Favorite Novelist?

[Sindarin]

Well? Who's you favorite writers? :read:

For me, J.R.R. Tolkien is my absolute favorite of course. :) I also read a lot of Franz Kafka, as well as Anne Rice.

[Little Devil]

J.R.R Tolkien(obviously) J.K Rowling, Philip Pullman, C.S Lewis are all me faves

[Sindarin]

J.K. Rowling's a good author also.

[Lord Raistlin]

J RR Tolkien from Lord of the Rings
Maragret Weis and Tary Hickman From Dragonlance

[Daisy Gamgee]

I can't say I have any favourite authors - I will read practically anything I can get my hands on!! Recently, the good authors I've read are Tolkien(of course!), marian Keyes, Harlan Coben, CS Lewis(The Chronicles of Narnia), Irvine Welsh, Nick Hornby and Ian McEwan. All very different books yet all excellent reads!!:thumbs:

[Ronin]

lets see, won't be too long, i promise.

Tolkien, Lewis, Michael Connely, Michael Crichton, Terry Brooks, Weis & Hickman (from Death Gate Cycle, not read Dragonlance), Morgan Llywelyn (from Lion of Ireland), Terry Goodkind, Bret Ellis (from the amazing American Psycho and Rules of Attraction), Orson Scott Card, and finally....Tolkien, because he's just that good ;)

[Catz]

Ummmm.....where to start?.......
'k....Charles de Lint, a canadian author who just writes so beautifully...hes a musician and he writes like one
Terry Pratchett.....funny, funny stuff..death joining the Klatchian Foreign Legion under the name Beau Nidle heheheh
Robert Sheckly...writer of humerous SF, not a large genre..."the Same to You Doubled" is a quintessential revenge tale ;)...and funny
CJ Cherryh....so many books...the "Chanur" series "The Bloody Sun" trilogy, "The Chronicles of Morgaine"
Sheri Tepper....wonderful fantasy, from "Jinnian Footseer" to "Family Tree".....meaty stuff
Tanith Lee.....again fantasy, with a dark edge "When the Lights go Out" is a lovely example of her work
Alan Garner..a childrens/young adults writer from the 70s heheh showing my age, who really started me on fantasy..."The Owl Service", The Weirdstone Of Brisigamen"....fabulous books
Susan Cooper....author of "The Dark is Rising" series, again young adults books but wonderful for anyone...
Tolkien of course......and many many more........
:catz:

[Ronin]

discovered Pratchett just recently and fell in love with his quirky (hate that word actually) sense of humor....tho have yet to get fully into Disc World, soon enough.

author i forgot, Frank Herbert...i cannot say enough about the worlds and characters that man created. if there ever was a genius to effectively tie in social and political commentary with some of the most indepth science fiction imagining....he would be it.

[Catz]

mmmm just thought of a couple more....Herbert would be one...."Dune" is still one of greatest SF novels of all time
Tad Williams...."Memory, Sorrow and Thorn" and the "Otherwold" trilogy...good books...
Guy Gavriel Kay....semi historical fantasy often with a strong Cleltic componant...."The Fionavarr Tapestry" is a good trilogy
and there are more....so many wonderful authors....tis greatlol :thumbs:
:catz:

[Lady Arien]

So, no one else will admit to reading trashy novels, eh? I must admit that one of my all-time favorites is Judith Krantz, with Jackie Collins a close second.....then there's anything and everything by Grisham, Sidney Sheldon and Irwin Shaw......to indulge my dark side, I enjoy Anne Rice and Clive Barker, but I think I've mentioned them somewhere else in this forum...oh well....these are just a few that spring to mind, aside from Tolkien and Rowling, there are countless others on my bookshelves that I've read and re-read.....

[Ronin]

well, i knew someone had to bring us down to the dreggs of fiction.... lol ;)
altho it seems i've only been reading regular sci-fi, fantasy and classic lit recently...i'll make no bones about my love for good trash fiction. of the few u mentioned Clive Barker is right fantastic and Grisham was always a great standby for a rainy afternoon. that was until The Partner, whose ending Grisham totally shocked me with...the one and only book that has ever taken me by surprise...and i haven't picked up a Grisham novel since, go figure.

and someday, somewhere i do plan to try Rowling. maybe ;)

books, movies and music...one could get lost...and hooray for it :grin:

[Catz]

i beg to differ about classing Clive Barker as trash:o lol hes written some wonderful stuff......
another one that i doubt anyone has heard of is Algernon Blackwood....he wrote ...ghost stories i guess youd call them......very chilling, very evocotive....rather addictive
realised i hadnt put in dear old Will Shakespeare....a playwright i know.....but a story teller nonetheless
:catz:

Edit: ahhhh!!!! :o i cant believe i havent mentioned Roald Dahl!!!....wonderfully funny and subversive stories...."The BFG"... "The Witches"...."James and the Giant Peach"...fabulous....heres a guy who hasnt forgotten that childhoood may be magical, but its also scary.....love it:thumbs: :cool:

[Daisy Gamgee]

Originally posted by Ronin
[books, movies and music...one could get lost...and hooray for it :grin: [/B]

yep, big hooray- where would life be without a wonderful book to immerse yourself in and lose yourself for a few hours!!:read: :thumbs:

[Ronin]

glad u agree Daisy!! :grin:

well...Shakespeare may be a playwright, but he ain't no plotter. he is a master of the English language...never has a man had such command over words (besides myself! lol )

and u didn't mention Roald Dahl??? i didn't mention Roald!!! :elfeek: the man's imagination is incredible...bloody fantastic!! every single book...even his biography....right on!! :grin:

[Catz]

*hands over a trout*
ok mutual trouting :trout: :trout: lol lol

MZB is another of my favourite authors....shes best known for the Mists of Avalon, but i much prefer her "Darkover" series....more SF biased, and an excellent antrhoplogical study of humans in another environment...
:catz:

[Daisy Gamgee]

*blonde moment coming up*

Catz, whose MZB??

[Catz]

oops sorry....my bad:blush: thought id put in her full name...its Marion Zimmer Bradley Daisy.......maybe i trouted myself once to often.......;) lol roflmao lol
:catz:

[Ronin]

hmmmm...another MZB fan. I've only been exposed to her "Mists of Avalon" so i'm sure i'm not getting the full scope of her work...but that'll hopefully change. however, Avalon itself...i've had very conflicting feellings about it ever since i finished reading the thing. i was thoroughly interested in the premise of the novel, not only trying to show the women's perspective of the Arthurian legend but also that of the old religions. however, it felt like MZB was altogether too wrapped up in imparting a "feminist" medieval tale...so much so that she ignored by the reality of the time period and the depth of the legend itself. still very conflicting thoughts about whether or not its premise was a success or ultimately got tangled up in its own intricate web.

[Catz]

youre most definitely not......"Mists of Avalon" is not my favourite work of hers at all...its ok, just not her best work.....i would recomend the Darkover books, less romance (as in period) style, more SF in tone
very few Arthurian re writes appeal to me, prob because there are one or two real standouts, and the rest seem superfluous to me.
:catz:

[Ronin]

very cool, i'll try the Darkover books...always like to give an author a chance to redeem themselves ;) and quite, there truly are just a few Arthurian legends which expound much with true originality...unfortunately something which MZB couldn't accomplish.

[Catz]

yeah well....she was trying to tell the tale from another perspective...but i do agree that she didnt find much new in it...i think thats why it was a disappointment to me...for a good retelling of the Authurian Myth thats believeable as well as original, Mary Stewarts "The Crystal Cave" is a beauty...and well worth a read for anyone into the Authurian mythos......its both gritty and magical....no mean feat...and about as far from Mallory as youre likely to get lol
as to Darkover...theyre classics of the genre, and all quite short books so an easy read...but very much SF biased....which to my mind is a good thing ;)
:catz:

[Lady Arien]

Dregs of fiction indeed.....not quite sure how to take that....one person's Dr. Suess may be another man's Shakespeare (and I find BOTH of them endearing, depending on my frame of mind). Guess I'm also another one of the MZB fans that you seem to so abhor....I loved Mists because of its view of the world through the eyes of a priestess of the olde religion, not because I'm particularly fascinated by the Arthurian legend....sometimes a different perspective can be refreshing, entertaining and even educating....provided one has an open mind.....I guess that's why I read so many different things......I had forgotten about Mr. Dahl too, Catz.....my mother bought me "James and the Giant Peach" for Xmas when I was about 8 or 9, and it was the first book I read to my son......and on a completely different tack....Pat Conroy.....from "The Lords of Discipline" to "Beach Music"...he has yet to write a book that I haven't adored.....

[Ronin]

ah, good Lady...nice to hear ur opinion...skewed as it might be tho ;)
Dregs of fiction...well, ok...perhaps an overstatement on my part. as well as that abhorence lil' ditty. maybe :grin: i am, thoroughly interested in the Aurthurian legend - curious as to the mix of fact and legend. i was actually thoroughly stoked to learn about MZB's Mists from an old English teacher of mine...we were reading "The Crystal Cave" in class (which really is beautiful) and she recommended Mists to me. the perspective of MZB's Mists was very intriguing...and actually...worked very well for the most part...an indeed refreshing and at times educating look at a typically male fantasy from the eyes of a priestess (love the spelling of olde). believe me...lol...oopen enough mind, yet i guess too much of an expecation concerning the actual prowess in regards to the literature of the book. great perspective...nice flowing style...interesting coupling of truth and fiction..yet ultimately a failure in tying everything together, which was very disappointing. to my mind, Mists ultimately caved in on itself...tumbling under the pressure of MZB's own pressure to inflict a highly feminist work...trying to make something work that really didn't.

:grins: love Roald Dahl...first read, what was it...ah yes....The Fantastic Mr. Fox and then The Witches...when i was about 7 or so, fell in absolute love with them...Dahl is an absolute wonder...James, Matilda, Danny, BFG, Charlie, and even his own biography...wonderfully magical :gofatty:

[Catz]

you got to read "The Crystal Cave" in class???
where do you people find these english teachers? and why did i never have them??? :rolleyes: lol roflmao lol
yes its a beautiful book....made me look at the character of Merlin in a whole new light.
and for me thats where Mists fell down.....its well written, but it didnt give me any new insights to the characters....as i say tho, i like MZBs other works
LOVE the BFG!!! lol
:catz:

[Ilmarë]

mecry I didn't have English teachers that cool either. ... and yes... Matilda, James and the GP and Charlie... just fantastic books.... wonderfully written.

[Ronin]

i am cool just as is my teach was cool lol :grin:

and BFG...seen the movie?

[Catz]

of course....many times.....lol we got it for the kids.....i dont think they ever got to see it....the adults kept pinching it!! lol
its wonderful if you have such a great teacher.....it can influence the rest of your life in such a positive fashion....
:catz:

[Ilmarë]

Originally posted by Ronin
i am cool just as is my teach was cool lol :grin:

and BFG...seen the movie?

lol ..*tries to negotiate her way around the planet that is his head*.... lol

Nope.. unfortunately haven't seen BFG the movie.... absolutely LOVE watching Charlie tho... Christmas just isn't Christmas without watching that.... and I loved Matilda too.

I agree tho... a good enthusiastic teacher with a love of their subject can make a huge impact on a life.

[Ronin]

ach, Ilm...must see the BFG, classic movie and honestly one of my favorite cartoon movies ever. hmmm...another addition to my 100 list ;) Matilda was an ok movie...but Danny was just brilliant, lovely stuff.

yeah...loved most of my teachers...really classy folk...still talk with most of'em...kind of friends u'd like to make, ya know?

[Catz]

thats great that you still talk to a lot of your teachers.....hehe i still do with one or two of mine that i see for other reasons.....hehehe tho we studiously ignore my schol days lol lol
i think i was a bit much of a challenge for my teachers....you must remember this was before there were programs in place to deal with advanced students....i spent most of my time bored out of my tree and being a somewhat disruptive influence heheheh....i actually feel quite sorry for most of them, now lol
but i did have one or two good ones i will admit....including one english teacher in high school who basically let me set my own study course that year, in spite of the moaning from the rest of the class ;)....he was pretty cool:cool:
hehehe i think i actually read MZB at school that year lol lol
:catz:

[Ilmarë]

Funnily enough Ro.. .tried to find a copy of BFG on video tonight... but no luck mecry ... I'll keep trying tho...:grin:

lol lord.. if you keep adding to it... it'll be a 200 list... :elfeek: lol ...but if you've got any more recommendations...pass 'em on, ok?

lol .. yeah, advanced students can be a prize pain in the...*ahem* ... to some teachers... have had a few with major attitude problems... and they DO seriously disrupt the work of others in the class... which isn't fair on those who are less able than they..... BUT have a small group of very able seniors just now and they are the highlight of my week... just such a pleasure to teach because they're so focussed and interested.... working at their own pace... with peers. Its a shame that that kind of programme isn't in place as "norm" in this countrymecry ... wish it was... for the sake of those advanced students.

[Catz]

well its better now than it was....there was a time when a student who could do all the work that was on offer was simply expected to sit around quietly and wait......hehehe i remember one particularly bad year when i did the entire reading curriculum twice...and got half way thru the next years......just for something to do!!
its hardly surprising that these kids become bored and de motivated....but as i say, better now than it was, tho the change is by no means universal....hehehe and now i think wed better get back onto Authors lol lol
Terry Pratchett is one of my current faves....love his version of the sandman lol....and Granny Weatherwax and Nanny Ogg are two of the greatest creations in modern comic fiction!! "Witches Abroad" is hilarious lol
:catz:

[Daisy Gamgee]

Sorry, I'm going to go off topic, but only very quickly I promise
Ilmare, what do you teach? Do you enjoy it? Would you recommend teaching? Its just that I've applied to Uni, and at the moment, its a toss up between whether I do a Bachelor of Education, or Behavioural Science? my choice goes back and forth daily!!:grin:

Anyway, Terry Pratchett - haven't read him for a while, not since my brother ran off to Reading with his collection of Discworld novels, lol , but I do enjoy them - good fun to read. I can't remember the title but I like the one where Death takes a holiday. We had a discworld game for the pc, which was pretty humourous, and had all the best characters from the books - come to think of it, i've not seen that for a while either.....my brother probably took that to Reading toolol

[Ilmarë]

Hey Daisy!!:wave:
I run a Drama Department in a secondary school, teaching students ages 11 - 18. Yeah, i enjoy it a lot... not the lousy paper work that goes with the job... but the teaching.. is brilliant. To be able to make a difference in so many lives... is something i'm thankful to be able to do. I really love the interaction with my students... ok, maybe not all of them... but the vast majority. Its a really rewarding profession... if not the best paid... but that's not what i'm in it for.:thumbs: :cool:
Have you ever done any voluntary/work experience in a school? If you want to chat about it... PM me ok?:grin:

[Ronin]

so few posts, ech...Terry Pratchett! have to admit, first read him on a whim...checked out Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents over the summer, funniest thing i've read in quite a while. just fit my mood for something entirely farsical and witty and plain silly. lovely :thumbs:

[Ilmarë]

Apart from JRR.. Anne Rice is my favourite novelist. The Vampire Chronicles are excellent... very descriptive.. outstanding characters. If you've been unfortunate enought to see Queen of the Damned on film... don't judge the Chronicles on that...they're way better:thumbs:

[Ronin]

Can't honestly say that i'm much into Rice, tho i've caught a few glimpses of some of her work..just no real impetus to sit down with a few of her books. thankfully have not seen QotD..yet loved Interview with a Vampire...loved it! :thumbs:

[Lady Arien]

You should try the Mayfair Witches series....The Witching Hour, Lasher and Taltos....excellent books, and quite different from the Interview series....she left the last one open to continue, and I hope she does.....

[Ilmarë]

Yup... the Mayfair books are excellent also... Lasher was probably my favourite of them.

[Ronin]

ah, fantastic...thanks to both...lovely to hear of more books for me to read :grind:

[Ilmarë]

:cool: Just started reading "Blackwood farm".. the latest of the vampire chronicles today... looks very promising. Have u never read "Interview", Ro?

[Lintefaniel]

Last I heard from Anne Rice was that Taltos was the last of the Mayfair Trilogy, sadness and sorrow she says the same for the Mummy book. But you're right, some of her best aside from the Chronicles......John Irving, anyone read beyond Cidar House Rules? He has a bit of an odd outtake on life and family but he writes beautifully. One of my favorites inspite of some of the topics is the Hotel New Hampshire. Also A Widow for One Year, and A Prayer for Owen Meany, it's the book Simon Borch is based upon.....Irving is a favorite of mine....Stephen King (unless they involve carspfbbt ), Tolkien and Laura Ingalls Wilder!!!

[Ronin]

No, never had Ilm...really always wanted to, never the chance tho :grin:

Cider House Rules is an amazing film and book...really love :thumbs:

lol...u mean u don't like Stephen King's From a Buick 8...shocking!! ;) :rolleyes:

[Ilmarë]

Aww.. you really should, hon... i think you would like it. Very nice descriptions of New Orelans etc.:grin:

Lin... i love John Irving... absolutely loved CHR, HNH, and Owen... also loved the film adaptation of it.

[Ronin]

yeah, i should....too many books to read! :grin:

[Scarlett Angel]

I will read anything I can get my hands on...but my favorites are Thomas Kellerman(mystery), Poe(I love his poetry), Shakespeare(I'm a hopeless romantic what can I say), Poppie Z. Brite(she tends to write things that disturb me, but she is a wonderful author with a vivid imagination) and recently Tolkien( a new fan), James Patterson, John Saul, C.S Lewis(talk about a wonderful fantasy land) and E.B White(Charlotte's Web is still my all time favorite...blame it on reading the book a hundred times as a child)and almost anything else....



--All that we see or seem is but a dream within a dream--Poe

[Lintefaniel]

John Saul! I simply love his books...As for Stephen King's novels involving cars, I think they are silly and insulting to my brain...but that is my opinion..so no worries....I adore Shakespeare and just about any new author who strikes my fancy....Who is Poppie Z. Brite?

[Scarlett Angel]

Poppie Z. Brite is a young novelist out of New Orleans. Her books tend to be a little of the demented side, but her style of writing is wonderful. I would suggest Lost Souls? or Drawing Blood they are her best books. Happy reading

[bibi]

Steve Alten - because that guy is a wizard. He writes a book and it becomes like a blockbuster movie.
It's simple fun to read his books.

bibi

[Lintefaniel]

Please forgive me but who is Steve Alten...? I will look him up online if you don't wanna share! ;) ;) lol

[Ronin]

Love Stephen King for what he is...a great tale teller.

and Shakespeare...his plots are nothing...but his language...always shall take my breath away :grin:

[Catz]

yeah King is a great story teller.......the trouble is, he does not believe in using one word where 10 would do......i must admit i often get tired of wading thru all the extraneous prose to get to the story....the man writes like hes paid by the word lol....i do like some of his books, but ive never yet read one that couldnt have stood some pretty drastic pruning
ive never been able to get into Anne Rice, im afraid........her prose is too purple and her vamps a bit too lace and ruffles for me...i like a little more bite in my vamps....and please dont lynch me but i dont like Lestat as a character that much.......and in the movie i just wanted someone.........ANYone to shut Louis UP!!!! tho i think Pitt did the best he could, his lines were so ........whiney.........Kirsten Dunst was excellent tho.
Tad Williams is a good writer.........his two last fantasy/SF series were good reads....."Otherworld" in particular showed great characterisation.
Another excellent writer is Sheri Tepper....."Gibbons Decline and Fall" is one of hers.........not perhaps one of her best, but still thought provoking if a little heavy handed on the feminist angle
:catz:

[Ilmarë]

You should try Poppy Z. Brite, Linte. She's a bit less lace and ruffles and a bit more out there. I don't know what you'd make of her.... considering you appreciate Anne Rice and her descriptive writing. Oh and Ronin... did you get that copy of Interview yet?
Shakespeare... *sighs*... wonderful

[Ronin]

lol...hmmmm, King can get a little extraneous at times...but then again...so does Dickens...and i must say, would be much stick around for some blood letting than for some whining about the future of modern society ;) lol

[Catz]

well definitely read "interview" then......youll get whining AND bloodletting at once ;) lol .......joking you lot, just joking........
trouble is King takes sooooooo long to get around to it lol...and ive never been THAT keen on Dickens......Wells is more fun......still love "Journey to the centre of the earth"
i still think the best vampire novel of them all is "I vampire".....maybe not so original now, but when it came out it was startlingly original
Poppy Z Brite is worth a look.....on her form she can be stunning...tho at times she veers perilously close to self parody....id compare her more to Storm Constantine, stylistically
:catz:

[Lintefaniel]

Oh thanks a whole heaps for the recommendations. I will definatly look into Poppie's books. Her name alone makes me curious enough! As for Louis, I agree with you all. My philosophy is deal with what life (or unlife ;) ) has dealt you and if you can't then shut up!! He obviously would rather whine and feel sorry for himself then to just deal!!! But I have to admit, Brad Pitt is hot inspite of his Louis......My favorite King book is IT, though I'll probably be shot for that. I have to say Shakespeare is stunning and I am stymied with each play I am introduced to. My first was Romeo and Juliet in 7th grade. However, I must say I absolutely adore A Winter's Tale. That one as well as Much Ado, Midsummer's Night Dream and of course.... whispers Macbeth .....are high on my list of fav's of his....Anyone else in love with John Irving? He's wonderful, but not a Vamp guy.....well that's another thread I'm sure.....;)

[Ilmarë]

Originally posted by Ronin
would be much stick around for some blood letting than for some whining about the future of modern society ;) lol

Ok... now u have it... i want a book report on "Interview" by next Friday.... ;) lol lol :p

[Rumil]

Many favourites - Austen, Robertson Davies, Vikram Seth, Kazuo Ishiguro, Annie Proux. Reading above i agree with evryone about Mary Stewart and The Crystal Cave trilogy - i think my favourite was The Last Enchantment. As a re-tell of Arthur I also enjoyed the Bernard Cornwell 'Winter King' trilogy and Marion Bradley's Mists of Avalon. Also thoughI cant remember who wrote it another enjoyable take on the Arturian legends was called The Three Damosels and focused almost entirely on the Arturian world from a female perspective. V interesting.

[Ronin]

i was very intrigued by the perspective taken by Bradley (also feminine perspective), but felt the author fell in love with her own voice at the end of the novel...much to the disservice of a seemingly worthwhile retelling of the Aurthurian legend.

Vera Chapman wrote the Three Damosels

[Rumil]

Ah .. Vera Chapman.. thanks Ronin :)

[Ronin]

Well, i do try ;)