On Mon, Nov 25, 2002 at 10:16:15AM -0500, Peter H. Granzeau wrote: > At 18:09 11/24/2002 -0500, Thomas Yan wrote: > >"H. T." <electrictwilight at hotmail.com> writes: > > > > > Since it appears the majority of everyone that had typed in the > > > discussion of "fantasy" had began reading fantasy when they were still > > > young I thought I might ask what is appropriate for a young fantasy > > > reader? > > > > > > I have an 11-year old step-brother who very much enjoys fantasy, and > > > he has asked me what else there is in this genera to read. > >-snip- > > > >Pamela Dean's Secret Country trilogy; it is currently out of print, > >but will be reprinted in late 2003 by Firebird Books. > > While written about children, I think Dean's books are aimed at an adult, > and very literate, readership. I'm a grandfather, and _I_ have trouble > reading her novels, because of my lack of background in literature (only > one college course in Modern Literature). They're aimed at people who don't mind having a lot of stuff go over their heads, or who actively enjoy the sensation. That probably applies to more 11-year-olds than adults, but, as indeed with most of these suggestions, it'll depend on the 11-year-old. > I would think that many of the other novels being suggested are a bit > beyond the typical 11 year old. A look at the "Young Adult" genre might > find a few gems, however. The YA fantasy field has grown enormously in recent years. I think a couple of the URL's suggested earlier in the discussion address this supply of stuff. I'm so far behind on it I can't suggest much. A lot of the YA I read is not fantasy, anyway. > How about Jane Yolen's two "Jenna" books, _Sister Light, Sister Dark_ and > _White Jenna_? Yolen also edited a series of YA novels, which might turn > up some good books for kids, as well as authored many more herself. That's where the Enchanted Forest Books were first published. And Kara Dalkey's THE LITTLE SISTER is another real goody from that line. Whimsical Japanese-based reverse-quest fantasy, with a bittersweet core. > Diane Duane has also written a series of novels aimed at the YA > reader. The "Wizards" series starts with _So You Want to be a Wizard_, I > believe. Yep, and it's brilliant. > My own grandson, at 11, was still reading "Animorph" books, by the way. When I was 11 I was reading Dickens, but I was also still reading picture books. In some ways it's a fairly expansive age. -- Pamela Dean Dyer-Bennet (pddb at demesne.com) "I will open my heart to a blank page and interview the witnesses." John M. Ford, "Shared World"