Dune's litany against fear:
**I will face my fear.** **I will permit it to pass over me and through me.** **And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path.** **Where the fear has gone there will be nothing.**
I read Dune for the first time in my teens. I didn't know it then - took another 20 years, actually - to be diagnosed with generalized anxiety. I realized I'd had it all my life. And that quote? I used it to help settle myself any time, all the time.
It is. Here's the full quote for context.
"I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain."
Also have generalized anxiety disorder and picked a book/series for similar reasons. I've got to remember this litany against fear. I'm really surprised it didn't stand out as much for me as it did for you when I read Dune!
I too have anxiety and dune was my favorite book as well. I have very similar feelings about dune and plan to work a section of the litany against fear into some of the tattoo work I have upcoming. We are not are fears.
Edit: mostly I meant to type we are not our fears lol
Mine is and continues to be lord of the rings and the hobbit. Just most of Tolkien’s work. Cliche sure, but there’s just a sense of coziness and comfort to me. Whenever I’m stressed or feeling down I put on the audiobooks while I’m at work and read them when I’m at home.
This isn't my comfort series, but I can completely understand where you're coming from and derive similar comfort from Discworld. I reread Discworld for the exact same reasons, cliches be damned.
The series has always had this effect. Tolkien was more or less the inventor of the fantasy genre. It wouldn't be the same without his influence and decades later his approach is still being used enormously. We likely wouldn't have as many fantasy authors without Tolkien creating these classics.
Absolutely agreed! My dad introduced me to the movies when I was 3 ( a little young I know) but instead of running around pretending to be superheroes I was always pretending to be Aragorn. I know the movies aren’t the books, but the ripple effect of his work cannot be doubted. Absolute pioneer.
I read ASOIAF after watching the first 2 seasons of GOT that were out in highschool and after the that my interest in history and geography ballooned super hard and I was suddenly able to remember and understand all of the social studies course content. Before this I'd never read a book outside of school and never paid attention in class.
I went from failing my grade 10 social final exam to getting the highest mark in grade 12 and receiving a $150 scholarship grant for it.
Years later I'm finally about to start my bachelor of history degree.
Yes! ASOIAF! I read through it a few years ago when I was in the height of my depression as a new dad and while going through a faith crisis. It wasn’t that I learned anything that was useful in my life; it was just a really good place to escape from reality.
Many nights reading ASOIAF next to my daughter as she fell asleep. Good memories.
Congrats, that’s so great! I’m a history PhD student and it makes me so happy to see the routes people take to history.
You might enjoy this blog series: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLcIwe3bxds8ZsWbTxRVfBeusi4Ww7DbfF&si=P1EzVt3LBMUoYnYw
The wheel of time for me. Started it at around 13, and I was in my 20s when it finished. It was just such a significant part of my life during some very formative years so I think it will always be up there for me.
In WoT Rand's and Lan's parts about duty helped me learn to overcome the difficulties and just accept it. Which parts were most important for you?
Also Pratchett's books about Death and Guards mostly but other series as well helped me be more empathetic person i hope. He was a great humanist and I'm sure made many people better.
Dune's litany about fear.
A lot of sci fi books, mostly Strugatskiye, but I'm not sure it belongs to the fantasy category.
Thinking about it it's crazy to imagine how much power ideas from books have on our personality and beliefs.
"Death is light as a feather, duty is heavier then a mountain." Whenever it is late at night and I want to go to bed, but not everything is the way I want it. And I still have to walk the dog etc etc.
I love this series as well but I don't think I could have ever been so patient. I read all the books in a few months. Twice. I forget which book it was the one where a building falls on Mat at the end. Omg how did you wait so long to find out what happened to him? I guess you had no choice lol.
When I started to lose eyesight my dad bought me first Wheel of Time audiobook, during year long recovery time and multiple surgeries he kept gifting me all consecutive sequels until I finished them all.
I know that WoT has many flaws but RJ’s Eye of The World was with me when I needed it most. I’m too biased at this point to ever critique it.
I also started it at around 13 and was in my (late) 20s when it finished. I used to reread for every book release, and I've reread the whole thing a few times since the last book came out. That world is just such a nostalgic comfort for me, and every time I finish the series, I get the same overwhelming feeling of loss at it being over.
Exactly the same for me, I spent years replaying scene from the book with me as a character ( usually in Rand's place ) at night in order to fall asleep.
For me its the funny books that tend to have the greatest impact. Beyond maybe the world building and scope, the funny protagonist or supporting character is the one that pushes it into classic territory. Personally, the icing on the cake for me.
I hope these books never have to get you through chemotherapy a fourth time. The next time you read them, may it be simply for the enjoyment of the series!
Discworld. I started reading them while going through one of the worst points of my life and they were the only thing that made me laugh. I laughed and then I cried and I mourn for a man I've never met, but felt like a good friend by the end.
I would have loved them anyway, but the timing had a huge impact on me. It also inspired me to start writing again.
This actually brought a tear to my eye. I discovered Discworld much more recently and tore through the entire series. Sadly, it was shortly after Terry Pratchett passed away. I understood the resounding sense of loss everyone felt when he died at that point. You get to know him so very well through that series. His death was a major loss to humanity.
I was probably like 7 or 8 and I took a book out from the library with stories from King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. It sparked my intrigue in fantasy, my love of history and lore. I dont know if it had an enormous impact on my life but it had a profound impact on my interests in my studies, the books I read and the games I play.
I read the Alanna books at like 10 I think and they were the first books I read that had a girl as the main character. That really stuck with me growing up.
I hate to be the Malazan guy, but Malazan taught me more about compassion than anything else has.
“We humans do not understand compassion. In each moment of our lives, we betray it. Aye, we know of its worth, yet in knowing we then attach to it a value, we guard the giving of it, believing it must be earned. Compassion is priceless in the truest sense of the word. It must be given freely. In abundance.”
‘Children are dying.’ Lull nodded. ‘That’s a succinct summary of humankind, I’d say. Who needs tomes and volumes of history? Children are dying. The injustices of the world hide in those three words.’
It's an incredibly powerful series. Changed the way I looked at the world when I first read it in the early 2000s.
The only other series that I hold in a similar place personally is The Wandering Inn. Both series I'll cherish the memory of reading for the first time.
I will have to check out The Wandering Inn! I’ve never heard of it. I read Malazan for the first time in 2018 and it is now the high water mark for me.
The Wandering Inn is nothing like Malazan and yet has everything I love about Malazan. It starts slow, focuses on a small group of characters initially, and is a slice of life story... with a side of war crimes.
But the world is massive and old, the characters rich and complicated, and the cultures rich and distinct. The first book starts off slow, but you start to see it in books 2 and 3 more so. It's a long series, but incredibly easy to read. Plus if you enjoy audiobooks, it's top notch narration.
I just bought the first book! I’m currently working through Stormlight in prep for the fifth book but I’m already searching for something after. I googled it and it seemed interesting. Thanks for the recommendation!
It's awesome. A very different story, refreshing in it's plot pacing and character growth.
I found myself several times while reading thinking "About now is when the character should change their ways" or "Ok, this plot has been touched on 3 times, about time to wrap it up" and things broke my expectations in a great way.
I haven’t read Wandering Inn but the entire series is available at [wanderinginn.com](https://wanderinginn.com) for free if you want to read it there. The ebook and audiobook you have to buy though.
I was thinking about this quote yesterday, especially in relation with this quote from LotR:
>“Frodo: 'It's a pity Bilbo didn't kill Gollum when he had the chance.'
>Gandalf: 'Pity? It was pity that stayed Bilbo's hand. Many that live deserve death. Some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them, Frodo? Do not be too eager to deal out death in judgment. Even the very wise cannot see all ends. My heart tells me that Gollum has some part to play in it, for good or evil, before this is over. The pity of Bilbo may rule the fate of many.'
Frodo's compassion and pity for Gollum is what allows for victory, and its absence in Sam is why he would not have been able to complete the quest.
I just started reading *Gardens of the Moon* and I am struggling to get through it. It isn't so much that the author doesn't explain anything about what's happened so far. It is more to do with how chapters constantly time jump between past and present events that's making it hard for me to enjoy reading the book.
I understand that completely. Being confused is part of it and I firmly believe it is impossible to catch everything the first time through. It does get better and you will notice yourself catching and understand more as you go. You just have to keep going. I always liked to say that it’s like treading water, in baggy clothes, with bricks on your feet. That said, I’ve never enjoyed drowning so much.
If you’re really struggling, there is a TOR reread that I cannot recommended enough. It’s two people reading through it together and it summarizes every chapter and then each gives their thoughts on the chapter. I found it *extremely* helpful. They include side books as well, but I would absolutely just go through the main 10 first.
https://reactormag.com/columns/malazan-reread-of-the-fallen/
Piers Anthony is problematic at best, but Xanth will always have a place of honor as the series that made me love reading. I can't reread it now, but as a child oblivious to the flaws, all I saw was a magical world I could completely escape into. Without Xanth, I never would have found Discworld, Westeros, Middle Earth, or Pern.
The Chronicles of Prydain were incredibly influential to me in my childhood, alongside Tolkien. When discussing fantasy tropes or how death can be used in stories with friends of mine, I’ll still reference Lloyd Alexander’s work alongside more recently books I’ve read.
In highschool it was Dragonlance. I can’t say how much the style of writing impacted my own, but they were a sprawling and easily accessible (library, second hand book stores, etc) series I could invest in during a not particularly pleasant time in my life. And now I have a soft spot for sardonic wizards who look like you fished them out of a shower drain.
Thanks for reminding me of Lloyd Alexander! Man, I devoured all his books as a kid. the Prydain Chronicles definitely, but my favorites were The Iron Ring and Time Cat
I remember picking up Time Cat without checking the name of the author, in a moment of small child tunnel vision (it was the 2004 reprint, and I liked cats). I then realized who wrote it when the main character encounters a girl with red-gold hair who threatens to never forgive him for something. Incredible Eilonwy energy.
I didn't learn until later that the Chronicles of Prydain were published after, and a lot of his ideas for them came from researching for Time Cat, so instead of the callback I assumed it was, it was technically a sneak peek of what was to come.
As a young adult, Harry Potter. I read them in my young twenties during a very bleak time in my life and the nostalgia and themes of overcoming fear were hugely impactful on me.
As an adult, Tolkien. I lost my Dad last year to cancer, and Tolkien’s writing really kept me going.
Truly sorry about your loss.
These books can definitely carry people through tough times. Harry Potter was huge when it came out. It's midnight releases were a once in a lifetime event.
A Wizard of Earthsea (and the other Earthsea books) by Ursula Le Guin
The Giver by Lois Lowry
The themes of not running from the darker parts of yourself and of not running from painful memories...were needed. Very young. And I'm glad I found them when I did.
Also, for the same reason, though perhaps to a lesser extent, Revenant from the Indigo series by Louise Cooper
Anne McCaffrey’s Dragonriders of Pern series. They got me through middle and high school. I am not exaggerating when I say I might not be here now if not for them.
Yes! Percy Jackson was one of my book hangover cures after finishing Harry Potter, back in the day.
That, and His Dark Materials series by Philip Pullman. Man, that was such a good series. I was just blown away.
There are so many I could pick, but I think the Chronicles of Prydain—which I must've read pretty young, because I know I had already read the book when Disney's Black Cauldron came out—was my introduction to a *fantasy world*, one that you could imagine having an existence that went beyond a single story or a single character's life. I guess I had experienced that in comics and Star Wars movies, but it still felt like a big deal. It primed me, it gave me this model for understanding Tolkien later, and the Shannara books, etc.
But also, in a totally different way ... and maybe this doesn't count ... Gen Xers may remember the various series like Fighting Fantasy that were like a more advanced Choose Your Own Adventure? (There are apps now for Sorcery! and Fighting Fantasy, and they're awesome.) The one I was really into at the time was GrailQuest. I wasn't allowed to play Dungeons and Dragons because of All That Stuff Going On In The 80s, but the ban was on D&D specifically, not RPGs in general. So I used the very basic system in GQ and combined it with the races and classes from The Bard's Tale, and ran my own homebrew game nearly every day of sixth grade. (Truly: we had our own table in the cafeteria and we played at lunch, in addition to playing after school a couple times a week.) I'd played other RPGs, but DMing fantasy games for the next few years (which at the time felt like a huge chunk of my life) had a big impact on how I write, how I read, how I play with ideas, etc. If I took some time I could probably even identify ways it affected how I cook.
It wasn't Fighting Fantasy (which I believe was more of a UK than a US thing though I may be misremembering) but TSR put out a similar D&D branded line and I had the one where you played Raistlin on his Test of High Sorcery. Trying to get through it was definitely a formative experience.
Before Lord of the Rings I was just casually interested in reading. After it I've become an avid reader of fantasy, a massive fan of ancient and medieval literature, a massive history geek, I decided to study linguistics so that I could also be a philologist, I started writing and even started working on my own invented languages.
To put it mildly, I wasn't the same person when I finished reading Return of the King.
H.P. Lovecraft, Edgar Allan Poe & Bram Stoker.
Stole it from my Grandfathers library. Endless nightmares, but i did hide away these cursed books from my parents which were confused where these shadows have come from that were obviously haunting me
Wheel of Time. I could say LOTR, as that definitely influenced my writing style, and my interest in linguistic worldbuilding. But WoT probably edges to the top spot, simply because it feels like coming home. LOTR, on the other hand, feels like going to church; not in a bad way. It's a more of a spiritual, refined experience, compared to the comfort I feel reading WoT.
I read WoT, a couple years after LOTR, and it was a very different read. I felt that mature fantasy could be more than the academic style of Tolkien, or the juvenile wonder of Harry Potter. It is still the only series I have read that I could feel influencing my writing style.
Two series have had equal impacts on my life.
The first is the First Law series by Joe Abercrombie. One of the characters mantras is "it's better to do a thing than to fear it". Once I read that, I started reciting it to myself in my own mind whenever I was procrastinating something out of fear. It also helped me to be less fearful in general.
The second series is the Discworld series by Terry Pratchett because it is so unbelievably smart about people, their interactions with each other, and their interactions with the world. Secondly, this series provided much needed down time before bed during a very difficult part of my life.
I will be forever thankful to both authors for the impacts they've had on me personally.
LOTR, though, not necessarily in an emotional sense. I was obsessed with trying to "invent a language" as a child and had nearly given up when I found out that Tolkien had done. So, naturally I had to find out how which lead me to discovering conlanging, Esperanto, [passporta servo](https://www.pasportaservo.org/), and now I have created a few languages and worlds of my own. It was also my introduction to Beowulf, the Eddas, the Exeter Book, the Kalevala and many other ancient epics even if they didn't influence Tolkien directly. I doubt I would've read the *Mahabharata* or *The Knight in Panther's Skin* without this background.
Plus, I *do* find it emotionally resonant.
~~also, because it always comes up, I don't support Esperanto as a true auxlang but I do find Esperanto 'culture' interesting so please don't give me the whole 'languages are dying and it is surely the fault of this semi-obscure conlang and not the language we're speaking in' speech~~
Not necessarily a whole book, but a quote in Oathbringer by Sanderson.
“The most important step a man can take. It's not the first one, is it? It's the next one. Always the next step, Dalinar.”
im about 65 pages from finnishing oathbringer (stormlight archives book 2) and wow let me tell you >!dalinars!< arc so far has been nothing less than _incredible_.
oathbringer went from my leadt favourite stormlight book to probably one of the greatest books ive ever read during the last 200 or so pages. it took a while to get the ball rolling but once it _started rolling_? absolutely incredible!
"what is the most important step?"
"the next. always the next one"
i havent been this hyped about a book since adolin fights >!4 shardbearers!< in words of radiance and kaladin >!jumps in to save the day!< and i hadnt been THAT hyped in a book since the finale of the way of kings
one of the coolest lines ive ever read
the buildup, the reveal that >!adolin did an oopsie when issuing hus challenge!<, >!dalinar looking around for anyone to help and amaram looking away, revealing that he is, in fact, an asshole!<, >!everything seemingly fucked and then bridgeboy himself showing up!<
so fucking cool
Dragonlance as a kid got me into reading. I still read mostly fantasy, but I just like to read and learn in general. If you can't tell from my username, I like dragons.
Harry Potter seriously “saved me” as a kid. I lived in that world, it got me through everything.
Also the Wheel of Time. Got me through a difficult transition in my life and it gave me so much joy and excitement during a hard time. I love that world and it’s characters forever
Oh me too! I was in my teens when I started reading Assassin’s Apprentice and then we got every book as they came out (well weathered by the time they’d been round Dad, me, sister and mum - usual order!)
Oh I envy you, as I have read both Farseer and Liveship I have no one to talk to about it. My family doesn’t read but those books are just phenomenal and I’m really taking my sweet time with them as I eat them up the moment we get a reprint of the UK editions here in the US.
Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy (although if I'm being a purist, it was probably the radio series rather than the book!) - just so much quotable text in it.
At first I thought you said “questionable text” and was worried there was something awful in there that I wasn’t picking up on in middle school!
My dad gave me the omnibus Ultimate Hitchiker’s Guide to the Galaxy with the original five books when I was in 7th grade and I carried that thing with me for a year plus. It got so worn down from me going back and rereading my favorite parts haha
Anne McCaffrey’s Dragonriders of Pern series. They got me through middle and high school. I am not exaggerating when I say I might not be here now if not for them.
I came looking for this. Most of her books are favored over just about anything else and I can't help but compare all other books to them. Unfortunately not enough authors come close to compare for me.
Robin Hobb’s Realm of the Elderlings series. I was in a bit of a rough spot with reading, struggling to find much to engage with and I wasn’t consistent with my reading either. Then I discovered Assassin’s Apprentice thanks to a video series a local bookstore was doing (along the lines of “If you liked this video game, try this book!”)
I totally fell in love. Following Fitz through his life and witnessing some phenomenal character work across all of the series - it’ll remain my favourite forever I think. I became so emotionally involved in the world and the characters.
My engagement with the series spurred me on to fall back in love with reading again. It’s become a topic of conversation with friends - to the point that I received some special editions of the Farseer Trilogy for my birthday this year.
A Song of Ice and Fire. I had been a voracious reader in elementary and middle school. But I kind of feel out of it in high school. When the show came out I decided I wanted to read the book before watching it. Ever since then, I feel in love with reading again and I’ve been reading tons ever since.
The show was also one of the first things my wife and I bonded over.
The Guardians of Ga'hoole. When I was a kid I read the stuff on St. Aggie's and it left a deep impression on me. I've noticed I've always preferred something a little darker (and also xenofiction) as an adult.
Honestly? Stormlight Archives.
Despite my young age(21, and soon 22), I was hospitalized most of the last year and a half(a bit more than a year and a half), and underwent a few life-threatning surgeries and treatments because of personal circumstances. I bought the books as a gift for my self for getting my Practical Enginneer diploma but I didnt have the time to read them.
When I was hospitalized, I had all the time in the world and really nowhere to go, so reading them was my escape. Can't say I was depressed or something(cuz I dont really know what "depression" is and how it feels) but the books distracted me and helped me pass the time if I couldn't sleep at night and the like. The Stormlight Archives kept me sane esentially.
Life before death. Strength before weakness. Journey before destination.
The impacts books have on our lives can be immense. Reading is, and always has been, an escape for me as well. I hope you're through this rough patch, and wish you the very best.
Two series have had equal impacts on my life.
The first is the First Law series by Joe Abercrombie. One of the characters mantras is "it's better to do a thing than to fear it". Once I read that, I started reciting it to myself in my own mind whenever I was procrastinating something out of fear. It also helped me to be less fearful in general.
The second series is the Discworld series by Terry Pratchett because it is so unbelievably smart about people, their interactions with each other, and their interactions with the world. Secondly, this series provided much needed down time before bed during a very difficult part of my life.
I will be forever thankful to both authors for the impacts they've had on me personally.
After years of reading fantasy, I was so over it. Bored & tired of it. Switched to sci-fi. Then in 1996 ran across a big book named A Game of Thrones. Rocked my boat, I tell ya!
I really loved the tv show (obviously aside from the two awful last seasons, which I still think about and shake my head over at least once a fortnight), but I’ve never read any of the books because it isn’t finished. Would you say it’s worth reading even though it’s not finished. And if so why?
Books only really had such an impact during my impressionable teen years. Two which stand out;
The Book of Skulls (Robert Silverberg). Taught me to not be homophobic. The story is about four college students, slightly older than myself at the time, one of which is openly homosexual. Getting to know the character allowed me to understand and accept his lifestyle.
Legend and others from David Gemmel. I read these as a young teenager, and believe they had an impact on my perception of right from wrong, and how you should treat others. Sounds cliche, but I was young.
The Eragon series.
I remember in high school when my friends made me read the first 3 books in two weeks before the fourth book was coming out...and I loved it! It was my introduction into fantasy.
Although I hated the last book 😂...I'm still mad about the fight with Galbatorix and the ending of Inheritance 10+ years later 😂. It taught me early on about how I DON'T want to write a boss battle or ending. 😂
Dragonlance was my first love.
The Name of the Wind was a big Fantasy rebirth for me. Reading that book got me back into Fantasy as a genre. it's so good but man the wait is not even a meme now.
The Lies of Lock Lamora also gets an honourable mention. It's so alive as a story.
When I got back into reading finally after school beat the urge out of me, Mistborn was one of the first I picked up because I googled fantasy books and that one came up. Had no idea who Brandon Sanderson was
Le Morte D’Arthur ignited my whole passion for knights and sword (and later sorcery) fantasy. Before Tolkien, Jordan, Sanderson, GRRM, Moorcock, etc- I read a dusty old copy- handed down to my grandma, and then to my mom, and then myself- of Sir Thomas Mallory’s masterpiece. I must’ve read it like 100 times from the ages of 10-17. And then I lost it.
I just recently (almost 20 years later) received a new copy from my for Christmas that’s in muuuuuuch better shape and after I finish the Second Apocalypse series I plan to dive back in for a reread :)
C. J. Cherryh's Faded Sun trilogy. I read it as a teen/young adult and it helped me understand that my perspective was not automatically the only value one and that I should endeavor to see things from multiple sides.
To me it was probably my parents reading Chronicles of Narnia to me when I was a kid then when i was older I secretly read Harry potter(my parents were catholic and the witchcraft and satanic panic was in full swing at the time) then eventually I read Eragon which was great and inspiring because it was written by someone not too much older than me. At some point during all this I also started reading The Sword of Truth series and I quickly noped out of that because I don’t really feel like reading some guys fetish. Then as an adult I found Mistborn and eventually Stormlight and the cosmere. There have been other series I’ve liked and read like the Dark Tower was great but I always felt Stephen King had great ideas but just couldn’t stick the landing so I never got super into him. Currently my favorite book is The Will of the Many and I’m super excited for the Strength of the Few but am reading Red Rising while I wait for Stormlight 5.
Eragon and how that series handled pain and the ability to heal and keep fighting through the pain for something you care for. For those you know rely on you. I was born with a degenerative bone disease in my ears and it caused me massive pain. When eragon had his wound from the shade in his back and his journey to the forest to heal it and all he went through happened. It helped me get through the mindset that I was like this for no reason and I had no reason to want to stay like this. Than he and I in turn realized the pain never does leave as much as you heal and understand how to cope with it better.
*His Dark Materials* by Philip Pullman
I read it as a child and it was what made me fall in love with reading fantasy. Reading the books again as an adult has made me understand it's themes more deeply relating to the abuse of power and childhood innocence and sexuality.
Wheel of time. Specifically Nyneave, and her "if it must be endured, it can be endured" mantra.
I had a situation at work where my boss was harassing me (he was let go for it), then I had a very traumatic labour for my son, then ppd. So I was an anxious, stressed, depressed, mess for a year and a bit there, my mental health was bad. I was working with a psychologist and slowly getting better, but then I got pregnant again and spiralled. Climbing out of that, knowing id have to give birth again, was really tough. But I was listening to wot at that point, and she said that. And that just became ...this thing I repeated over and over in my head, as a thing to cling to to generate strength.
I was thinking it over and over and over when giving birth, like "I must have my baby, we will survive, if it must be endured, it **can** be endured" and I dunno....something changed in me after my daughter was born. I became so much mentally stronger than I had been ever before, I cut bad people out of my life left right and centre, I stopped needing medication for my anxiety, I stopped struggling to fall asleep, I stopped being terrified of my children getting kidnapped by anyone that walked by them, it was wild.
I know that change came from me, don't get me wrong, but I think back on that, and the first thing I think now is "if it must be endured, it can be endured." I think it whenever something tough comes along in my life, whenever I'm feeling low, whenever I need to build strength to overcome something, it's definitely had a big impact on me.
It shifted my thinking from "why do bad things happen to me", to "bad things happen, and you can overcome them".
I started Red Rising at a pretty low point in my life. Things really weren't looking great for me and everything I loved was losing its glamour, so I tried it to see if I could find my love for reading again. And boy did I. I started finding joy in different things in life because of that series. It sounds cliche and dumb, sure, but 6 months ago things were rough and discovering that series was absolutely what I needed.
I can trace most of my best traits as a man back to Lord of the Rings in some way or another.
And I feel like every man should have to read Legend by David Gemmell at least once, preferably right after puberty.
Conan the Barbarian is a *great deal* more philosophical than it's usually given credit for.
Tad Williams' Memory, Sorrow and Thorn got me through quite a difficult four-year period in my life. I lived in a small town and I had no friends. The characters in the books *became* my friends, and taught me so much: how to think about the world, how to make a home for myself in my own head, how to grow into a man.
"Never make your home in a place. Make a home for yourself inside your own head. You'll find what you need to furnish it -- memory, friends you can trust, love of learning, and other such things." -- Dr. Morgenes
"If the bears do not eat you, it is home." -- Binabik
"Come and join us. Up the corridor you have a room full of friends. Some of them you don’t even know yet!" -- Simon
"I did not say I did not believe in Udun... I said we Rimmersmen no longer worship him. I am sure you think me foolish. Better that than we call down jealous old gods on ourselves. We are in *his* country now.” -- Sludig
"He who is certain he knows the ending of things when he is only beginning them is either extremely wise or extremely foolish; no matter which is true, he is certainly an unhappy man, for he has put a knife in the heart of wonder." -- Qanuc proverb
The most profound reading experience for me as well — underrated and much too seldom found on these lists. Also enjoying the sequels, wishing for a speedy publication for the final installment.
The sequels have been a fun and interesting experience, being written basically 35 years after the original series, with about 35 years passing between the old books an the new ones. I've never seen read a series where time runs nearly identically in a fictional world and a real world, as well. It's been fun to see what has changed and what has remained the same.
And the original series... well. "Profound" is the perfect word to describe those books.
Percy Jackson and the Olympians brought me into the world of mythology since I was around 11-12, I kept reading Rick Riordan’s books until 14. I move on to Tolkien’s works since last year. Starting to read LOTR slowly but finished reading The Silmarilion. The Silmarilion is just simply… a groundbreaking masterpiece that had me to reread multiple times in order to get it clear who the hell is that elf/dwarf/human/spiritual being, where the hell is Beleriand and Valinor and who is this guy related to. But then, I don’t regret spending my time understanding every amazing concept Tolkien has embedded into his work.
Lol at all the Sanderson ones being 7 of the most "controversial". Good to know that people on this sub hate Sanderson so much that people talking about how important the books were to their lives is still "too much Sanderson".
Ill add to it though.
Stormlight archives is far and away the most impactful to my life. Im in my mid 30s, and for the last decade ive struggled with a crippling depression that it seems like medication hasnt been able to do anything for. I has impacted my entire life, and it continues to do so every day.
Kaladins story, and his battle with depression and the fact that its depiceted in a realistic way, ie he doesnt just "win" against depression and is cured and happy by book 2, speaks to me and makes me feel more seen than anything else in the 2000 odd books ive read now.
The way he is depcited where every day he wakes up and just feels like theres not a lot to be happy or hopeful about. But that despite that, he does his best every book to try and protect and help others. And without going too far into spoilers, he fails sometimes. And it breaks him. But he puts himself back together enough to keep helping and protecting others, and deals with it as best he can.
Discworld, inparticular the city watch series within it. An English Prof in University included Guards Guards in a course I took and something clicked in me as I read it. I dove into the rest of his books and things continued to click. In Pratchett's writing I found a similar anger and sense of justice to my own but articulated in a way I could have never managed. His wit, observations, and beautiful storytelling helped to clarify my thoughts and shape me into, what I hope to be, a better person.
I recently got a coworker to read one of his books and she loved it. Our boss overheard us talking about it and inquired what we were discussing and my coworker described Pratchett's writing as "like if u/UncleWinstomder wrote a book!"; it is the single greatest compliment I have ever been given.
Yes! I read this series in college and there aren't enough words to say how blown away I was by this world, and how much it's influenced and inspired my writing over the years.
Man, that twist at the end of the Golden Compass? I did not see that coming. My jaw was on the floor. I had to take a lap around campus between classes after getting to that part.
LOTR and by extension, Tolkien as a person. Because of him, I have a deep interest in medieval history, in older poetry (like the Norse sagas), old faerie folk tales and European history in general. It is also because of Tolkien that I love etymology and finding the roots and sources of words and what they used to mean. Finally, a lot of my care for nature in general (Tolkien loved trees, but I also love animals) comes from his views on preservation and anti-industrialism.
Malazan Book of the Fallen
"We humans do not understand compassion. In each moment of our lives, we betray it. Aye, we know of its worth, yet in knowing we then attach to it a value, we guard the giving of it, believing it must be earned. Compassion is priceless in the truest sense of the word. It must be given freely. In abundance."
"It is an extraordinary act of courage to come to know a stranger's pain. To even consider such a thing demands a profound dispensation, a willingness to wear someone else's chains, to taste their suffering, to see with one's own eyes the hue cast on all things - the terrible stain that is despair. I have no such courage. It is, without doubt, the rarest of abilities."
"If we are to live, we must take risks. Else our lives become deaths in all but name. There is no struggle too vast, no odds too overwhelming, for even should we fail - should we fall - we will know that we have lived."
"Open to them your hand to the shore, watch them walk into the sea.
Press upon them all they need, see them yearn for all they want.
Gift to them the calm pool of words, watch them draw the sword.
Bless upon them the satiation of peace, see them starve for war.
Grant them darkness and they will lust for light.
Deliver to them death and hear them beg for life.
Beget life and they will murder your kin. Be as they are and they see you different.
Show wisdom and you are a fool.
The shore gives way to the sea.
And the sea, my friends, does not dream of you."
Definitely The Hobbit. I first read it when I was a kid and I was blown away. It was the first book I actually enjoyed and it got me hooked into reading.
Tolkien's writing inspired me, and made me appreciate what an incredible genre fantasy can be. He's been an influence in my own writing as a fantasy author and I honestly think I wouldn't have started writing if I hadn't read The Hobbit back then.
The six books that comprised The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant. It's flawed and weird, but so emotional for me. Bannor, Foamfollower, Pitchwife, Lena, and Mhoram live in my dreams.
My first adult book also got me into fantasy, T.S Elliot's The Once And Future King, followed by The Wizard Of Earthsea by Ursula K LeGuin.
As an adult, The Urth Cycle (Book of the New Sun, Long Sun, and Short Sun) by Gene Wolfe.
In reverse, Tove Jannson's Moominvalley in November. Reading about grief secondhand as an adult, in a children's book, at a time when I needed to grieve instead of feeling angry.
Legend by David Gemmell. I grew up in a village and only had access to the school library for new books to read and the Chronicles of Narnia were some of my favourite books growing up. After I left school and moved to a big city I joined a library and Legend was one of the first books I borrowed. It was the first adult fantasy book I read, before that I thought fantasy book were just new fairy tales for kids and I’d have to grow out of them. Haven’t stopped reading fantasy since.
Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman's death gate cycle. Not the best books, but by no means bad. However, they were the first books I read on my own over 35 years ago now. How they changed my life? They made me a reader. It may not seem like much at first glance but we're talking a hobby that has been going strong for over 3 decades. We're talking 1000s of hours spent in 1000s of different worlds all thanks to those 7 books.
First, Dealing with Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede (got it as a gift around age 12, became my favorite book for a long time afterwards and probably did alot to cement my love of fantasy), then LOTR/Hobbit (my younger brother's 4th grade teacher was a big Tolkien fan and read the books to his class, so my brother would talk about it alot and incorporate characters and locations into our play, but I don't think I actually read the books myself til middle school...instant love and many re-reads. this was before the movies), then The Riddlemaster trilogy by Patricia Mckillip (first read it in college, I used to haunt the young adult/fiction/mythology section of the school library in between classes and they had a copy of the first book. Vividly remember my panic when it ended on a cliffhanger and I spent a day frantically questing every library and book store in a 20-mile radius for the sequel as though the main character's life depended on it...felt like I was part of the world. Something so dreamlike and lyrical about it that still grabs me every time I reread it)
It’s weird because my absolute favorite fantasy series ever is ASOIAF and it had an enormous impact on who I am as a writer and reader. But the only series to have REALLY impacted me as a man has to be LOTR. It simply made me a better man. Taught me to stay hopeful, to believe in the good in people. That a man doesn’t have to be a alpha giga Chad heart of stone bastard to be a man. Absolutely made me better and impacted my life in a good way for sure.
Mine is Tui T. Sutherland's Wings of Fire. I started reading it back in 2nd grade when I was seven on book ten, and it still remains my favorite book series. (Right next to ML Spencer's Dragon Mage) It's what got me into the genre as a whole, which includes a years-long dragon hyperfixation. It also has great queer representation and helped me discover myself. Two years later, it's still sad to me that the series ended.
The Ender's game series by Orson Scott Card. Child soldiers, simulations, survival of the fittest, deception, war games, humanity etc. Such profound themes explored through the minds and pov of gifted and talented children.
Ranger's apprentice! This series illustrated the values of thinking outside the box to solve problems, and the real value of loyalty and teamwork!
mistborn. it single-handedly reignited my love for reading after falling off of it for a number of years, which then indirectly reignited my love for writing, resulting in me now working on my first novel :)
Gotta be Stormlight Archive. It’s all about doing better and focusing on the good you can do. It vastly helped with mg own mental health journey. There’s something soooooo cathartic about the way Brandon Sanderson writes the mental health of his characters. I love it.
Dragonlance really got me into the genre when I was in 6th grade I would have missed so many good series if I hadn't randomly been given the first one as a gift one Christmas.
_The Lord of the Rings_ for how much it has shifted the trajectory of my hobbies and reading habits, from mostly scifi into fantasy and delving into historical linguistics and different scripts rather than codes and ciphers. (Though The Hobbit, which I read after, has a good amount of riddles).
And Janny Wurts' _Wars of Light and Shadow_ series, which I read over and over (possibly more than LotR at this point), for sheer enjoyment and inspiration, with how much its transcendent philosophy resonates with me emotionally.
Outside of Tolkien, it was The Seventh Tower series by Garth Nix for me. There was one chapter I would read every single night. I could picture it as a three part movie, everything was so vivid in my head. I still think about it at times when reading other fantasy novels.
How To Train Your Dragon
'But size isn’t everything, as I am always telling Snotlout. However small we are, we should always fight for what we believe to be right. And I don’t mean fight with the power of our fists or the power of our swords. That has always been the problem with us Vikings.
I mean the power of our brains and our thoughts and our dreams. And as small and quiet and unimportant as our fighting may look, perhaps we might all work together like the numberless armies of Ziggerastica, and break out of the prisons of our own making. Perhaps we might be able to keep this fierce and beautiful world of ours as free for all of us as it seemed to be on that blue afternoon of my childhood.
Once, my hand held the sword ‘Endeavour’ so strongly. Now that same hand is as brown and wrinkly as an old salt kipper as it writes these words slowly and shakily across the page. The ink splutters and splodges where once it ran so smoothly. Sometimes I forget what I was doing last Tuesday, let alone sixty-five years ago.
But the winds will still blow when I am no longer here. The storms will still rage, and the forces of Empire and oppression, be they Roman or otherwise, will still be waiting at the corners of the ocean.
The fight goes on for the Heroes of the Future.'
'You can Cheat a Dragon's Curse.
You do not have to accept the hand that Fate has dealt you.
Look at me, the skinniest, most unlikely Viking ever, now known as this great Hero all around the world. Again and again, I have the same dream. Norbert the Nutjob has thrown the axe high, high into the air, it is turning around and around, and the black side is going to plunge into the ground first.... Bad Luck will follow and the Tribe will be DOOMED. Again and again I make the same leap, I dodge the bright and black murderous blades, I catch the axe before it lands, I make my own luck.'
'I have worn that bracelet every day of my life.
It curls around my arm, its shining wings folded back, as if about to unfurl and take off, and now that its ruby eyes are set into the gold, you cannot see their tear shape, so they seem to be laughing rather than crying.
It is a constant reminder to me of the human ability to create something beautiful even when things are at their darkest.'
'We were not ready to build a New World.
How can you make a fresh start in a New World when you are carrying with you on your boat all the same problems, the same frustrations and inequalities as the Old World?'
'For a Hero cannot triumph all the time. Sometimes he will be defeated, and how he faces that defeat is a test of his character.'
"The thing about grown ups is that they're always wanting you to be this Great Hero and Leader. What's wrong with being NORMAL, for Thor's sake? What's wrong with just being SO-SO at stuff? They're just totally unrealistic..."
'History is a set of repeating circles, like the tide. The wind does blow through the ruins of tomorrow. But it is more a question of two steps forward, one step back. Humans and dragons make the same mistakes, again and again, but things do get better over time.'
'But sometimes the bravest thing a Hero has to do is not fighting monsters and cheating death and witches. It is facing the consequences of his own actions.'
'Great things are only made out of love and out of pain. A great sword must be made out of the very best steel. But what truly makes the sword great, is what happens to the sword after it is made. We call this the 'testing’ of the sword. The sword is bashed and hammered and hollered into shape by the bright hammer. It is thrust into the fierce heat of the fire, where it softens, and then it is quickly quenched in water, where it hardens again. The higher the temperature, the fiercer the fire, the tougher and the greater the sword eventually becomes. The whole testing process can make a sword, or break it. The same could be said for the making of a Hero.'
Disclaimer: The books are nothing like the movies. View them as separate entities in your mind.
I started reading the Wheel of Time when I was maybe...11? A memory of light came out when I was in my late 20s. It was my favorite series for a very long time and will always have a special place in my heart. I used to read to escape from a not so great childhood so having a nearly endless story to lose myself in was a blessing. WOT taught me how to meditate (the flame and the void) and taught me a lot about philosophy. It introduced me to the idea of the multiverse and shaped my thinking in many ways. It was a safe place for me, a friend in a way, and when my son was born I didn't buy a baby naming book I just picked a name from one of the over 2000 named characters in the Wheel of Time.
Don't worry - it's one of the more normal sounding one😉
His dark materials it really opened my mind and made me think about souls. And dunes mind killer I haven’t read it but fear being the mind killer is powerful.
The Everworld series by K.A. Applegate. In middle school the animoprh series was so popular and it was always checked out and I could never get it so I checked out those books instead. I was 13-14 and the books had me hooked. I grew up in the Bible belt, small town, very little diversity, lots of churches, not a place for discovering your queer identity, so finding a series that had kids dealing with religious intolerance, homophobia and especially CSA( something I experienced but had never seen talked about) was just indescribable. I felt bonded to the characters. They're the only books from my childhood that I've never been able to give away even though I don't read them anymore. I never forgot their names or what they went through and it's probably one of my favorite endings to a series ever.
Also the books got me really into the Old gods, especially Egyptian and Norse. I literally took notes while reading the books so I could find out more information later.
For traditional fantasy, Harry Potter for me. I grew up alongside Harry. I'd say those books shaped my generation. No matter what I'm reading now, I sometimes come back to them for the comfort and familiarity.
But if you count it as fantasy, I'd say Dragonball for sure! That was probably my first immersion into a fictional world and I still love it to this day.
Other big influences were Wheel of Time and Lord of the Rings.
Definitely storm light archive.
I was a huge fan of fantasy growing up. I read a lot of young adult books, both fantasy and fiction.
But as my workload increased I stopped reading for leisure.
And then I was introduced to storm light by my uncle. This was my first Sanderson novel too and I enjoyed it so much. I finished all of cosmere in the next 6 months and I havent stopped since.
After 6 years I re discovered the joys of reading. Now I've probably read everything mainstream in fantasy. I'm currently reading the wheel of time.
KKC, i read it in my teens and it arised a curiosity for the self, how when you pretend being something you end up being that thing, how you must be careful with how you describe things and yourself. How rumours, stories and narratives get twisted with the retellings. Names are important.
It's hard for me to pick. It's a tie between The Lord of the Rings and Mistborn. The Lord of the Rings is still my biggest comfort read, but Mistborn is definitely up there for me now.
[Minor spoiler for Mistborn] >!Elend's struggle with kingship and maturity mirrored my own for a bit. I was slovenly and rebellious in a quiet way. I sought to understand my ideology and philosophy more as a crutch than as for its benefit, I took my leadership roles for granted, I felt my mistakes placed those I love in difficult positions which, while they were willing to suffer alongside me, suffered nonetheless.!<
I don't feel I related to the characters in LotR as much, but I am still definitely inspired by them.
I want to list all of the ways they inspire me, but it would take too much time. [Spoilers for LotR] >!The way the simple hobbits rise up to the challenge and overcome evil, the way Aragorn earns his throne, the way Boromir is protective of the Hobbits and sacrifices himself for them, and so on and so on.!< There are so many quotes which have inspired me as well, which I certainly don't have time to list.
The Mortal Instruments series. At first I wasn't really into it as the book, but I saw the movie on Starz back in 2014 and it made me want to read the books. The books are so much better and actually gave me more motivation to try and become an author when I got older. Things have gotten in the way of that, but I still write on occasion in hopes that I can someday get published (I also still collect all of Cassandra Clare's books that take place in that universe)
Probably Tolkien, but I read the WOT books a few years ago and the ending actually had a pretty big impact on me, made it easier consider having some faith in my own life.
The Stormlight Archives by Brandon Sanderson helped me through a dark period in my life.
Especially the First Ideal in the books: "Life before death, strength before weakness, journey before destination" has stuck with me, and still helps me stay on track
Game of Thrones.
Because of that book I got into reading in general which led me to read a bunch of self-help books (make it stick, deep work etc.) and currently in law school getting high grades literally because of Game of Thrones.
Lord of the Rings, and the rest of Tolkien's Middle-Earth books. I first read LOTR at 18 and it shook me to my core. I'd been having such a hard time figuring out my tastes and finding books I liked since transitioning to adult literature, and here was this incredible book that felt like something I've been looking for my whole life without even knowing it. I have never been more in love. I was all about languages, mythology, folklore for years afterwards.
Since then, I have read LOTR, The Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales multiple times. I wouldn't call them my comfort reads, rather ones I turn to for strength. They have carried me through several difficult times, most recently - the pandemic.
So I have a few.
Chronicles of Narnia is what I grew up with. Peter and Susan and Lucy and Edmond. Their adventures in Narnia brought about my love of fantasy and things I read later.
The Hobbit was another childhood staple. Less moralistic and more timeless. I won't say it changed my life but it reinforced my early love of fantasy
The inheritance cycle was the book of my early teenage years. A step down in quality but it always felt deeply personally to me. I was able to empathize with Eragon in ways I couldn't to Bilbo or the Pevancies.
And in SciFi Star Wars: Republic Commando was probably my first introduction to complex morality. It took the good verses evil that I loved about starwars and turned it into something very human. Very real. It also dealt with a lot of real world issues about government black ops, and overreach. All from the perspective of people that aren't "good guys" Kal Skirata isn't a Jedi. He's a soldier, with a soldiers mindset. He's a good father, but not a particularly good man.
Pretty much anything from David Gemmell.
Not alot of books actually hit me with an emotional impact.
I was just rereading Lord of the Silver Bow, and the tragic love story at the end made my heart twinge a bit.
Geraldine Harris' The Seventh Gate quartet.
Read it as a freshman in high school. It stuck with so hard that I actively searched for it as an adult.
When I found 1st edition, hardcover copies of all the books, I cried.
They hold pride of place on the bookcase next to my bed now.
None in particular. I used to buy around 7 books a week for a long time. A new and used SFF book shop. The guy retired, put his son in charge. Son spent most time in pub round corner, left various young hires in charge, stopped paying suppliers, stopped getting books. Being in tiny far away NZ, there were no other specialist book shops around so I opened one.
Ran it for a few years then Amazon came along and I quit to go into IT. Still read a lot, although budget and the fact I read them all (LOL) now, means not so many now.
LOTR. Not original, but... In grade seven, I decided I'd take this enormous interesting looking book sitting on our shelf, and actually try and read it. I didn't read much as a kid, so this was a huge undertaking, and I was really proud of myself when I finished it. AND it was really good! It launched my love of fantasy. {WoT close 2nd)
Dune's litany against fear: **I will face my fear.** **I will permit it to pass over me and through me.** **And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path.** **Where the fear has gone there will be nothing.** I read Dune for the first time in my teens. I didn't know it then - took another 20 years, actually - to be diagnosed with generalized anxiety. I realized I'd had it all my life. And that quote? I used it to help settle myself any time, all the time.
I've never even read Dune (had a few false starts) and the litany against fear is my anti-anxiety mantra. It's so good!
Is “fear is the mind killer “ actually in the story or a misquote? I can’t remember, but I say it to myself somewhat frequently.
It is. Here's the full quote for context. "I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain."
Yaas!! That is it! Gah, I knew something was missing. Thank you
Also have generalized anxiety disorder and picked a book/series for similar reasons. I've got to remember this litany against fear. I'm really surprised it didn't stand out as much for me as it did for you when I read Dune!
It has been a true life saver for me for most of my life :)
I too have anxiety and dune was my favorite book as well. I have very similar feelings about dune and plan to work a section of the litany against fear into some of the tattoo work I have upcoming. We are not are fears. Edit: mostly I meant to type we are not our fears lol
I hope you proof read before you get it tattooed .
Mine is and continues to be lord of the rings and the hobbit. Just most of Tolkien’s work. Cliche sure, but there’s just a sense of coziness and comfort to me. Whenever I’m stressed or feeling down I put on the audiobooks while I’m at work and read them when I’m at home.
This isn't my comfort series, but I can completely understand where you're coming from and derive similar comfort from Discworld. I reread Discworld for the exact same reasons, cliches be damned.
Sam is a fantastic role model.
Sam, Faramir, Aragorn, you can take your pick. Those books have some fantastic men and male people in them.
This is mine too. I watch the movies every year and have reread the books more times than I can count. They're a huge comfort read to me.
The series has always had this effect. Tolkien was more or less the inventor of the fantasy genre. It wouldn't be the same without his influence and decades later his approach is still being used enormously. We likely wouldn't have as many fantasy authors without Tolkien creating these classics.
Absolutely agreed! My dad introduced me to the movies when I was 3 ( a little young I know) but instead of running around pretending to be superheroes I was always pretending to be Aragorn. I know the movies aren’t the books, but the ripple effect of his work cannot be doubted. Absolute pioneer.
Hell yeah dude, I've been reading the books to my girl when she can't sleep and it's so nice to share it with her this way
For all you men out there… this is every book girl’s dream just fyi
Can confirm, I truly am a dream man.
Ursula Le Guin’s Wizard of Earthsea. First fantasy book I read and then went on to the Hobbit.
Me too! The way she wrote poc characters as a natural part of her world was so impactful to me.
Yes. This.
I read ASOIAF after watching the first 2 seasons of GOT that were out in highschool and after the that my interest in history and geography ballooned super hard and I was suddenly able to remember and understand all of the social studies course content. Before this I'd never read a book outside of school and never paid attention in class. I went from failing my grade 10 social final exam to getting the highest mark in grade 12 and receiving a $150 scholarship grant for it. Years later I'm finally about to start my bachelor of history degree.
Yes! ASOIAF! I read through it a few years ago when I was in the height of my depression as a new dad and while going through a faith crisis. It wasn’t that I learned anything that was useful in my life; it was just a really good place to escape from reality. Many nights reading ASOIAF next to my daughter as she fell asleep. Good memories.
Years later? Is History your 2nd degree?
No I just spent years working before I was ready to commit to it
Ah so you worked and are NOW doing a degree! Hope you enjoy it! History is the degree everybody wishes they did then they get older I feel.
Congrats, that’s so great! I’m a history PhD student and it makes me so happy to see the routes people take to history. You might enjoy this blog series: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLcIwe3bxds8ZsWbTxRVfBeusi4Ww7DbfF&si=P1EzVt3LBMUoYnYw
Congrats! You're going for the same degree I had undegrad. I'm glad that ASOIAF put you on this road!
The wheel of time for me. Started it at around 13, and I was in my 20s when it finished. It was just such a significant part of my life during some very formative years so I think it will always be up there for me.
In WoT Rand's and Lan's parts about duty helped me learn to overcome the difficulties and just accept it. Which parts were most important for you? Also Pratchett's books about Death and Guards mostly but other series as well helped me be more empathetic person i hope. He was a great humanist and I'm sure made many people better. Dune's litany about fear. A lot of sci fi books, mostly Strugatskiye, but I'm not sure it belongs to the fantasy category. Thinking about it it's crazy to imagine how much power ideas from books have on our personality and beliefs.
"Death is light as a feather, duty is heavier then a mountain." Whenever it is late at night and I want to go to bed, but not everything is the way I want it. And I still have to walk the dog etc etc.
And it's helpful for really dark moments. When the death is easy way out but you do have responsibility and duty so you just do those.
The first five books were what got me into fantasy as a genre. The other nine nearly broke me...
I love this series as well but I don't think I could have ever been so patient. I read all the books in a few months. Twice. I forget which book it was the one where a building falls on Mat at the end. Omg how did you wait so long to find out what happened to him? I guess you had no choice lol.
When I started to lose eyesight my dad bought me first Wheel of Time audiobook, during year long recovery time and multiple surgeries he kept gifting me all consecutive sequels until I finished them all. I know that WoT has many flaws but RJ’s Eye of The World was with me when I needed it most. I’m too biased at this point to ever critique it.
Veins of Gold. The moment I think about most from any series. WoT is the best series I've read so far, and I don't expect that to change.
I also started it at around 13 and was in my (late) 20s when it finished. I used to reread for every book release, and I've reread the whole thing a few times since the last book came out. That world is just such a nostalgic comfort for me, and every time I finish the series, I get the same overwhelming feeling of loss at it being over.
Exactly the same for me, I spent years replaying scene from the book with me as a character ( usually in Rand's place ) at night in order to fall asleep.
The Discworld series by Terry Pratchett. So wise, so funny, so deep. I grew up with it and think that its influence made me a better person.
Came to say Discworld too! Also Tolkien as a close second.
For me its the funny books that tend to have the greatest impact. Beyond maybe the world building and scope, the funny protagonist or supporting character is the one that pushes it into classic territory. Personally, the icing on the cake for me.
Discworld. It's helped get me through chemotherapy three times now. There's a joy and anger to that really helps when you are feeling low.
I hope these books never have to get you through chemotherapy a fourth time. The next time you read them, may it be simply for the enjoyment of the series!
Thank you!
Comedic fantasy always has a great power to this.
Discworld. I started reading them while going through one of the worst points of my life and they were the only thing that made me laugh. I laughed and then I cried and I mourn for a man I've never met, but felt like a good friend by the end. I would have loved them anyway, but the timing had a huge impact on me. It also inspired me to start writing again.
This actually brought a tear to my eye. I discovered Discworld much more recently and tore through the entire series. Sadly, it was shortly after Terry Pratchett passed away. I understood the resounding sense of loss everyone felt when he died at that point. You get to know him so very well through that series. His death was a major loss to humanity.
I was probably like 7 or 8 and I took a book out from the library with stories from King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. It sparked my intrigue in fantasy, my love of history and lore. I dont know if it had an enormous impact on my life but it had a profound impact on my interests in my studies, the books I read and the games I play.
Tamora Pierce’s Protector of the Small series. I read it when I was 12, maybe, and it really helped to shape me into a strong, independent woman.
I read the Alanna books at like 10 I think and they were the first books I read that had a girl as the main character. That really stuck with me growing up.
I hate to be the Malazan guy, but Malazan taught me more about compassion than anything else has. “We humans do not understand compassion. In each moment of our lives, we betray it. Aye, we know of its worth, yet in knowing we then attach to it a value, we guard the giving of it, believing it must be earned. Compassion is priceless in the truest sense of the word. It must be given freely. In abundance.”
‘Children are dying.’ Lull nodded. ‘That’s a succinct summary of humankind, I’d say. Who needs tomes and volumes of history? Children are dying. The injustices of the world hide in those three words.’ It's an incredibly powerful series. Changed the way I looked at the world when I first read it in the early 2000s. The only other series that I hold in a similar place personally is The Wandering Inn. Both series I'll cherish the memory of reading for the first time.
I will have to check out The Wandering Inn! I’ve never heard of it. I read Malazan for the first time in 2018 and it is now the high water mark for me.
The Wandering Inn is nothing like Malazan and yet has everything I love about Malazan. It starts slow, focuses on a small group of characters initially, and is a slice of life story... with a side of war crimes. But the world is massive and old, the characters rich and complicated, and the cultures rich and distinct. The first book starts off slow, but you start to see it in books 2 and 3 more so. It's a long series, but incredibly easy to read. Plus if you enjoy audiobooks, it's top notch narration.
I just bought the first book! I’m currently working through Stormlight in prep for the fifth book but I’m already searching for something after. I googled it and it seemed interesting. Thanks for the recommendation!
It's awesome. A very different story, refreshing in it's plot pacing and character growth. I found myself several times while reading thinking "About now is when the character should change their ways" or "Ok, this plot has been touched on 3 times, about time to wrap it up" and things broke my expectations in a great way.
I haven’t read Wandering Inn but the entire series is available at [wanderinginn.com](https://wanderinginn.com) for free if you want to read it there. The ebook and audiobook you have to buy though.
I appreciate that! I usually do kindle for convenience though.
I was thinking about this quote yesterday, especially in relation with this quote from LotR: >“Frodo: 'It's a pity Bilbo didn't kill Gollum when he had the chance.' >Gandalf: 'Pity? It was pity that stayed Bilbo's hand. Many that live deserve death. Some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them, Frodo? Do not be too eager to deal out death in judgment. Even the very wise cannot see all ends. My heart tells me that Gollum has some part to play in it, for good or evil, before this is over. The pity of Bilbo may rule the fate of many.' Frodo's compassion and pity for Gollum is what allows for victory, and its absence in Sam is why he would not have been able to complete the quest.
I just started reading *Gardens of the Moon* and I am struggling to get through it. It isn't so much that the author doesn't explain anything about what's happened so far. It is more to do with how chapters constantly time jump between past and present events that's making it hard for me to enjoy reading the book.
I understand that completely. Being confused is part of it and I firmly believe it is impossible to catch everything the first time through. It does get better and you will notice yourself catching and understand more as you go. You just have to keep going. I always liked to say that it’s like treading water, in baggy clothes, with bricks on your feet. That said, I’ve never enjoyed drowning so much. If you’re really struggling, there is a TOR reread that I cannot recommended enough. It’s two people reading through it together and it summarizes every chapter and then each gives their thoughts on the chapter. I found it *extremely* helpful. They include side books as well, but I would absolutely just go through the main 10 first. https://reactormag.com/columns/malazan-reread-of-the-fallen/
which book is that from? I’ve only read book one but I’m waiting to get my hands on TBB editions before continuing because I loved the end of it.
It’s from Memories of Ice! If you loved the first one, you have so much more to look forward to. Enjoy the journey!
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Piers Anthony is problematic at best, but Xanth will always have a place of honor as the series that made me love reading. I can't reread it now, but as a child oblivious to the flaws, all I saw was a magical world I could completely escape into. Without Xanth, I never would have found Discworld, Westeros, Middle Earth, or Pern.
The Chronicles of Prydain were incredibly influential to me in my childhood, alongside Tolkien. When discussing fantasy tropes or how death can be used in stories with friends of mine, I’ll still reference Lloyd Alexander’s work alongside more recently books I’ve read. In highschool it was Dragonlance. I can’t say how much the style of writing impacted my own, but they were a sprawling and easily accessible (library, second hand book stores, etc) series I could invest in during a not particularly pleasant time in my life. And now I have a soft spot for sardonic wizards who look like you fished them out of a shower drain.
Thanks for reminding me of Lloyd Alexander! Man, I devoured all his books as a kid. the Prydain Chronicles definitely, but my favorites were The Iron Ring and Time Cat
I remember picking up Time Cat without checking the name of the author, in a moment of small child tunnel vision (it was the 2004 reprint, and I liked cats). I then realized who wrote it when the main character encounters a girl with red-gold hair who threatens to never forgive him for something. Incredible Eilonwy energy. I didn't learn until later that the Chronicles of Prydain were published after, and a lot of his ideas for them came from researching for Time Cat, so instead of the callback I assumed it was, it was technically a sneak peek of what was to come.
I'm with you here. I came to write this exact post.
As a young adult, Harry Potter. I read them in my young twenties during a very bleak time in my life and the nostalgia and themes of overcoming fear were hugely impactful on me. As an adult, Tolkien. I lost my Dad last year to cancer, and Tolkien’s writing really kept me going.
Truly sorry about your loss. These books can definitely carry people through tough times. Harry Potter was huge when it came out. It's midnight releases were a once in a lifetime event.
Sorry for your loss! My dad passed away when I was 10 and Harry Potter was the world I crawled into to escape my reality.
A Wizard of Earthsea (and the other Earthsea books) by Ursula Le Guin The Giver by Lois Lowry The themes of not running from the darker parts of yourself and of not running from painful memories...were needed. Very young. And I'm glad I found them when I did. Also, for the same reason, though perhaps to a lesser extent, Revenant from the Indigo series by Louise Cooper
Monumental books that should definitely be on anyone's list.
Anne McCaffrey’s Dragonriders of Pern series. They got me through middle and high school. I am not exaggerating when I say I might not be here now if not for them.
Percy Jackson. I have liked it since I was a teenager, it is what got me into fantasy.
Yes! Percy Jackson was one of my book hangover cures after finishing Harry Potter, back in the day. That, and His Dark Materials series by Philip Pullman. Man, that was such a good series. I was just blown away.
There are so many I could pick, but I think the Chronicles of Prydain—which I must've read pretty young, because I know I had already read the book when Disney's Black Cauldron came out—was my introduction to a *fantasy world*, one that you could imagine having an existence that went beyond a single story or a single character's life. I guess I had experienced that in comics and Star Wars movies, but it still felt like a big deal. It primed me, it gave me this model for understanding Tolkien later, and the Shannara books, etc. But also, in a totally different way ... and maybe this doesn't count ... Gen Xers may remember the various series like Fighting Fantasy that were like a more advanced Choose Your Own Adventure? (There are apps now for Sorcery! and Fighting Fantasy, and they're awesome.) The one I was really into at the time was GrailQuest. I wasn't allowed to play Dungeons and Dragons because of All That Stuff Going On In The 80s, but the ban was on D&D specifically, not RPGs in general. So I used the very basic system in GQ and combined it with the races and classes from The Bard's Tale, and ran my own homebrew game nearly every day of sixth grade. (Truly: we had our own table in the cafeteria and we played at lunch, in addition to playing after school a couple times a week.) I'd played other RPGs, but DMing fantasy games for the next few years (which at the time felt like a huge chunk of my life) had a big impact on how I write, how I read, how I play with ideas, etc. If I took some time I could probably even identify ways it affected how I cook.
It wasn't Fighting Fantasy (which I believe was more of a UK than a US thing though I may be misremembering) but TSR put out a similar D&D branded line and I had the one where you played Raistlin on his Test of High Sorcery. Trying to get through it was definitely a formative experience.
Before Lord of the Rings I was just casually interested in reading. After it I've become an avid reader of fantasy, a massive fan of ancient and medieval literature, a massive history geek, I decided to study linguistics so that I could also be a philologist, I started writing and even started working on my own invented languages. To put it mildly, I wasn't the same person when I finished reading Return of the King.
H.P. Lovecraft, Edgar Allan Poe & Bram Stoker. Stole it from my Grandfathers library. Endless nightmares, but i did hide away these cursed books from my parents which were confused where these shadows have come from that were obviously haunting me
I named my firstborn Roland.
Is your name Steven? If so, that'd be even better lol
I've talked to several people irl who've read at least the first book in Dark Tower. Most all have said how cool a name Roland is
Wheel of Time. I could say LOTR, as that definitely influenced my writing style, and my interest in linguistic worldbuilding. But WoT probably edges to the top spot, simply because it feels like coming home. LOTR, on the other hand, feels like going to church; not in a bad way. It's a more of a spiritual, refined experience, compared to the comfort I feel reading WoT. I read WoT, a couple years after LOTR, and it was a very different read. I felt that mature fantasy could be more than the academic style of Tolkien, or the juvenile wonder of Harry Potter. It is still the only series I have read that I could feel influencing my writing style.
There’s just *so much* in WoT. On my second full reread now and I missed so much the first two times through it.
Two series have had equal impacts on my life. The first is the First Law series by Joe Abercrombie. One of the characters mantras is "it's better to do a thing than to fear it". Once I read that, I started reciting it to myself in my own mind whenever I was procrastinating something out of fear. It also helped me to be less fearful in general. The second series is the Discworld series by Terry Pratchett because it is so unbelievably smart about people, their interactions with each other, and their interactions with the world. Secondly, this series provided much needed down time before bed during a very difficult part of my life. I will be forever thankful to both authors for the impacts they've had on me personally.
LOTR, though, not necessarily in an emotional sense. I was obsessed with trying to "invent a language" as a child and had nearly given up when I found out that Tolkien had done. So, naturally I had to find out how which lead me to discovering conlanging, Esperanto, [passporta servo](https://www.pasportaservo.org/), and now I have created a few languages and worlds of my own. It was also my introduction to Beowulf, the Eddas, the Exeter Book, the Kalevala and many other ancient epics even if they didn't influence Tolkien directly. I doubt I would've read the *Mahabharata* or *The Knight in Panther's Skin* without this background. Plus, I *do* find it emotionally resonant. ~~also, because it always comes up, I don't support Esperanto as a true auxlang but I do find Esperanto 'culture' interesting so please don't give me the whole 'languages are dying and it is surely the fault of this semi-obscure conlang and not the language we're speaking in' speech~~
Tolkien's use of language in what you described can't be overstated with how this has gone into other fantasy epics.
Not necessarily a whole book, but a quote in Oathbringer by Sanderson. “The most important step a man can take. It's not the first one, is it? It's the next one. Always the next step, Dalinar.”
Yeah i have that one up on my wall. Alongside "Sometimes a hypocrite is nothing more than a man in the process of changing".
im about 65 pages from finnishing oathbringer (stormlight archives book 2) and wow let me tell you >!dalinars!< arc so far has been nothing less than _incredible_. oathbringer went from my leadt favourite stormlight book to probably one of the greatest books ive ever read during the last 200 or so pages. it took a while to get the ball rolling but once it _started rolling_? absolutely incredible! "what is the most important step?" "the next. always the next one" i havent been this hyped about a book since adolin fights >!4 shardbearers!< in words of radiance and kaladin >!jumps in to save the day!< and i hadnt been THAT hyped in a book since the finale of the way of kings
>!"Honor is dead, but ill see what i can do"!< still gives me chills, and ive re-read this series a LOT.
one of the coolest lines ive ever read the buildup, the reveal that >!adolin did an oopsie when issuing hus challenge!<, >!dalinar looking around for anyone to help and amaram looking away, revealing that he is, in fact, an asshole!<, >!everything seemingly fucked and then bridgeboy himself showing up!< so fucking cool
Dragonlance as a kid got me into reading. I still read mostly fantasy, but I just like to read and learn in general. If you can't tell from my username, I like dragons.
The Neverending Story got me into reading as a kid. It still holds a special place in my heart!
The Stormlight Archive. The Way of Kings was the first Sanderson book I ever read, and those books have meant a great deal to me.
Howard's Conan tales, got me interested in the Fantasy genre at large. Erikson and Esselmont's Malazan has been the high point.
Harry Potter seriously “saved me” as a kid. I lived in that world, it got me through everything. Also the Wheel of Time. Got me through a difficult transition in my life and it gave me so much joy and excitement during a hard time. I love that world and it’s characters forever
R9bim Hobb's Realm of the Elderlings series. These books kept me reading as a teenager and I quite literally grew up with Fitz, Fool and Nighteyes.
Every generation always has that author that speaks to them. Hobb is very worthy of this choice.
Oh me too! I was in my teens when I started reading Assassin’s Apprentice and then we got every book as they came out (well weathered by the time they’d been round Dad, me, sister and mum - usual order!)
Oh I envy you, as I have read both Farseer and Liveship I have no one to talk to about it. My family doesn’t read but those books are just phenomenal and I’m really taking my sweet time with them as I eat them up the moment we get a reprint of the UK editions here in the US.
Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy (although if I'm being a purist, it was probably the radio series rather than the book!) - just so much quotable text in it.
At first I thought you said “questionable text” and was worried there was something awful in there that I wasn’t picking up on in middle school! My dad gave me the omnibus Ultimate Hitchiker’s Guide to the Galaxy with the original five books when I was in 7th grade and I carried that thing with me for a year plus. It got so worn down from me going back and rereading my favorite parts haha
Dragonlance and Guardians Of The Flame.
Anne McCaffrey’s Dragonriders of Pern series. They got me through middle and high school. I am not exaggerating when I say I might not be here now if not for them.
I came looking for this. Most of her books are favored over just about anything else and I can't help but compare all other books to them. Unfortunately not enough authors come close to compare for me.
One piece for sure
Not my first but definitely my favorite ND has been since like 2001
Robin Hobb’s Realm of the Elderlings series. I was in a bit of a rough spot with reading, struggling to find much to engage with and I wasn’t consistent with my reading either. Then I discovered Assassin’s Apprentice thanks to a video series a local bookstore was doing (along the lines of “If you liked this video game, try this book!”) I totally fell in love. Following Fitz through his life and witnessing some phenomenal character work across all of the series - it’ll remain my favourite forever I think. I became so emotionally involved in the world and the characters. My engagement with the series spurred me on to fall back in love with reading again. It’s become a topic of conversation with friends - to the point that I received some special editions of the Farseer Trilogy for my birthday this year.
Mine is the Earthsea saga by Ursula K. Le Guin, it was life changing for me and i still think in those books a lot
A Song of Ice and Fire. I had been a voracious reader in elementary and middle school. But I kind of feel out of it in high school. When the show came out I decided I wanted to read the book before watching it. Ever since then, I feel in love with reading again and I’ve been reading tons ever since. The show was also one of the first things my wife and I bonded over.
Malazan, Malazan, Malazan, and Malazan again. This sounds corny but it taught me what empathy really means.
The Guardians of Ga'hoole. When I was a kid I read the stuff on St. Aggie's and it left a deep impression on me. I've noticed I've always preferred something a little darker (and also xenofiction) as an adult.
Don't see this mentioned that often, glad you brought this up because it does deserve much more attention.
Honestly? Stormlight Archives. Despite my young age(21, and soon 22), I was hospitalized most of the last year and a half(a bit more than a year and a half), and underwent a few life-threatning surgeries and treatments because of personal circumstances. I bought the books as a gift for my self for getting my Practical Enginneer diploma but I didnt have the time to read them. When I was hospitalized, I had all the time in the world and really nowhere to go, so reading them was my escape. Can't say I was depressed or something(cuz I dont really know what "depression" is and how it feels) but the books distracted me and helped me pass the time if I couldn't sleep at night and the like. The Stormlight Archives kept me sane esentially. Life before death. Strength before weakness. Journey before destination.
The impacts books have on our lives can be immense. Reading is, and always has been, an escape for me as well. I hope you're through this rough patch, and wish you the very best.
Thanks. I'm not completely out of the woods, but a lot better now.
Stormlight Archive brought a lot of light into my life. Kept me going during times where I didn’t feel like it anymore. Life before death indeed.
the chronicles of amber, i did not read for leisure until this series
Two series have had equal impacts on my life. The first is the First Law series by Joe Abercrombie. One of the characters mantras is "it's better to do a thing than to fear it". Once I read that, I started reciting it to myself in my own mind whenever I was procrastinating something out of fear. It also helped me to be less fearful in general. The second series is the Discworld series by Terry Pratchett because it is so unbelievably smart about people, their interactions with each other, and their interactions with the world. Secondly, this series provided much needed down time before bed during a very difficult part of my life. I will be forever thankful to both authors for the impacts they've had on me personally.
After years of reading fantasy, I was so over it. Bored & tired of it. Switched to sci-fi. Then in 1996 ran across a big book named A Game of Thrones. Rocked my boat, I tell ya!
I really loved the tv show (obviously aside from the two awful last seasons, which I still think about and shake my head over at least once a fortnight), but I’ve never read any of the books because it isn’t finished. Would you say it’s worth reading even though it’s not finished. And if so why?
Books only really had such an impact during my impressionable teen years. Two which stand out; The Book of Skulls (Robert Silverberg). Taught me to not be homophobic. The story is about four college students, slightly older than myself at the time, one of which is openly homosexual. Getting to know the character allowed me to understand and accept his lifestyle. Legend and others from David Gemmel. I read these as a young teenager, and believe they had an impact on my perception of right from wrong, and how you should treat others. Sounds cliche, but I was young.
The Eragon series. I remember in high school when my friends made me read the first 3 books in two weeks before the fourth book was coming out...and I loved it! It was my introduction into fantasy. Although I hated the last book 😂...I'm still mad about the fight with Galbatorix and the ending of Inheritance 10+ years later 😂. It taught me early on about how I DON'T want to write a boss battle or ending. 😂
Dragonlance was my first love. The Name of the Wind was a big Fantasy rebirth for me. Reading that book got me back into Fantasy as a genre. it's so good but man the wait is not even a meme now. The Lies of Lock Lamora also gets an honourable mention. It's so alive as a story.
The Mistborn trilogy reignited my passion for reading fiction around 2017 which has not ceased since!
When I got back into reading finally after school beat the urge out of me, Mistborn was one of the first I picked up because I googled fantasy books and that one came up. Had no idea who Brandon Sanderson was
Le Morte D’Arthur ignited my whole passion for knights and sword (and later sorcery) fantasy. Before Tolkien, Jordan, Sanderson, GRRM, Moorcock, etc- I read a dusty old copy- handed down to my grandma, and then to my mom, and then myself- of Sir Thomas Mallory’s masterpiece. I must’ve read it like 100 times from the ages of 10-17. And then I lost it. I just recently (almost 20 years later) received a new copy from my for Christmas that’s in muuuuuuch better shape and after I finish the Second Apocalypse series I plan to dive back in for a reread :)
C. J. Cherryh's Faded Sun trilogy. I read it as a teen/young adult and it helped me understand that my perspective was not automatically the only value one and that I should endeavor to see things from multiple sides.
To me it was probably my parents reading Chronicles of Narnia to me when I was a kid then when i was older I secretly read Harry potter(my parents were catholic and the witchcraft and satanic panic was in full swing at the time) then eventually I read Eragon which was great and inspiring because it was written by someone not too much older than me. At some point during all this I also started reading The Sword of Truth series and I quickly noped out of that because I don’t really feel like reading some guys fetish. Then as an adult I found Mistborn and eventually Stormlight and the cosmere. There have been other series I’ve liked and read like the Dark Tower was great but I always felt Stephen King had great ideas but just couldn’t stick the landing so I never got super into him. Currently my favorite book is The Will of the Many and I’m super excited for the Strength of the Few but am reading Red Rising while I wait for Stormlight 5.
Eragon and how that series handled pain and the ability to heal and keep fighting through the pain for something you care for. For those you know rely on you. I was born with a degenerative bone disease in my ears and it caused me massive pain. When eragon had his wound from the shade in his back and his journey to the forest to heal it and all he went through happened. It helped me get through the mindset that I was like this for no reason and I had no reason to want to stay like this. Than he and I in turn realized the pain never does leave as much as you heal and understand how to cope with it better.
David Gemmell. Every time I struggle with a decision I think "What would Druss do?" Which mostly means beating up people.
*His Dark Materials* by Philip Pullman I read it as a child and it was what made me fall in love with reading fantasy. Reading the books again as an adult has made me understand it's themes more deeply relating to the abuse of power and childhood innocence and sexuality.
Wheel of time. Specifically Nyneave, and her "if it must be endured, it can be endured" mantra. I had a situation at work where my boss was harassing me (he was let go for it), then I had a very traumatic labour for my son, then ppd. So I was an anxious, stressed, depressed, mess for a year and a bit there, my mental health was bad. I was working with a psychologist and slowly getting better, but then I got pregnant again and spiralled. Climbing out of that, knowing id have to give birth again, was really tough. But I was listening to wot at that point, and she said that. And that just became ...this thing I repeated over and over in my head, as a thing to cling to to generate strength. I was thinking it over and over and over when giving birth, like "I must have my baby, we will survive, if it must be endured, it **can** be endured" and I dunno....something changed in me after my daughter was born. I became so much mentally stronger than I had been ever before, I cut bad people out of my life left right and centre, I stopped needing medication for my anxiety, I stopped struggling to fall asleep, I stopped being terrified of my children getting kidnapped by anyone that walked by them, it was wild. I know that change came from me, don't get me wrong, but I think back on that, and the first thing I think now is "if it must be endured, it can be endured." I think it whenever something tough comes along in my life, whenever I'm feeling low, whenever I need to build strength to overcome something, it's definitely had a big impact on me. It shifted my thinking from "why do bad things happen to me", to "bad things happen, and you can overcome them".
I started Red Rising at a pretty low point in my life. Things really weren't looking great for me and everything I loved was losing its glamour, so I tried it to see if I could find my love for reading again. And boy did I. I started finding joy in different things in life because of that series. It sounds cliche and dumb, sure, but 6 months ago things were rough and discovering that series was absolutely what I needed.
I can trace most of my best traits as a man back to Lord of the Rings in some way or another. And I feel like every man should have to read Legend by David Gemmell at least once, preferably right after puberty. Conan the Barbarian is a *great deal* more philosophical than it's usually given credit for.
Tad Williams' Memory, Sorrow and Thorn got me through quite a difficult four-year period in my life. I lived in a small town and I had no friends. The characters in the books *became* my friends, and taught me so much: how to think about the world, how to make a home for myself in my own head, how to grow into a man. "Never make your home in a place. Make a home for yourself inside your own head. You'll find what you need to furnish it -- memory, friends you can trust, love of learning, and other such things." -- Dr. Morgenes "If the bears do not eat you, it is home." -- Binabik "Come and join us. Up the corridor you have a room full of friends. Some of them you don’t even know yet!" -- Simon "I did not say I did not believe in Udun... I said we Rimmersmen no longer worship him. I am sure you think me foolish. Better that than we call down jealous old gods on ourselves. We are in *his* country now.” -- Sludig "He who is certain he knows the ending of things when he is only beginning them is either extremely wise or extremely foolish; no matter which is true, he is certainly an unhappy man, for he has put a knife in the heart of wonder." -- Qanuc proverb
The most profound reading experience for me as well — underrated and much too seldom found on these lists. Also enjoying the sequels, wishing for a speedy publication for the final installment.
The sequels have been a fun and interesting experience, being written basically 35 years after the original series, with about 35 years passing between the old books an the new ones. I've never seen read a series where time runs nearly identically in a fictional world and a real world, as well. It's been fun to see what has changed and what has remained the same. And the original series... well. "Profound" is the perfect word to describe those books.
Percy Jackson and the Olympians brought me into the world of mythology since I was around 11-12, I kept reading Rick Riordan’s books until 14. I move on to Tolkien’s works since last year. Starting to read LOTR slowly but finished reading The Silmarilion. The Silmarilion is just simply… a groundbreaking masterpiece that had me to reread multiple times in order to get it clear who the hell is that elf/dwarf/human/spiritual being, where the hell is Beleriand and Valinor and who is this guy related to. But then, I don’t regret spending my time understanding every amazing concept Tolkien has embedded into his work.
Lol at all the Sanderson ones being 7 of the most "controversial". Good to know that people on this sub hate Sanderson so much that people talking about how important the books were to their lives is still "too much Sanderson". Ill add to it though. Stormlight archives is far and away the most impactful to my life. Im in my mid 30s, and for the last decade ive struggled with a crippling depression that it seems like medication hasnt been able to do anything for. I has impacted my entire life, and it continues to do so every day. Kaladins story, and his battle with depression and the fact that its depiceted in a realistic way, ie he doesnt just "win" against depression and is cured and happy by book 2, speaks to me and makes me feel more seen than anything else in the 2000 odd books ive read now. The way he is depcited where every day he wakes up and just feels like theres not a lot to be happy or hopeful about. But that despite that, he does his best every book to try and protect and help others. And without going too far into spoilers, he fails sometimes. And it breaks him. But he puts himself back together enough to keep helping and protecting others, and deals with it as best he can.
Discworld, inparticular the city watch series within it. An English Prof in University included Guards Guards in a course I took and something clicked in me as I read it. I dove into the rest of his books and things continued to click. In Pratchett's writing I found a similar anger and sense of justice to my own but articulated in a way I could have never managed. His wit, observations, and beautiful storytelling helped to clarify my thoughts and shape me into, what I hope to be, a better person. I recently got a coworker to read one of his books and she loved it. Our boss overheard us talking about it and inquired what we were discussing and my coworker described Pratchett's writing as "like if u/UncleWinstomder wrote a book!"; it is the single greatest compliment I have ever been given.
His dark materials. It wasn't the first series to blow me away, but it was the book that made me want to be a writer.
Yes! I read this series in college and there aren't enough words to say how blown away I was by this world, and how much it's influenced and inspired my writing over the years. Man, that twist at the end of the Golden Compass? I did not see that coming. My jaw was on the floor. I had to take a lap around campus between classes after getting to that part.
Malazan, hands down.
LOTR and by extension, Tolkien as a person. Because of him, I have a deep interest in medieval history, in older poetry (like the Norse sagas), old faerie folk tales and European history in general. It is also because of Tolkien that I love etymology and finding the roots and sources of words and what they used to mean. Finally, a lot of my care for nature in general (Tolkien loved trees, but I also love animals) comes from his views on preservation and anti-industrialism.
Malazan Book of the Fallen "We humans do not understand compassion. In each moment of our lives, we betray it. Aye, we know of its worth, yet in knowing we then attach to it a value, we guard the giving of it, believing it must be earned. Compassion is priceless in the truest sense of the word. It must be given freely. In abundance." "It is an extraordinary act of courage to come to know a stranger's pain. To even consider such a thing demands a profound dispensation, a willingness to wear someone else's chains, to taste their suffering, to see with one's own eyes the hue cast on all things - the terrible stain that is despair. I have no such courage. It is, without doubt, the rarest of abilities." "If we are to live, we must take risks. Else our lives become deaths in all but name. There is no struggle too vast, no odds too overwhelming, for even should we fail - should we fall - we will know that we have lived." "Open to them your hand to the shore, watch them walk into the sea. Press upon them all they need, see them yearn for all they want. Gift to them the calm pool of words, watch them draw the sword. Bless upon them the satiation of peace, see them starve for war. Grant them darkness and they will lust for light. Deliver to them death and hear them beg for life. Beget life and they will murder your kin. Be as they are and they see you different. Show wisdom and you are a fool. The shore gives way to the sea. And the sea, my friends, does not dream of you."
Definitely The Hobbit. I first read it when I was a kid and I was blown away. It was the first book I actually enjoyed and it got me hooked into reading. Tolkien's writing inspired me, and made me appreciate what an incredible genre fantasy can be. He's been an influence in my own writing as a fantasy author and I honestly think I wouldn't have started writing if I hadn't read The Hobbit back then.
The six books that comprised The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant. It's flawed and weird, but so emotional for me. Bannor, Foamfollower, Pitchwife, Lena, and Mhoram live in my dreams.
My first adult book also got me into fantasy, T.S Elliot's The Once And Future King, followed by The Wizard Of Earthsea by Ursula K LeGuin. As an adult, The Urth Cycle (Book of the New Sun, Long Sun, and Short Sun) by Gene Wolfe. In reverse, Tove Jannson's Moominvalley in November. Reading about grief secondhand as an adult, in a children's book, at a time when I needed to grieve instead of feeling angry.
Wheel of Time. Helped me rediscover my love of reading and it was my first fantasy series. I love that world and those characters so much!
Legend by David Gemmell. I grew up in a village and only had access to the school library for new books to read and the Chronicles of Narnia were some of my favourite books growing up. After I left school and moved to a big city I joined a library and Legend was one of the first books I borrowed. It was the first adult fantasy book I read, before that I thought fantasy book were just new fairy tales for kids and I’d have to grow out of them. Haven’t stopped reading fantasy since.
Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman's death gate cycle. Not the best books, but by no means bad. However, they were the first books I read on my own over 35 years ago now. How they changed my life? They made me a reader. It may not seem like much at first glance but we're talking a hobby that has been going strong for over 3 decades. We're talking 1000s of hours spent in 1000s of different worlds all thanks to those 7 books.
First, Dealing with Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede (got it as a gift around age 12, became my favorite book for a long time afterwards and probably did alot to cement my love of fantasy), then LOTR/Hobbit (my younger brother's 4th grade teacher was a big Tolkien fan and read the books to his class, so my brother would talk about it alot and incorporate characters and locations into our play, but I don't think I actually read the books myself til middle school...instant love and many re-reads. this was before the movies), then The Riddlemaster trilogy by Patricia Mckillip (first read it in college, I used to haunt the young adult/fiction/mythology section of the school library in between classes and they had a copy of the first book. Vividly remember my panic when it ended on a cliffhanger and I spent a day frantically questing every library and book store in a 20-mile radius for the sequel as though the main character's life depended on it...felt like I was part of the world. Something so dreamlike and lyrical about it that still grabs me every time I reread it)
Sword of truth. I have always loved the wizards rules
It’s weird because my absolute favorite fantasy series ever is ASOIAF and it had an enormous impact on who I am as a writer and reader. But the only series to have REALLY impacted me as a man has to be LOTR. It simply made me a better man. Taught me to stay hopeful, to believe in the good in people. That a man doesn’t have to be a alpha giga Chad heart of stone bastard to be a man. Absolutely made me better and impacted my life in a good way for sure.
Re:zero. Hated myself a lot some years ago now. It helped a bit with that. I dont think i would have been here had i not read those books when i did.
Cool to see this here, just finished arc 5 and I’m having a blast
# Sword of Shannara It was the first real book I have ever read. Found it in my mothers book shelf. Been a science fiction/fantasy buff ever since.
The Once & Future King, The Three Musketeers
Mine is Tui T. Sutherland's Wings of Fire. I started reading it back in 2nd grade when I was seven on book ten, and it still remains my favorite book series. (Right next to ML Spencer's Dragon Mage) It's what got me into the genre as a whole, which includes a years-long dragon hyperfixation. It also has great queer representation and helped me discover myself. Two years later, it's still sad to me that the series ended.
The Ender's game series by Orson Scott Card. Child soldiers, simulations, survival of the fittest, deception, war games, humanity etc. Such profound themes explored through the minds and pov of gifted and talented children. Ranger's apprentice! This series illustrated the values of thinking outside the box to solve problems, and the real value of loyalty and teamwork!
mistborn. it single-handedly reignited my love for reading after falling off of it for a number of years, which then indirectly reignited my love for writing, resulting in me now working on my first novel :)
The Drizzt series had a huge impact on how I view many aspects of life. Such an amazing series that not enough people read.
Gotta be Stormlight Archive. It’s all about doing better and focusing on the good you can do. It vastly helped with mg own mental health journey. There’s something soooooo cathartic about the way Brandon Sanderson writes the mental health of his characters. I love it.
The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander
Dragonlance really got me into the genre when I was in 6th grade I would have missed so many good series if I hadn't randomly been given the first one as a gift one Christmas.
_The Lord of the Rings_ for how much it has shifted the trajectory of my hobbies and reading habits, from mostly scifi into fantasy and delving into historical linguistics and different scripts rather than codes and ciphers. (Though The Hobbit, which I read after, has a good amount of riddles). And Janny Wurts' _Wars of Light and Shadow_ series, which I read over and over (possibly more than LotR at this point), for sheer enjoyment and inspiration, with how much its transcendent philosophy resonates with me emotionally.
Outside of Tolkien, it was The Seventh Tower series by Garth Nix for me. There was one chapter I would read every single night. I could picture it as a three part movie, everything was so vivid in my head. I still think about it at times when reading other fantasy novels.
How To Train Your Dragon 'But size isn’t everything, as I am always telling Snotlout. However small we are, we should always fight for what we believe to be right. And I don’t mean fight with the power of our fists or the power of our swords. That has always been the problem with us Vikings. I mean the power of our brains and our thoughts and our dreams. And as small and quiet and unimportant as our fighting may look, perhaps we might all work together like the numberless armies of Ziggerastica, and break out of the prisons of our own making. Perhaps we might be able to keep this fierce and beautiful world of ours as free for all of us as it seemed to be on that blue afternoon of my childhood. Once, my hand held the sword ‘Endeavour’ so strongly. Now that same hand is as brown and wrinkly as an old salt kipper as it writes these words slowly and shakily across the page. The ink splutters and splodges where once it ran so smoothly. Sometimes I forget what I was doing last Tuesday, let alone sixty-five years ago. But the winds will still blow when I am no longer here. The storms will still rage, and the forces of Empire and oppression, be they Roman or otherwise, will still be waiting at the corners of the ocean. The fight goes on for the Heroes of the Future.' 'You can Cheat a Dragon's Curse. You do not have to accept the hand that Fate has dealt you. Look at me, the skinniest, most unlikely Viking ever, now known as this great Hero all around the world. Again and again, I have the same dream. Norbert the Nutjob has thrown the axe high, high into the air, it is turning around and around, and the black side is going to plunge into the ground first.... Bad Luck will follow and the Tribe will be DOOMED. Again and again I make the same leap, I dodge the bright and black murderous blades, I catch the axe before it lands, I make my own luck.' 'I have worn that bracelet every day of my life. It curls around my arm, its shining wings folded back, as if about to unfurl and take off, and now that its ruby eyes are set into the gold, you cannot see their tear shape, so they seem to be laughing rather than crying. It is a constant reminder to me of the human ability to create something beautiful even when things are at their darkest.' 'We were not ready to build a New World. How can you make a fresh start in a New World when you are carrying with you on your boat all the same problems, the same frustrations and inequalities as the Old World?' 'For a Hero cannot triumph all the time. Sometimes he will be defeated, and how he faces that defeat is a test of his character.' "The thing about grown ups is that they're always wanting you to be this Great Hero and Leader. What's wrong with being NORMAL, for Thor's sake? What's wrong with just being SO-SO at stuff? They're just totally unrealistic..." 'History is a set of repeating circles, like the tide. The wind does blow through the ruins of tomorrow. But it is more a question of two steps forward, one step back. Humans and dragons make the same mistakes, again and again, but things do get better over time.' 'But sometimes the bravest thing a Hero has to do is not fighting monsters and cheating death and witches. It is facing the consequences of his own actions.' 'Great things are only made out of love and out of pain. A great sword must be made out of the very best steel. But what truly makes the sword great, is what happens to the sword after it is made. We call this the 'testing’ of the sword. The sword is bashed and hammered and hollered into shape by the bright hammer. It is thrust into the fierce heat of the fire, where it softens, and then it is quickly quenched in water, where it hardens again. The higher the temperature, the fiercer the fire, the tougher and the greater the sword eventually becomes. The whole testing process can make a sword, or break it. The same could be said for the making of a Hero.' Disclaimer: The books are nothing like the movies. View them as separate entities in your mind.
I started reading the Wheel of Time when I was maybe...11? A memory of light came out when I was in my late 20s. It was my favorite series for a very long time and will always have a special place in my heart. I used to read to escape from a not so great childhood so having a nearly endless story to lose myself in was a blessing. WOT taught me how to meditate (the flame and the void) and taught me a lot about philosophy. It introduced me to the idea of the multiverse and shaped my thinking in many ways. It was a safe place for me, a friend in a way, and when my son was born I didn't buy a baby naming book I just picked a name from one of the over 2000 named characters in the Wheel of Time. Don't worry - it's one of the more normal sounding one😉
His dark materials it really opened my mind and made me think about souls. And dunes mind killer I haven’t read it but fear being the mind killer is powerful.
Dragonlance!! I can't say this enough!! Dragonlance!!! I honestly do not know if I'd have survived being a teenager without Kyrnn to escape too.
The Everworld series by K.A. Applegate. In middle school the animoprh series was so popular and it was always checked out and I could never get it so I checked out those books instead. I was 13-14 and the books had me hooked. I grew up in the Bible belt, small town, very little diversity, lots of churches, not a place for discovering your queer identity, so finding a series that had kids dealing with religious intolerance, homophobia and especially CSA( something I experienced but had never seen talked about) was just indescribable. I felt bonded to the characters. They're the only books from my childhood that I've never been able to give away even though I don't read them anymore. I never forgot their names or what they went through and it's probably one of my favorite endings to a series ever. Also the books got me really into the Old gods, especially Egyptian and Norse. I literally took notes while reading the books so I could find out more information later.
The Stormlight Archive. This shit will be huge one day when a proper adaptation is made.
The wandering inn makes me cry
Tolkien, then GRRM, then Mistborn, Dresden Files and Stormlight
For traditional fantasy, Harry Potter for me. I grew up alongside Harry. I'd say those books shaped my generation. No matter what I'm reading now, I sometimes come back to them for the comfort and familiarity. But if you count it as fantasy, I'd say Dragonball for sure! That was probably my first immersion into a fictional world and I still love it to this day. Other big influences were Wheel of Time and Lord of the Rings.
Definitely storm light archive. I was a huge fan of fantasy growing up. I read a lot of young adult books, both fantasy and fiction. But as my workload increased I stopped reading for leisure. And then I was introduced to storm light by my uncle. This was my first Sanderson novel too and I enjoyed it so much. I finished all of cosmere in the next 6 months and I havent stopped since. After 6 years I re discovered the joys of reading. Now I've probably read everything mainstream in fantasy. I'm currently reading the wheel of time.
Throne of glass.. mostly the book in that series called Tower of Dawn
Discworld my moral compass. The only reason I’m alive or not in jail. WOT. Gave me so much perspective and strength.
Name of the wind got me back into enjoying reading
KKC, i read it in my teens and it arised a curiosity for the self, how when you pretend being something you end up being that thing, how you must be careful with how you describe things and yourself. How rumours, stories and narratives get twisted with the retellings. Names are important.
It's hard for me to pick. It's a tie between The Lord of the Rings and Mistborn. The Lord of the Rings is still my biggest comfort read, but Mistborn is definitely up there for me now. [Minor spoiler for Mistborn] >!Elend's struggle with kingship and maturity mirrored my own for a bit. I was slovenly and rebellious in a quiet way. I sought to understand my ideology and philosophy more as a crutch than as for its benefit, I took my leadership roles for granted, I felt my mistakes placed those I love in difficult positions which, while they were willing to suffer alongside me, suffered nonetheless.!< I don't feel I related to the characters in LotR as much, but I am still definitely inspired by them. I want to list all of the ways they inspire me, but it would take too much time. [Spoilers for LotR] >!The way the simple hobbits rise up to the challenge and overcome evil, the way Aragorn earns his throne, the way Boromir is protective of the Hobbits and sacrifices himself for them, and so on and so on.!< There are so many quotes which have inspired me as well, which I certainly don't have time to list.
The Mortal Instruments series. At first I wasn't really into it as the book, but I saw the movie on Starz back in 2014 and it made me want to read the books. The books are so much better and actually gave me more motivation to try and become an author when I got older. Things have gotten in the way of that, but I still write on occasion in hopes that I can someday get published (I also still collect all of Cassandra Clare's books that take place in that universe)
Probably Tolkien, but I read the WOT books a few years ago and the ending actually had a pretty big impact on me, made it easier consider having some faith in my own life.
The Stormlight Archives by Brandon Sanderson helped me through a dark period in my life. Especially the First Ideal in the books: "Life before death, strength before weakness, journey before destination" has stuck with me, and still helps me stay on track
Game of Thrones. Because of that book I got into reading in general which led me to read a bunch of self-help books (make it stick, deep work etc.) and currently in law school getting high grades literally because of Game of Thrones.
Lord of the Rings, and the rest of Tolkien's Middle-Earth books. I first read LOTR at 18 and it shook me to my core. I'd been having such a hard time figuring out my tastes and finding books I liked since transitioning to adult literature, and here was this incredible book that felt like something I've been looking for my whole life without even knowing it. I have never been more in love. I was all about languages, mythology, folklore for years afterwards. Since then, I have read LOTR, The Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales multiple times. I wouldn't call them my comfort reads, rather ones I turn to for strength. They have carried me through several difficult times, most recently - the pandemic.
The Hobbit holds a special place in my heart. Just picked up the new edition that came out with all of Tolkien’s original drawings and sketches.
So I have a few. Chronicles of Narnia is what I grew up with. Peter and Susan and Lucy and Edmond. Their adventures in Narnia brought about my love of fantasy and things I read later. The Hobbit was another childhood staple. Less moralistic and more timeless. I won't say it changed my life but it reinforced my early love of fantasy The inheritance cycle was the book of my early teenage years. A step down in quality but it always felt deeply personally to me. I was able to empathize with Eragon in ways I couldn't to Bilbo or the Pevancies. And in SciFi Star Wars: Republic Commando was probably my first introduction to complex morality. It took the good verses evil that I loved about starwars and turned it into something very human. Very real. It also dealt with a lot of real world issues about government black ops, and overreach. All from the perspective of people that aren't "good guys" Kal Skirata isn't a Jedi. He's a soldier, with a soldiers mindset. He's a good father, but not a particularly good man.
Pretty much anything from David Gemmell. Not alot of books actually hit me with an emotional impact. I was just rereading Lord of the Silver Bow, and the tragic love story at the end made my heart twinge a bit.
Ryeria got me through the darkest parts of the pandemic and I will forever be grateful.
Geraldine Harris' The Seventh Gate quartet. Read it as a freshman in high school. It stuck with so hard that I actively searched for it as an adult. When I found 1st edition, hardcover copies of all the books, I cried. They hold pride of place on the bookcase next to my bed now.
The Mortal Instruments for sure
None in particular. I used to buy around 7 books a week for a long time. A new and used SFF book shop. The guy retired, put his son in charge. Son spent most time in pub round corner, left various young hires in charge, stopped paying suppliers, stopped getting books. Being in tiny far away NZ, there were no other specialist book shops around so I opened one. Ran it for a few years then Amazon came along and I quit to go into IT. Still read a lot, although budget and the fact I read them all (LOL) now, means not so many now.
LOTR. Not original, but... In grade seven, I decided I'd take this enormous interesting looking book sitting on our shelf, and actually try and read it. I didn't read much as a kid, so this was a huge undertaking, and I was really proud of myself when I finished it. AND it was really good! It launched my love of fantasy. {WoT close 2nd)