[Lews Therin]

I hope this is suppose to be in this forum, not quite sure:) Anyway:
You all probably know the magic feeling after your first fantasy books. For me it was while I was reading Lord of the Rings and the first Wheel of time Books. Its the feeling that makes you question reality, that makes you say "WHOA" and sit down to read again, unable to escape the fantasy world. I know it sounds wierd but at least some of you know what I'm talking about.
So have you experienced it?
How come to more you read, the harder it gets to feel the magic that came with your first fantasy books?
With which books?
I have more ideas for discussions but first lets see if I'm crazy or not ;)

[saintjon]

well from time to time you come across something that blows your doors off all over again, I promise! just give it time.

[Bardos]

I hope this is suppose to be in this forum, not quite sure:) Anyway:
You all probably know the magic feeling after your first fantasy books. For me it was while I was reading Lord of the Rings and the first Wheel of time Books. Its the feeling that makes you question reality, that makes you say "WHOA" and sit down to read again, unable to escape the fantasy world. I know it sounds wierd but at least some of you know what I'm talking about.
So have you experienced it?
How come to more you read, the harder it gets to feel the magic that came with your first fantasy books?
With which books?
I have more ideas for discussions but first lets see if I'm crazy or not ;)

I know what you're talking about, mate. Well, I don't think that you can actually find that first-timer magic again, but you certainly can find some mind-blowing fantasy books out there. It's just that, after a time of reading, you keep asking for other, more complicated things. I mean, even the stories that wowed you as a first-timer won't do that now, if you read them again.

[allanon]

Lews, first-time magic is unique. I'll always remember the strong feelings I felt while reading "The Hobbit", "The Lord of the Rings" and my first "Shannara"-novels.
It was a delicious feeling. From times to times, I have glimpses of it, while reading other books. But never so strong...

[Glelas]

I know exactly what you mean. The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings did it for me when I was in 4th grade and 9th grade, respectively. Since then the first couple of Wheel of Time books got me juiced, Hobb somewhat and over the last few years just Martin's books and maybe a few Orson Scott Card books (although not really fantasy).
But lately! jeez, just in the last week I started Mad Ship by Hobb - tossed it. Ash - read about 100 pages and stopped. Lord Foul's Bane - read 25 pages and put it down. Winter's Heart - couldn't get through the first 5 pages. Legend by Gemmell - battled through 19 pages and no more.
Now I know these are feeble attempts but I just can't seem to click with a book. I am sure I will love each of those books at another time, but right now, it is torture.
This ever happen to anyone in here?
Is there a suggestion or a specific book to get me out of this rut?
I even tried re-reading old favorites but felt like it was a waste and I cold be reading something I haven't read.
HELP! I NEED that SPARK

[Blackwing]

Yes, I've felt that, too. For me it came from the books when I had the (magical, if you will) revelation that things could be different from what I saw everyday. The very first feeling for me came not from fantasy but from books about different cultures. People actually live and think in very different ways than what is in Western culture!

Of course, I had similar revelation later, with fantasy books. E. R. Burroughs' Mars books gave me definately Wow moments. They had guns and airtravel and they still use swords. How cool is that!

Unforunately, for me at least, it doesn't last. I've come so familiar with fantasy that they really has to something which I haven heard or read before. The last time I had it was some years back when I read Zelazny's Amber books and it didn't come at the first pages, it came later when I was introduced to the whole idea of Amber. I haven't heard any of if beforehand so it was a real surprise.

These days I mostly get wow feeling not from "just" the fantasy world but from characters or new social conventions or stuff like that. And it doesn't come quickly.

[Phedre]

The Magic of Fantasy for me is:

Ooooooooooh, so that's what the world is supposed to be like!!!


(yeah, I'm stubbornly living in my head, refusing to take a look at the real world, I like it better like this)

[Eldanuumea]

Glelas, may I suggest the Majipoor series by Robert Silverberg? The first one is about a juggler who has a secret identity unknown even to himself. Gonna try to find the book's name for you....hang on......

**runs to Google**

Got this from a site on Google......

"In his Lord Valentine’s Castle, (New York: Bantam Books, 1981) Robert Silverberg, (a five-time Nebula award winner, but not for this book) has created a fascinating world. Silverberg has written about that world again, in Majipoor Chronicles, (New York: Bantam, 1989) in Valentine Pontifex (New York: Bantam, 1989), in Sorcerers of Majipoor, (New York: HarperPrism, 1996) in Lord Prestimion(New York: HarperCollins, 1999), in The King of Dreams (New York: HarperCollins, 2001, excerpt available), in "The Seventh Seal," (in Legends: Short Novels by the Masters of Modern Fantasy, edited by Silverberg--New York: Tor, 1998) and in, apparently, at least one other work, which I hope to consider as I add to this web page."

I've read the first three and loved them.......found the world he created and the many different races and cultures fascinatingly rich.

[Sir Stephen]

For me it was LOTR, damn that book effected me. I dont think I'd be reading fantasy now if it wasn't for that.


Also I think it sometimes has something to do with age and wether or not you've encountered a certain type of story befor. I think the more you read into a certain vain (eg, high fantasy) the more desensisized you become to it until it has little effect on you. I try to vary what I read within the genre and generaly look for originality before anything else, that way things stay fresh.

[Glelas]

Glelas, may I suggest the Majipoor series by Robert Silverberg? The first one is about a juggler who has a secret identity unknown even to himself.


Great, I will check the bookstores in my neighborhood tomorrow. Thanks so much Elda! ;)

Tonight I will read some non-fiction to change things up.