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"This is a book I want to put under my pillow, to absorb its wisdom while I sleep."
-- Alison Habens, The London Magazine
-- Alison Habens, The London Magazine
Product Description
Some of the earliest books written - The Epic of Gilgamesh, and the Odyssey - are fantasy, dealing with monsters, marvels, extraordinary voyages and magic. Fantasy remained an essential part of European literature until the rise of the modern realist novel. But even then fantasy remained popular, in the guise of Gothic horror, the ghost story, the fairytale and stories of imaginary worlds: it was in part a reaction to the Enlightenment, to realism and to industrialisation. This book traces the history of fantasy from the earliest years through to the origins of modern fantasy in the twentieth century. From the 1950s (when Tolkien published The Lord of the Rings and Lewis published the Narnia books) the story is dealt with decade by decade. In the 1980s, fantasy earned its own section in bookshops in the English-speaking world and beyond, and by the end of the 1990s, fantasy writers such as Terry Pratchett and J.K. Rowling had become the best-selling writers in Britain, while Tolkien was a best-seller in all the major languages of the world. A Short History of Fantasy explores the great variety of fiction published under the heading 'fantasy' in the twenty-first century, and also seeks to explain its continuing and growing popularity.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I've been waiting for this book ever since I bought Brian Aldiss & David Wingrove's short history of SF, Trillion Year Spree, back in 1987, and thought, "Where's the fantasy equivalent?" At the time, there was only Michael Moorcock's Wizardry and Wild Romance, which, with its rather stern "Could do better" attitude to the genre, tended to leave me feeling rather down about fantasy literature. But here, at last, is the corrective. The only negatives I could raise about this book are contained in the second word of its title -- it's too short! Even within the space they've got, Mendlesohn & James have to hot-foot it to the 20th century (which is, of course, where some (John Clute) would argue fantasy as a genre begins, though others (Brian Stableford) disagree), thus cramming all the important fantasy from Homer to William Morris in 17 pages -- and that's a feat of magic in itself. The first half of the 20th century is then dealt with in about the same space, but from here on we gradually apply the brakes, with each decade getting a chapter to itself. There's also two chapters detailing the major influence on the genre of five authors -- Tolkien & C S Lewis in one; Pullman, Rowling & Pratchett in another.
But they missed out {insert your obscure favourite here}! Well, of course they did. It's a short history. I could have gladly read a book six times as long, though I doubt my Amazon wish list could have handled it -- it's already straining from the suggestions picked up from just a couple of chapters. Seriously, though, I don't think the authors could be accused of missing out -- even in just a passing mention, which is frequently all they can allow themselves -- any of the more popular or important works, or at least the trends, in fantasy. Certainly, the works they do suggest provide enough to go on, and you can insert your missed-out favourites in the relevant spots. Comics, role-playing games, computer games, and artists get very, very brief mentions; film & TV rather more -- but there's a list of "Important Works and People" at the back that does its best to make up for this. The authors are obviously both au fait with the F & SF fan communities, and waste no time in defining what fantasy is or isn't (of course, there's Mendlesohn's Rhetorics of Fantasy for that), they just get on with writing about it from the point of view of people who actually read and like (though not wholly uncritically) the stuff.
An excellent introduction to fantasy, and an excellent historical precis of the fantastic as a popular literary form. Now perhaps, like all good fantasies, it'll spawn a series?
But they missed out {insert your obscure favourite here}! Well, of course they did. It's a short history. I could have gladly read a book six times as long, though I doubt my Amazon wish list could have handled it -- it's already straining from the suggestions picked up from just a couple of chapters. Seriously, though, I don't think the authors could be accused of missing out -- even in just a passing mention, which is frequently all they can allow themselves -- any of the more popular or important works, or at least the trends, in fantasy. Certainly, the works they do suggest provide enough to go on, and you can insert your missed-out favourites in the relevant spots. Comics, role-playing games, computer games, and artists get very, very brief mentions; film & TV rather more -- but there's a list of "Important Works and People" at the back that does its best to make up for this. The authors are obviously both au fait with the F & SF fan communities, and waste no time in defining what fantasy is or isn't (of course, there's Mendlesohn's Rhetorics of Fantasy for that), they just get on with writing about it from the point of view of people who actually read and like (though not wholly uncritically) the stuff.
An excellent introduction to fantasy, and an excellent historical precis of the fantastic as a popular literary form. Now perhaps, like all good fantasies, it'll spawn a series?
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
At around 200 pages, this history certainly is short. There is a wide-ranging survey up to the 1900s, and separate sections devoted to Tolkein, C S Lewis, J K Rowling, Pullman and Pratchett, because of their prominence and influence. After that the book basically covers one decade per chapter, telling of the influential rising stars, trends and fresh developments in that period (mostly books, but other media too). The observations are interesting and intelligent, but readily accessible, not weighed down by academia, and the coverage is extensive. (Sometimes funny too: David Lindsay's A Voyage To Arcturus is memorably and accurately described as "a blinding headache of a book"!) The authors tease out the 'speciation' of fantasy, first in its divergence from horror and SF, and then on into different modes: immersive, intrusive and indigenous fantasy; portal worlds; quest series; pocket universes; liminal fantasy; the New Weird, etc.
Much of the material discussed was new to me, particularly from the explosion of the last two decades. Fans of fantasy would be well advised to avoid reading this whilst sitting at a computer with access to amazon... Indeed, so much has been published in recent years that the last couple of chapters are in danger of descending into frantic lists. Trilogies whoosh by in a sentence and entire `movements' come and go in a page or two. I was left mildly distressed that I could never possibly catch up with all the good stuff.
I would like to have seen more discussion of individual style: I would not learn from this book, for instance, that Donaldson's novels are laden with character psychology, or that Eddison's are written in a prose of high splendour. And of course there were a few works not covered that I felt were important (Ricardo Pinto springs to mind, and James Hilton's neglected Lost Horizon). Nevertheless, this is a lively history full of infectious enthusiasm and sensible appreciation, with an extensive appendix of major works and two indexes. A great read.
Much of the material discussed was new to me, particularly from the explosion of the last two decades. Fans of fantasy would be well advised to avoid reading this whilst sitting at a computer with access to amazon... Indeed, so much has been published in recent years that the last couple of chapters are in danger of descending into frantic lists. Trilogies whoosh by in a sentence and entire `movements' come and go in a page or two. I was left mildly distressed that I could never possibly catch up with all the good stuff.
I would like to have seen more discussion of individual style: I would not learn from this book, for instance, that Donaldson's novels are laden with character psychology, or that Eddison's are written in a prose of high splendour. And of course there were a few works not covered that I felt were important (Ricardo Pinto springs to mind, and James Hilton's neglected Lost Horizon). Nevertheless, this is a lively history full of infectious enthusiasm and sensible appreciation, with an extensive appendix of major works and two indexes. A great read.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
1 review
Excellent Intro
17 July 2011
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I'm teaching a high school fantasy literature course this fall and want to be able to offer students some historical context for our readings. A Short History of Fantasy is a perfect mix of history, authors, and texts. My students will benefit tremendously. The only down side is that I found another book I have to read on each page! If only there was more time.
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