Children's fantasy classics - Susan Cooper, Alan Garner, Diana Wynne Jones, Robert Westall, Ursula le Guin, and more...

[astronewt]

Inspired by the "Dark is Rising" thread.

I adored all these books as a child. My favourite book was Alan Garner's The Weirdstone of Brisingamen and I read it over and over. I still reread The Dark is Rising every midwinter.

Fyi for those who may not know; Alan Garner wrote an additional novel in the Alderley Edge sequence about an adult Colin called Boneland in 2012 and Ursula le Guin has added another two novels to the Earthsea series; there are now six.

I can't wait to start getting my 8yo DS into some of these.

My 8yo is reading the Belgariad! He really loves books about people transforming into animals. I never read it when I was young but DFIL did and recommended it.

Also OMG GRINNY. I forgot that book...until now. And now I will never sleep again...

@BustopherPonsonbyJones that’s the one!

How about Alison Uttley's A Traveller in Time? Absolutely gorgeous book and was televised years ago.

That’s the one. The Changeover by the same author is also excellent.

Re Margaret Mahy, does anyone else remember Aliens in the Family, which was televised on the BBC around the late 80s?

I love the Belgariad although I didn't discover it until I was at uni.

Yes yes to the changeover, I was absolutely obsessed with it. There's something about the juxtaposition of the utterly mundane New Zealand setting mixed in with the strangeness of the magic that really got to me. And Sorry, of course, what a dreamboat.

Oh my god yes, all of these! Currently reading Frances Hardinge's Deeplight, was obsessed at different times with The Owl Service and The Changeover, and have taken huge delight in introducing my daughter to DWJ and so many of these old friends.

Diana Wynne Jones' Fire and Hemlock is one of my absolute all time favourite books, even though I discovered it as an adult.

I've just downloaded a load of books based on this thread-very excited to get started 😊

@BustopherPonsonbyJones Apologies, I’d intended to reply to you earlier. Thank you for the recommendations for Nicholas Stuart Gray. I read Mainly in Moonlight around the same time as I read Grimbolds Other World, haven’t read the Stone Cage or the Seventh Swan - I will look out for them.

Another book which has stayed in my memory is Marianne Dreams by Catherine Storr about a girl who starts drawing a strange house and its occupant while she’s ill. I didn’t love it the way I enjoyed other novels and the plot is quite weird and creepy. This thread has brought back so many childhood memories which I’d forgotten.

I remember reading this, as a child and really enjoying it. Soon after there was a TV adaptation which I found terrifying.
I came across the book as an adult and read it again, for some reason I found it quite disturbing.
I have recognised many “old friends” on this thread.
Maybe “The Little Grey Men” and “Down the Bright Stream” by “BB”, deserve a mention too.
Someone earlier mentioned
“ Duncton Wood”, from what I remember it’s probably not suitable for a ten year old- scan through it yourself again first before passing it on to the child. The behaviour of some of those moles left a lot to be desired!😂 Unless my memory is defective.

AmadeustheAlpaca
Of course I was replying to the
“ Marianne Dreams” post and the quote went wrong!

Ah this takes me back! Absolutely loved Weirdstone. I did read The Owl Service but it didn’t stay with me in the same way. Also loved Ursula le Guin. I always thought how skilled the writers were to “get” what it was to be a child & the darker side of childhood emotions etc.

If anyone hasn't come across this museum in Oxford - www.storymuseum.org.uk/
while some of it is definitely for younger children, it has a wonderful section which relates to fiction. It was fascinating to see in their collection the plate from the dinner service which Alan Garner used as his inspiration for The Owl Service (I think the plate belonged to his in laws as part of their Sunday china).

Love the owl service…it’s the contrast of fairly gritty real life issues and the mythical fantasy. I’m old enough to just about remember the TV series. Redshift sort of blew my mind as well

Joan aitken was oneof my favourites but younger age group…wolves of willoughby chase but then the whole series from there such as black hearts at batter sea etc

Pantone read the blue sword by robin mckingley ? Surprised. That didn’t become more well known

Ooo. Ijust mentioned the blue sword…loved it…not come across anyone else that read it before…

More recently - jonathon Stroud - the bartimaeus trilogy was fantastic.

Joan Aiken - love Dido.

@RobinHobb Jonathan Stroud is excellent, and his Lockwood and Co series starting with The Screaming Staircase is even better than Bartimaeus, I think.

Another contemporary fantasy author to look out for is Catherine Fisher, whose early books were influenced by Celtic myth in a similar way to Alan Garner and Susan Cooper. Her more recent Chronoptika sequence beginning with The Obsidian Mirror is very atmospheric and compelling. It’s set in Devon and features some extremely sinister fairies.

Yes I think I preferred the screaming staircase.... but think of bartimaeus as more "fantasy". Loved a lot of the books on here, DWJ, Toms midnight garden but actually never read Dark is rising! Think I'll try it

Someone said upthread that they hadn’t found adult fantasy they enjoyed as much as the classic children’s books.
My recommendations would be Naomi Novik, (Uprooted and Spinning Silver in particular as her other books are great but not with such a fairy tale setting), Katherine Arden’s Winternight trilogy based on Russian folk tales, and Laini Taylor, Strange the Dreamer and the sequel, Muse of Nightmares, which are weirdly beautiful and intriguing.

I am a massive fan of the Changeover (Mahy). Bought all her books for DD who seems uninterested so far, I have reread and enjoyed them all again though. Diana Wynne Jones was a big hit with my kids. Currently reading the Chrestomanci books with my youngest who is really enjoying them. We all loved the Carbonel books despite being firmly dog people. I find many fewer grown up books have tht mix of mundane and magical. I actually really love the Host (by the twilight author), somewhat shamefully. And obviously Rivers of London and Jonathan Strange, Circe. I like but don’t love Pratchett. But I think that I might head off and buy some of the recommendations up thread. And pretend that they are for the kids.

Another recommendation for Catherine Fisher here

I’ve read The Blue Sword (very good) and its prequel. My copies are very battered ‘withdrawn from circulation’ library copies and I’ve never seen them anywhere else. She also wrote a good Robin Hood book. Jonathan Stroud is great and I think Netflix are doing ‘Lockwood’ as a series. For anyone who likes Lockwood, also try The Spook’s Apprentice series. More ‘ghostly/witchy’ but also a lot of mythology and very regional if you are north-west, Lancashire based. I was nearly put off by the covers as they looked very horror-sequel but I loved them. The Ranger’s Apprentice series (not the same author) was also good and more fantasy-like.

Again, thanks for all the recommendations. I will have to refer back to the thread as there are lots to read and re-read. It’s good to have some adult fantasy recommendations too.

Not to mention Ursula Le Guin's adult offerings!