Before


Having received a beautiful edition of A Wizard of Earthsea for Christmas, and reread it once more with as much delight as ever, I have decided to extend my blogging about children's fantasy from this century (Magic Fiction Since Potter. LINK BELOW) with occasional posts here about my favourites from the twentieth century.

These books will already be well known to many. But there may now be new generations less familiar with them. The fact that they are from a previous century most certainly does not mean they are no longer worth reading. They are just as accessible, relevant and enjoyable as ever. In fact they are some of the greatest children's books ever written. If my entries here encourage even a few of today's young readers to seek out these wonderful reads (or adults to point them in the right direction) then I will consider the enterprise worthwhile. Perhaps you will find a few less familiar titles too; I think they will prove well worth the effort of seeking out.

Below I have tried to list my gems from this period. My intention is to read each again myself over coming weeks and months and then to record my thoughts about each one separately. I may well remember a few more too as I go along.

Summary List


The towering greats:

Elidor, The Owl Service, Alan Garner
The Dark is Rising Sequence, Susan Cooper
The Earthsea Trilogy [post Dec '15], Tehanu, Ursuka K Le Guin (there are also other amazing follow-ups, but they came much later)
The Chronicles of Prydian, Lloyd Alexander
The Dalemark Quartet, Diane Wynn Jones
The Song of Wirrun Trilogy, Patricia Wrightson

Other wonderful, and often influential books, well worth seeking out:

The Prince in Waiting Trilogy, John Christopeher
The Whispering Knights, Penelope Lively
The Young Wizard Sequence, Diana Duane
The Changes Trilogy, Peter Dickinson
The Hero and the Crown, Robin McKinley
Red Moon and Black Mountain, Joy Chant
The Hounds of the Morrigan, Pat O'Shea
Marianne Dreams, Catherine Storr
Fintan's Tower, Catherine Fisher [post Feb '16]
The Redwall Series, Brian Jaques
Beadbonny Ash, Winifred Finlay
The Wind On Fire Trilogy, William Nicholson
Charlotte Sometimes, Penelope Farmer
The Snow Spider Trilogy, Jenny Nimmo
Boy in Darkness, Mervyn Peake
The Ghost Drum, Ghost Song, Ghost Dance, Susan Price
The Troy Game, Jean Morris

(I am sure that I will add to this list over time as I read more of the great fantasies from the second half of the twentieth century.)
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