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.

Loving the recommendations, will have to check some of them out!

Jenny Nimmo's later series, the Children of the Red King books, are very enjoyable though they're not quite as evocative as the Snow Spider

I loved all of these - Naomi Novak and Katherine Arden both. Haven't heard of the last one so will be ordering that asap!

Also check out Garth Nix. He’s written loads, but the Sabriel sequence is his best I think. Really good world building . There’s a particularly well -realised demon in the form of a cat, called Mogget.

A great thread that I’ve only just found. You are all my kind of people!
I love all the above authors, Diana Wynne Jones is my favourite, I think, especially the Dalemark books, but I had a special love for Ursula Le Guin’s Tombs of Atuan. I made DH listen to Weirdstone on Audible and we made a special trip to Alderley Edge last month so we could see the landmarks - I’m another one who’s convinced my claustrophobia is caused by Colin and Susan’s escape through the tunnels. I was always gutted that I wasn’t an Old One, and I come across the odd student called Garion so the Belgariad lives on.
Robert Westall’s short stories are really good, as are Joan Aiken’s if you are trying to get more reluctant readers into fantasy. Patricia McKillip wrote lots of great stuff, Robin McKinley’s Beauty had me spellbound at 14, PC Hodgell’s God Stalk is good although she gets bogged down later in the series. I also still love Sheri S Tepper’s The Revenants. In more modern authors I’d also recommend Katherine Arden’s Winternight trilogy, Katherine Addison’s The Goblin Emperor, Frances Hardinge, Naomi Novik and SJ Kincaid.

Yes to Sabriel and the two books following it, Lirael and Abhorsen. Mogget is great.

I’ve just been trying to remember which book recently had a character which reminded me a bit of Mogget. It’s Sorcery of Thorns, in which there is a demon who is sometimes a cat

Those asking for 'adult' fantasy recommendations can I give a shout to Simon R Green. He's a British author who has written loads, but for some reason isn't published in the UK, or sold in WH Smith/Waterstones. You need to try Amazon or Abebooks.

I'd really recommend any of the 'Nightside' books - set in an alternative London where it's always 3am and frightening. Also the Secret Histories which are a magical type of James Bond - but my favourites were probably the stand alone books Shadows Fall and Drinking Midnight Wine.

Simon R Green

Thank you @pollyhemlock and @PurpleParrotfish - I’ve downloaded an excerpt of Sabriel - it looks fascinating.

@NowtSalamander second the warning re David Eddings, spoilt re-reading for me.
Loved Diane Wynne Jones, Susan Cooper and Robin McKinley - The Wizards Guide to Defensive Bakery by T Kingfisher is one I read recently and enjoyed.

I need to come back and read the whole thread later, but I've definitely found my people here.

Currently reading the first Earthsea book to my 7yr old. My own favourite of those is Tehanu but it will be quite a while before he's ready for that!

Re-read all the Chrestomanci books recently and am really looking forward to the new radio adaptation of The Dark is Rising.

There's a serialisation of The Dark is Rising on BBC Sounds at the moment. I've been listening this afternoon while peeling the veg mountain for tomorrow.

Glad T Kingfisher has a mention!

@astronewt said:
"I'm ashamed to admit I didn't really "get" Tehanu when I first read it because it was so different from the first three Ged-centric books, but then I came to love that ULG had shifted perspective to an "ordinary" middle aged woman and taken the time to write from a more feminist perspective."

Oh, I was the same! It seemed a bit naff to go back and rethink it and I couldn't quite process it. Now I've read it more times I think it's wonderful, if horribly dark - the men outside the house at night are horrible. So brave of Le Guin to do it, too. And I love what she does with the afterlife in the later sequel. So clever to unpick your own universe-building like that.

I want to love her adult fiction too, but it seems so dense and wordy compared with Earthsea.

I love Hexwood and have read it at least a dozen times - I always get to the end and think I should draw a table if all the characters. It's SO complicated, but the thing about Jones is she makes it fun, and also I completely trust that she knows what's happening even if I don't. (There's a sci-fi writer called Christopher Priest who often over complicates plots, and I reckon he gets in a muddle.)

But good grief, it's dark, isn't it? The bit where the children are being trained is just gut-wrenching.

Chuffed to bits to meet other DWJ fans! I haven't quite anything as I can't bear to think there's no more - I think I've still got Enchanted Glass and Chaldea to read.

Fire and Hemlock is in my all-time top ten books.

I asked for Uprooted and Spinning Silver for Christmas as they had nene recommended. Despite whole cooking/childcare/socialising aspects of day I am half way through Uprooted and really enjoying it. Thank you.

Fire and Hemlock is one of my top ten favourite reads of all time as well. As you can see from my user name.

I loved DWJ Power of Three as a child, and reread it many times. I didn't realise she had written anything else, then discovered Chrestomanci as an adult and had a one of the biggest crushes ever 😂

The snark, the dressing gown, the sheer competence and save-the-day sigh

Late to this thread, but you are my tribe! When I was learning to read my parents put a copy of The Little White Horse by my bed. It was the original hardback copy with wonderful colour illustrations, and had been given to my mother as a Sunday school prize in the late 1940s. They didn’t read it to me, just said ‘ This is for when you can read yourself’. I used to look at the pictures and be half fascinated and half scared, especially by the line drawing of Digby swinging on the bell rope that opens the tunnel to Moonacre Manor. When I was about 7 I read it myself and was completely spellbound- it was definitely my gateway into fantasy fiction.
Have loved many of the books listed here, but would add Philip Reeves’ Mortal Engines trilogy and the prequels - wonderful. Shrike is one of the greatest creations ever.

Oh, this thread is like a late Christmas present!

Like many pp I love Alan Garner, DWJ, Robert Westall and the Taran Chronicles. I bought them for my children to read, but they're not interested, still at least i can reread them. A favourite from my childhood is The King of the Copper Mountain, linked stories and slightly mournful. I love the Last Unicorn and The Bridge of Birds by Barry Hughart which might be my favourite book ever. Grinny was very creepy, it's stayed with me though it might be over 30 years since I read it. Also the Mouse and His Child, a wistful tail.

Of more recent authors, another shoutout for Francis Hardinge, Garth Nix and Catherine Fisher. I also like Adrian Tchaikovsky, who does fantasy and SF, and seems to have books out every 5 minutes, I don't know how he keeps the quality up. I think he's mostly okay for older children.

Totally get the Chrestomanci thing…

Witch Week is a wonderful book but my favourite DWJ is the Lives of Christopher Chant.

This thread has been like carrying out one of those heritage genetic tests - I feel connected to MNetters across country by a shared reading heritage.

Over the last couple of years I have been slowly recollecting all of these books to pass on. I had forgotten Nina Bawden though, so thank you to that poster!

Also this 😆

Thinks wistfully of inscrutable expressions and the gardener's boy when the castle is under siege

@ChillinwiththeVillains great Christmas presents!

Think I've just realised who the comedian Troy Hawke puts me in mind of!

Loved so many of the booked mentioned, agree the 80s were such a great time to be a bookworm. Wish my DC were more into fantasy fiction but you can't force them...
Tempted to google the stuff about MZB but worried it will ruin the Mist of Avalon for me.
Mercedes Lackey Valdemar series very good for older teens/adults. Might dig them out for a re read...

Can anyone remember a book for me that I've searched for for years? I only read it once and would say that that was perhaps written in the 1970s. I would have been around 12 when I read it.

It is set in a village and a girl (around 11/12?) goes to stay with an aunt/great aunt in a village full of witches. Aunt is also a witch and they somehow upset the rest of the village and are under siege. I seem to remember Aunt wasn't that good a witch. There are birds watching or attacking them and it was exciting. It's definitely not the Weirdstone. This was all female as far as I can recall. Set in an English village.

Any suggestions would be most gratefully received. I remember borrowing from the library.

On another note, I was amazed as an adult to discover an odd book called the Carpet People which I vaguely remembered reading from the library at primary school was actually Terry Pratchett!

From me, to me! (See also a pylones butter dish to replace one broken by kids). Finished both and now trying to work out when I can get to library to borrow lots of these recommendations- new year’s resolution not to buy ALL the books. I have a room full of spare books to go into my Little Free Library and all our bookshelves are bursting so borrow I must.
Chrestomanci definitely a dream. But he also appeals to my youngest, though he was very impressed by Millie/living Asheth. I think DWJ so good because she mixed the heroic and the mundane without having to make it all a giggle fest. Super deft writing and brilliant characterisation I think.