Alchemist
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- Joined
- Sep 26, 2007
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You know those books that you read when you were young and were amazing then, but upon revisiting them later you found them less than High Literature and Cutting Edge Fantasy? (insert "tm" if necessary). But you still find yourself returning them for an occasional re-read once every few years? I'm talking about those. Books you realize aren't the greatest literature, or even fit your current tastes, but you find yourself returning to and enjoying. I'm not talking about books that sustained their "literary merit" throughout the years, but those you realized weren't quite up to the par of your more developed palate, whether in terms of literary chops or imaginative escapades.
The first that come to mind is The Belgariad. I absolutely loved this series when I first read it, around the tender age of 12--sometimes called "the golden age of scifi." If I remember correctly, upon finishing the series, I picked it up and re-read it again. And then a few years later, and then again sometime in my 20s, and then I started re-reading it in my mid-30s, about six or seven years ago and have considered re-reading it soon. I just feel good when reading them - fun, enjoyable characters. A decent, if predictable, storyline. An evocative, if not crazily imaginative, world.
It is like seeing an old movie from my childhood, like Sixteen Candles or Pump Up The Volume. I no longer relate with the teen angst, but I enjoy visiting an old friend (and the message of PutV is still very relevant, but that's an aside). Or maybe a rom-com like When Harry Met Sally or Notting Hill or You've Got Mail, that you--or at least I--like to re-watch to feel warm and bubbly.
Another that comes to mind is Dragonlance - at least the original Chronicles and, to a lesser degree, Legends. I read them around the same time as the Belgariad, maybe a bit before, and almost equally loved them. I re-read it maybe about 10 years ago and found the prose, at least at the beginning, to be rather poor, but its a great story - even today - with some really human moments (who didn't cry at the Raistlin-Caramon "bunnies" story?).
What about you?
The first that come to mind is The Belgariad. I absolutely loved this series when I first read it, around the tender age of 12--sometimes called "the golden age of scifi." If I remember correctly, upon finishing the series, I picked it up and re-read it again. And then a few years later, and then again sometime in my 20s, and then I started re-reading it in my mid-30s, about six or seven years ago and have considered re-reading it soon. I just feel good when reading them - fun, enjoyable characters. A decent, if predictable, storyline. An evocative, if not crazily imaginative, world.
It is like seeing an old movie from my childhood, like Sixteen Candles or Pump Up The Volume. I no longer relate with the teen angst, but I enjoy visiting an old friend (and the message of PutV is still very relevant, but that's an aside). Or maybe a rom-com like When Harry Met Sally or Notting Hill or You've Got Mail, that you--or at least I--like to re-watch to feel warm and bubbly.
Another that comes to mind is Dragonlance - at least the original Chronicles and, to a lesser degree, Legends. I read them around the same time as the Belgariad, maybe a bit before, and almost equally loved them. I re-read it maybe about 10 years ago and found the prose, at least at the beginning, to be rather poor, but its a great story - even today - with some really human moments (who didn't cry at the Raistlin-Caramon "bunnies" story?).
What about you?
