very clean house with the sign “None of this nonsense, please.”
And my last recommendation while I’m not sitting at my bookshelf and able to pull out individual reads … Hunter’s Oath and Hunter’s Death by Michelle West. I … don’t even know how to describe this one. High AND Epic fantasy, in just two novels. Multiple PoVs. War. Love. A little bit of (very well done) time travel in a very tragic character. Street rats and wealth and danger and the great hunt and … I plowed through to the end, and turned the last page only to find that I’d been sitting in the same position for way too long and that I’d been crying and breathing as heavily as if I’d just run a marathon. I did NOT immediately pick it back up because I needed some space to remember the shape of the inside of my head. A complex read with big catharsis at the end.
Oh, and not to be a wet blanket, but I’ve heard some very … moving arguments against the way the Vorkosigan Saga plays out. I’ll definitely be looking for your reviews on that one. =]
Paige – I’ve had Mortal Engines on my radar but I haven’t heard about the other ones you recommended. Will look them up, thank you!
de Pizan – I think we will read Tooth and Claw next week! Thanks for the recs!
Jennifer – I have actually read Kafka on the Shore…it wasn’t a favourite though. Oops. BUT I do love the Chrestomanci series (http://thebooksmugglers.com/tag/chrestomanci-series) and am slowly making my way through them (I am on book 5).
Andrea- THAT SOUNDS AWESOME
Lenore – I KNOW. *hangs head in shame*
Emm – I bought the Fox Woman because of The Other Ana’s review too. It will be my first KJ book.
Anon – I will be reviewing three MG books next Monday, I love MG stories. I actually read – and loved – I was a Rat very recently (http://thebooksmugglers.com/2013/01/anas-smugglivus-2012-feats-of-strength.html) and I went on to buy all of Phillip Pullman’s MG novels!
Elaine – I read all of those! : )
(http://thebooksmugglers.com/2011/11/smugglers-ponderings-thoughts-on-the-last-unicorn-by-peter-s-beagle.html) And Sunshine is one of my all time favourites! Still waiting for a sequel.
I really recommend Cordelia’s Honor and the rest of the Vorkosigan Saga. Point of Honour was well written and had a good concept, but it left me a bit cold.
Some other books I’d love for you guys to review:
* Codex Alera series by Jim Butcher — a high fantasy/intrigue series set in a world that’s a mix of Avatar the Last Airbender and Rome. First book is a bit slow, but it picks up very quickly from there.
* The Old Kingdom/Abhorsen Trilogy by Garth Nix — fantasy zombies, a very creative and well thought out magic system and awesome ladies.
*Robin McKinley’s The Blue Sword
*Tamora Pierce’s Trickster’s Choice and Trickster’s Queen
I’ve been thinking with great fondness lately of Patricia McKillip’s The Forgotten Beasts of Eld. I plan to retread that one myself.
FOR BOTH OF YOU, I’d love it if you read Amanda Hemingway’s THE GREENSTONE GRAIL, first in the Sangreal Trilogy. It is a FANTASTIC YA trilogy that uses Arthurian iconography in a really original way. It’s also a YA series that makes the hero’s parent an actual, living, breathing character with flaws and motivations, instead of just a constant hindrance or supportive figure.
For Ana’s TBR, I cannot recommend TEMERAIRE enough. The worldbuilding is absolutely astonishing.
For Thea’s TBR – I read SPIN and quite enjoyed it.
@Patrice Ooooh, I haven’t read The Forgotten Beasts of Eld in AGES. If you liked it, you might also like The Unlikely Ones by Mary Brown. Another with a cast of animal characters and that same old-feeling writing style.
Bookgazing – Jodie, this is probably where I lose all of my street cred by saying that I couldnt finish the Night Watch. But I have both The Little Stranger and Fingersmith and I want to still read both.
Anne M Leone – I have the Lost King! SOMEWHERE!!! Will add to the official OSW TBR.
Megan – I know Thea loves the Crown Duel (she even have me a copy, I should move it to this TBR!) . I don’t know the other two and will look them up, thank you.
Tami – These sound awesome and I kind of want to read the Michelle West ones NOW.
whimsyful – I really need to read more Tamora Pierce! I am not sure if I’d like the Jim Butcher series but I am willing to give it a go. Thea LOVES the Blue Sword – http://thebooksmugglers.com/2008/01/book-review-blue-sword.html, maybe I should give it a go too.
Patrice – I want to read that one soon!
AnimeJune – that book is already wishlisted since we talked about it on Twitter !!! : )
This is going to be fun! Most of the time, I get books recs from y’all. My google reader “starred” section is almost completely dedicated to books you’ve reviewed that sound like I’d like them.
Being able to respond to reviews because I’ve ALSO read the book will be interesting!
I was going to request Feed by M.T. Anderson, and then I saw Ana already had a copy on her shelf! Definitely give that a try. It’s one of my favorite dystopian/scifi books in YA because it’s just so unbelievably smart.
I’ve also had Fingersmith on my own TBR shelf for a while, so I’d be interested in your thoughts on that.
Finally I know you two tend to read speculative fiction, but for the best of contemporary YA (with super strong, hilarious heroines), maybe look into E. Lockhart’s books if you haven’t yet? Her Ruby Oliver series is hilarious, but personally I think The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, in which a girl at an old-boys club-esque boarding school begins a feminist uprising, is excellent.
Tami – This is exactly what we are hoping will happen! More booksish conversations FTW!
Jill – Thea LOVES Feed and this is why she gave me her copy. And I absolutely adore E Lockhart. I enjoyed The Boyfriend List and Fly on the Wall but The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks is one of my fave books ever: http://thebooksmugglers.com/2010/09/book-review-the-disreputable-history-of-frankie-landau-banks-by-e-lockhart.html
Oh my goodness THANK YOU for all the recs, everyone!!! Ana’s covered a bunch but I totally want to shout out to:
Nadine & Paige – SOLD on Flora Segunda! I’m pretty sure I have book 2 in the series somewhere, too, so when I read it and fall in love with it (seems inevitable!), I have an immediate sequel at hand. THANK YOU
Lark – You know, I’ve read and loved so many of Tamora Pierce’s books but have yet to dive into the Protector of the Small quartet. It is on the calendar! Also, I have been searching EVERYWHERE for a copy of The Death of Grass by John Christopher, but to no avail since it’s out of print here in the US and no ebooks exist… BUT I just did another search and it looks like the used book gods are smiling? I see copies of the Tripods books AND DoG available! HUZZAH!
Also, love love love the McKinley recs (The Blue Sword is an old fave) – haven’t read Spindle’s End yet but probably should fix that.
TeresaN – LOVE the Vorkosigan books I’ve read so far (everything in order up through Cetaganda – I really need to catch up!) and Summers at Castle Auburn by Sharon Shinn, although I had no idea she also wrote a futuristic Jane Eyre retelling. AWESOME!
Paige – Ooh! I have Mortal Engines on my e-reader (as well as Fever Crumb, but guessing I should start with Mortal Engines? Any advice?
de Pizan – Emergence by David Palmer looks right up my alley. Anyone know of any good used book sites where a girl might be able to buy a copy?
Jennifer – You know of all of the classics I read in high school, The Count of Monte Cristo remains one of my favorites
Thank you for the rec!!!
Andrea – CJ Cherryh! I’ve only read Cyteen (which was…odd but wonderful) – Angel with the Sword sounds pretty wonderful!
Elaine – Ooh, yes, we’ve read those (and reviewed most of them too)! I think I’m one of the few people that was not crazy about Sunshine *ducks*
Anne M Leone – The Lost King looks awesome (and I also kind of love this retro lightsaber-y cover: http://www.amazon.com/Lost-King-The-Margaret-Weis/dp/0553763423)! *adds to cart*
Megan – Crown Duel! Oh I loved that book (duology?) so much. I think a re-read is in order.
Tami – You just made me even more excited about the Bekah Cooper books. I’m IN! Also, the Enchanted Forest Chronicles are among my favorite books EVER. Cimorene was one of my first favorite heroines!
And now I’m off to hunt down a copy of Hunter’s Oath and Hunter’s Death by Michelle West. Thank you!
I was going to suggest old school writers like Octavia Butler, Philip K. Dick, or Ray Bradbury. But you’ve probably reviewed some of their books.
Looking at your TBR piles reminds me of some books that I’ve been meaning to read but haven’t yet.
I’m going to just echo a lot of people on Vorkosigan as I read the latest one a little while ago and am doing some rereading. Those books are a happy place for me.
Garth Nix is wonderful and I adore the Abhorsen Chronicles but some of his standalones are great as well. I think you would get a lot from Ragwitch and Shade’s Children, the first one is a take on a portal adventure with a touch of the Snow Queen story and the second is one of the few dystopians I enjoyed. They’re not really my cup of tea but he made it work.
Seconding anything Diana Wynne Jones’, I’d recommend Hexwood, The Homeward Bounders and any of her short story collections. I love Chrestomanci but I know the books can be an acquired taste. She’s one of those authors that does a lot of different things which can make her tricky as the variety means she has something for everyone, but its hard sometimes to get the right one.
Have you read anything by Cinda Williams Chima, she’s one of my favorite YA authors who creates fascinating worlds. The Heir Chronicles which are contemporary and The Seven Realms’ which is high fantasy. She just gets teens.
I’m reminded that I keep meaning to read more Jo Walton as I loved Among Others, but haven’t known where to start on her other fiction.
Oh and Kij Johnson is fantastic. I’ve read The Fox Woman and Fudoki and they’re two books that I’m constantly recommending out to people.
Sylvia Kelso has written two series that are pretty awesome. The first is the Rihannar series and starts with “Everran’s Bane.” They are kind of hard books to get hold of; I think she is an Australian writer and not well known.
I second so many of the recommendations above. Katie Waitman’s “The Merro Tree” is another obscure one that stays with you for a long time. Michelle West also writes as Michelle Sagara (I think – sometimes I pull these pieces of trivia out of the back of my head and I think they were planted there in my sleep.) The two Hunter’s books were great, and they spun off a fairly good series (except it seemed to go on forever – the Sun Sword series.) I really like her Elantra series (writing as Michelle Sagara).
Lorna Freeman’s Borderlands books are a whole lot of fun, even if it is very frustrating that it is an unfinished series.
Karin Lowachee wrote three scifi books about children at war. The first, “Warchild”, is by far my favorite, but the whole series is well worth the read.
Thea – <3 Cimerone! I pretended my cat-of-many-years was one of Morwen's kittens when I first got him.
I did share the Cooper books with a friend who just didn't get into them, but my husband agrees with me and we've got the whole set on our bookshelf (and that is HIGH praise, as I have severely curtailed my need-to-own when it comes to books. Moving four times in as many years will do that to a body.)
I loved that Cooper's books showed her having romantic relationships with NOT a soul mate AND that her capstone romance was so very well done. No insta-romance here! Bull through those first two prologues … the spelling gets readable as soon as Bekah's voice takes over the book. =]
*twirls at Hunter's book love* Make sure you have both available! The first one ends on a ridiculous cliffhanger. Also, the second one intros another cast of characters and it's a little off-putting at first, but she ends up being one of my favorite voices.
… and now I want to pick them up and read them again, too! *grin*
Wow! Where do I start!! Okay, you ladies have some great books on your shelves! The ones I’ve read and HIGHLY recommend are: Pope’s The Perilous Gard (Ana’s OSW TBR), Marriott’s Shadows on the Moon, Pullman’s Tiger in the Well (Book 3 of Sally Lockhart series), and Wrede’s Snow White and Rose Red (Thea’s OSW TBR).
Additionally, I recommend the following:
Tamora Pierce’s Song of the Lioness series (MG/YA), Howard Pyle’s Otto of the Silver Hand (MG), Anne Bishop’s Black Jewels series and/or Tir Alainn series (Adult), J. R. Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood series (Adult).
I could go on and on, but you ladies are going to be pretty busy for a while with all those TBR books & reader recommendations.
Oh my God – how could I skip Emma Bull?! She is one of my alltime favorites. I gobble anything and everything she writes, which is not nearly enough. And each thing she has written is so different from the last. For urban fantasy – War for the Oaks. Dystopia (but so much more) – Bone Dance. Sci fi – Falcon. Western fantasy – Territory. A historical collaboration with Steven Brust called “War and Neccesity”. “Finder” is a borderlands/modern elves gem. And she started this genuis web project with some other really good scifi fantasy writers (Elizabeth Bear and Sarah Monette to name a few) called Shadow Unit. Criminal Minds with a twist. Check out Emma Bull, if you haven’t read her.
Ana:
Circle of Magic
Thea:
Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos by R.L. LaFevers
I see that you have Ursula Le Guinn’s Earthsea series lined up. I would say please read ASAP! They are fabulous high fantasy books by an author who knows how to keep the reader hooked. You might feel that in comparison to recent fantasy titles the plot is a little less sparkling (sometimes even predictable)but once you get into the rhythm of her story telling you’ll just want to read them all!
L.A. Meyer’s Bloody Jack is a fantastic story. The audio version is really well narrated with the reader acting all the parts quite well. There’s a lot of description in this series and a lot of swashbuckling action and a very plucky heroine.
Naomi Novak’s Temeraire is really good too. You will fall in love with Temeraire.
Dreamhunter by Elizabeth Knox, an Australian author.
The Dalemark Quartet by Diana Wynne Jones (Especially the last book!)
I would second the Star of the Guardians series by Margaret Weis. The spin off series Mag Force 7 is also very good. In fact, I might like it better than Star of the Guardians. Raoul and the Little One are some of my favorite characters.
I would also recommend Ronia, the Robber’s Daughter by Astrid Lindgren although I’m not sure if it would be classified as middle grade or not.
I would love to hear about this book:
“Fires of Nuala” by Katherine Kimbriel
because, as for suggestions I would like to put down:
“Night calls” by Katharine Eliska Kimbriel, which I simply adored back when it came out.
“Lives of the Monster Dogs”, by Kirsten Bakis.
and for something older, I’d say “The other people” by Pat A. Brisco, is worth a read, it’s a very early Urban Fantasy style novel with a werewolf PI.
Not exactly great literature, but so much fun.
Ana and Thea– Yes, start with Mortal Engines — that’s the first book, followed by Predator’s Gold, then Infernal Devices, and Darkling Plain.
I think I saw Fever Crumb on one of your shelf photos? It’s set in the same universe, but when I picked it up, it was off-putting — it definitely felt written for a younger audience than the original four.
Ana, I don’t wonder that you haven’t heard of the other titles I mentioned — they’re *really* old school, as in, old enough that I read them back in the 80s; and loved them enough to seek out copies (and extra copies) later on. Actually, now that I look, The Pushcart War appears to be out of print — but pretty available via Addall.com, etc.
I can do more, right? *wink*
Summon the Keeper by Tanya Huff. HILARIOUS. Talking cat (naturally), adorable non-alpha male love interest, and schizophrenic hole to hell in the basement. I did not like the rest of the series as much, but this first read was a FUN fun ride.
Gates of Fire by Stephen Pressfield. Neither fantasy nor sci fi, but rather an epic retelling of the Battle of Thermopylae. The book was good, but the audio book was even better. GLORIOUS way to spend a long road trip, listening to all those lovely Greek words from such a talented voice actor. This book punched me right in the gut and then TWISTED. So so good, and I normally don’t read outside the fantasy genre. (Geek side note, that voice actor from the audiobook version? That was the guy who played the first/old The Master from Dr. Who. Dang straight I picked that out of his voice when I watched the episode! *fist bump*)
Mercedes Lackey is a guilty pleasure of mine, starting with the Arrows of the Queen (Heralds of Valdemar Trilogy) and including the first book in the Bardic Voices series (The Lark and the Wren) and the Black Swan (retelling of the Swan Princess). What Lackey misses in plotting, she makes up for in characters and magical worlds.
Right! And then the book that started me on this “how could I have forgotten” journey … Spider Robinson’s The Callahan Touch. Yes, it’s part of a series. No, it is not the beginning of the series. It’s one of my favorite books of all time though, and I believe it stands well on its own while still encouraging you to want to go out and read the stuff that came before it (which was mostly collections of short stories). Sci-fi with fantasy twists about a very special kind of bar — the one you only find if you really need it. Plenty of laughs (especially if you like puns) with a goodly portion of hard-hitting serious threads as well. This is the book I use to intro folks to the series itself, though my husband will argue that book one is more than sufficient to do that. It’s got time travelers (who are required to pay with cash) and aliens and cluricaunes and bad jokes and great coffee and irish whiskey and GOOD PEOPLE. Much much love.
I’m done.
Probably.
*sheepish*
The Silver Metal Lover by Tanith Lee
Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto
The Silver Metal Lover by Tanith Lee & Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto
I’m so excited about this!
One of my favorite books of all time “The Changeover” by Margaret Mahy.
The prequel to “The Blue Sword”, “The Hero and the Crown” by Robin Mckinely.
The Unicorn Trilogy by Tanith Lee “Black Unicorn”, “Red Unicorn” and “Gold Unicorn”.
Companions of the Night by Vivian Vande Velde
Seconding Diana Wynne Jones’ “Hexwood”
“Flora Secunda” and “So You Want to be a Wizard” are also great.
Jaime – Oddly, I read the So You Want to be a Wizard series and enjoyed it, but loveloveloved Deep Wizardry far and above the others in the series.
Good grief. I’ve just written down a huge list of books I now must look into. Many of the books above are ones I’d have suggested and I’m quite sure you guys have enough to go on by now but this is fun so i’m going to add this one book that I think is worth mention:
Teresa Edgerton’s Goblin Moon is something I personally call ‘urban high fantasy comedy of manners’. If you understood that you should definitely read it.
The Baron in the Trees by Italo Calvino
Swordspoint by Ellen Kushner
First of all, READ PRETTY MONSTERS BY KELLY LINK!!! You will love it. I promise. It is mind-blowing and unlike anything I’ve read before.
I think you would really enjoy Tomorrow When The War Began by John Marsden. It’s about a bunch of kids who go on a camping trip out in the Australian bush…and return to discover that Australia has been invaded and everyone else in their town has been captured. The major plot elements have a YA-dystopia feel, although something about it feels very different than American YA books about dystopia/war. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly what – but I’m sure you will!
And overall, it’s smart, thrilling, and addictive. (There are 6 sequels!!!)
For MG, I think you’d really love From The Mixed-Up Files Of Mrs.Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L.Konigbsurg, if you haven’t already read it. Two kids run away from home and live in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. No, seriously. It is awesome.
Another MG (on the cusp of YA): the Enola Holmes books by Nancy Springer! (I am pretty sure that The Case of the Missing Marquess is the first one). It’s about Sherlock Holmes’s little sister, Enola (not in the original text) and they are full of codes and puzzles and cleverness. First paragraph: “I would very much like to know why my mother named me Enola, which, backwards, spells ‘alone.’ Mum was, or perhaps still is, fond of ciphers, and she must have had something in mind, whether foreboding or a sort of left-handed blessing or, already, plans.”
So I was adding the ginormous list of books to my even more ginormous TBR list (why yes, it is more than 2,000 books, why do you ask?) I kept thinking of others that would be fun to look back on. Most of the ones I thought of are definitely not YA though. Here are a couple of oldies but goodies:
The Soprano Sorcerous (Spellsong cycle by Modesitt)
Spellsinger, Alan Dean Foster
Stranger at the Wedding, Barbara Hambly