Lewis and Tolkien are the obvious favorites. After that there are the Attolia books. Nearly everyone who posted in these threads frequently over the years has read and liked them. Jane Austen gets a lot of reads as well as other classic authors like the Brontes and Charles Dickens. Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell was pretty popular here too. Agatha Christie comes up a lot. Of course there's also bestselling books like the Harry Potter and Hunger Games series.

Thanks.

I've also heard other names mentioned on here quite frequently. Chesterton, N.D. Wilson, Neil Gaiman, Ted Dekker, E. Wein, Diana Wynne Jones, Patricia A. McKillip, and others as well. What are their best books? What other favorite authors am I forgetting?

Also, does Neil Gaiman have books for people like me who are sensitive to suggestive content? Or are all of his books kind of... un-family-friendly?

And I was curious about Ted Dekker. I've often heard of his Circle series. Is that good? I looked it up and got two results -- one said The Circle Books (which had 4 books); and the other said The Forgotten Books, but they also said "Circle books" on the covers... What's going on with that?

I've also heard his book Thr3e mentioned before. Is that part of a series, or a stand alone novel? Does it have anything to do with the Circle books? Which ones are better?

~Riella

Thr3e is stand-alone and quite good. I haven't finished reading the Circle books and all of the assorted off-shoots. For Dekker questions, W4J or Elle would be better qualified to answer than I.

Neil Gaiman has written a few children's books like Coraline and The Graveyard Book. They're both very good; The Graveyard Book won the Newberry Award.

Diana Wynne Jones is one of my very favorite fantasy authors and all of her books are fantastic. Some of the best are her Chrestomanci books and the Howl books which began with Howl's Moving Castle. Another I'm fond of is The Tough Guide to Fantasyland, which is a very witty look at the tropes of fantasy novels, all presented in the guise of a travel guide.

Everything Patricia McKillip writes is beautiful and amazing. The Bell at Sealey Head has been a constant favorite in the Books threads. It's somewhat Austen-like in its fantasy world and just lovely.

I know N. D. Wilson has a new book out, but I haven't had a chance to read it yet. I have read his 100 Cupboards trilogy, which I loved. It's definitely a series that you can tell was inspired by Narnia, but it doesn't feel like a ripoff. Definitely recommend it.

Brian Jacques' Redwall series is also a favorite, as is his Castaways of the Flying Dutchman.

I have also seen G. K. Chesterton and P. G. Wodehouse mentioned frequently. The Percy Jackson series has also been popular.

If you want some of my personal favorites that haven't been mentioned so far, here's a short list:

The Dark is Rising Sequence by Susan Cooper
Watership Down by Richard Adams
The Sword in the Stone and The Once and Future King by T. H. White (The first is technically included in the second, but if you can find the separate edition, it's longer and better.)
Descent into Hell and War in Heaven by Charles Williams (of the Inklings)
The Oath by Frank Peretti
The Dresden Files series by Jim Butcher (Beware of some pretty rough language in these, and the occasional mention of other not-so-kid-friendly stuff.)

*pops in and raises hand like a schoolkid*

O O O...you're forgetting Lemony Snicket!!! He is just awesome, such a unique writer.

James Herriot!

Edit: In all seriousness, though, Megan Whalen Turner (Attolia/Queen's Thief series), Patricia McKillip (Riddlemaster Trilogy), James Herriot, The Perilous Gard by Elizabeth Marie Pope, Rosemary Sutcliff (historical fiction especially focusing on what became Britain), and Diana Wynne Jones (many, many books) are probably some of the book thread favorites that are least known to the general public. But of course there are also the dozens of books out there that are considered "classic" literature that are excellent, and other books that may well gain favorite status once enough people have read them (N.D. Wilson may be in this category, if he hasn't reached favorite status already).

Yotsuba&! is adorable, CSLN! I'm sorry to hear that your library doesn't have more than the first book, though. Maybe you could try getting it through Inter-Library Loan? Our library doesn't have any of them, but SummerSnow and I have amassed the first six volumes together.
How're you enjoying The Hound of the Baskervilles? It's been ages since I read it, but I remember liking it.

Have you started The Sword at Sunset yet, Shantih? I should really read some more Sutcliff, but they're kind of hard to find and the uni library lost pretty much all of their's.

I recently read The Serpent's Shadow too, Arwenel. And, yes, while I don't like the Kane Chronicles quite as much as the Percy Jackson and Heroes of Olympus series, they're still quite fun. And I have a special soft spot for Egyptian mythology. I, em, can't quite remember what the Doctor Who shout-outs were---could you enlighten me? I did catch one of the not-so-subtle references to the other series, though I missed the really obvious one in the beginning.

Ithilwen, you've gotten a number of good answers already about NW favourites, but I'll try to give you some thoughts on the particular ones you asked about.

G. K. Chesterton: Probably his most famous books are the Father Brown mysteries, though NWebbers generally also tend to like The Man Who Was Thursday a lot. I wasn't very fond of it but Manalive is another Chesterton that gets mentioned a fair amount.

N.D. Wilson: Booky mentioned The 100 Cupboards series, which is quite good. Wilson also wrote Leepike Ridge which is an adventure with lots of references back to classical adventure stories. He also has at least one non-fiction book, Notes from a Tilt-a-Whirl and he has a new fiction series out as well. Meltintalle would be a good one to ask if you're curious; I believe she's read them both.

Patricia A. McKillip: Like Booky mentioned, The Bell at Sealey Head is a favourite. Also, In the Forests of Serre is another well-liked one. She has a number of books, but I'm drawing a blank on other favourites, I'm afraid.

Also, the Attolia books are written by Megan Whalen Turner if you weren't aware.

stwin mentioned both P. G. Wodehouse and the Percy Jackson series.
P.G. Wodehouse: It's hard to recommend one, I think. He's best known for his Jeeves books, though he's got tons of characters and they all overlap through different books. A personal favourite is Heavy Weather (if you ever get a chance to see the BBC adaptation, do---it's great), though.

Rick Riordan (AKA author of the Percy Jackson series): He's written three series so far---the Percy Jackson series, a sequel/companion series called The Heroes of Olympus, and The Kane Chronicles---and they're all adventure stories steeped in mythology. Percy Jackson deals with Greek mythology, Heroes of Olympus with Greek and Roman, and Kane Chronicles with Egyptian. They're quite fun.

And, yes, don't forget James Herriot as Rivulus pointed out!

Some other pretty popular authors here would probably be Dorothy L. Sayers (the Lord Peter mysteries), Elizabeth Gaskell, and Elizabeth Marie Pope (particularly The Perilous Gard though there's also The Sherwood Ring).

(And Rivulus just edited, and some of this information may be redundant now. Oops. )

*peeks in, shyly*

Hey, fellow bookworms!
I know I don't post in here often, but I always love reading about what you're reading!

Anyway, I actually read a book this week! (quit laughing... it's been awhile since I've actually been in the mood to read a book ) It's actually one I've meant to read for awhile. See, a friend of mine wrote it. (yes, I have a signed copy)

Ok, let's stop there a minute. Am I a little biased, because I know the author? Perhaps. But even so, I have a feeling that I'd like it even if I didn't know him! I mean, it's a fantasy novel... part of it involves World War 2 Germany... and it's got music involved. Why wouldn't I like it?!

Have I made you all curious yet? Alright, I'll tell you more.

Fun Facts:
1) It's the first published work of one of my best friends. But it's not his first book... he's written lots of stuff over the years! (yes, I've read some of them)
2) It's got a sequel (or two) in the works already!
3) He's got several more being written, and has two other things published already! (another novel, and some other smaller thing)

Facts about the Book:
Title: The Canticle Kingdom
Author: Michael D. Young

Now, before I post the summary, I want to say something. I'm only telling you part of it. The first part on the back of the book doesn't really fit... the people it mentions only show up toward the end of the novel. So, yeah. I'm only showing you the relevant part.

Summary:
"When the Canticle Kingdom is attacked and the queen falls deathly ill, Johann, a young blacksmith's apprentice, learns a terrible secret - the kingdom is contained entirely within a music box in another world.. With the help of his friends, Johann races to bring aid from that other world in an effort to stop the dark power that
threatens to destroy them all.

Enter a beautiful world full of magic, danger, loyalty, and bravery in
The Canticle Kingdom, and discover that even the most ordinary objects
and people might be hiding something truly wonderful inside."

And it's pretty cover:

If you have any questions, feel free to ask me! (either here, or by pm)

Edit:
Thought you'd find how he signed it interesting:
"To Andrea,
It may not be Narnia, but I hope you love it just the same.
Michael Young"

Hello! *phew* I hope all are doing well. It’s been getting kind of warm here, so we’re breaking out the ice-cream, cold cold water, popsicles, hehe…. ahem.

I hope you enjoy Idylls of the King, CSLewisNarnia. It's one of my favourite books (if you can say that about a collection of poetry...

Thank-you Shantih. I read just the beginning of it and I think it’s a book that I would enjoy.

CSLewis: Was it "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner?" I read a graphic novel version of "The Rime of the Modern Mariner." It was quick and strange. What did you think of dear old Silas? I just read it for class and it kind of got buried under all the other Eliot I was reading.

It was the “Rime of the Ancient Mariner” yes! I enjoyed it a lot: it kind of reminded me of VDT Oh, really, wow! *forgive me, but, is a graphic novel different from manga?* That genre is kind of new to me, so.. :”}
I liked Silas! He was a pretty nice guy, even when he was a miser. Ditto, I read it for class, and I was really surprised! It definitely didn’t end the way I expected it to or anything! Eppie was a nice character herself.

Spoiler

I don’t usually love romance, but I was glad she ended up with Aaron

Yotsuba&! is adorable, CSLN! I'm sorry to hear that your library doesn't have more than the first book, though. Maybe you could try getting it through Inter-Library Loan? Our library doesn't have any of them, but SummerSnow and I have amassed the first six volumes together.
How're you enjoying The Hound of the Baskervilles? It's been ages since I read it, but I remember liking it.

Yes! I was very upset when I saw that they only had the first one!! I want to read more! My sister and I have been quoting the book every now and then. When we go to a store where my mom is busy looking for something, we start pointing at everything and saying, “What’s that? What’s that? What’s that? What’s that?” I’ll see if they could order it or if maybe other branches have them. Wow! That’s great! Have you read "Azumanga Daioh"? I think it's by the same gentleman who did Yotsuba&! I kind of wanted to read it, but I wasn't sure if it would be as funny as the latter
I’m not quite so deep in THOTB yet, I just finished when they were discussing the lost shoe. It’s one of those books that you say, “Yeah.. I need to read this in an atmosphere that I can focus on it.” Luckily, there’s a holiday coming up, so I can move on from the lost shoe description.

Unfortunately, I haven’t gotten a lot of fun reading done. But on the bright side, for school, I’ve had to read Boundaries by Henry Cloud and John Townsend—a really great read! And, a lighter read, I’m re-reading Help! I’m Laughing and I Can’t Get Up by Liz Curtis Higgs—really humourous! The bad thing with it, however, is if you read it at night, you just might have to put it down and smother your laughter.
I'm also getting interested in manga. Yotsuba&! is, right now, the only "manga-manga" I've read; I read the second book of My Neighbor Totoro animanga, which was as sweet as the movie--it had this lovely dimension of soft colours and smooth shapes that really caught your eye. And Castle in the Sky which I did not enjoy as much as I thought I would. (Maybe it was the story-line, or overall characters, but, yes.)

*looks at the time* Oh! Well, I must depart now!

Ithilwen,

Ted Dekker has written some fantastic books, some very good books and some rather average books. I've read all of them so far (except Forbidden, which he co-authored with Tosca Lee).

The Circle Trilogy is a fantastic read but the series (four books - Black, Red, White, and now Green) is more the characters and about thought-provoking ideas and story than anything else and (the actual world-building is rather dull in my view).

Thr3e is stand-alone but many of Dekker's books interrelate with each other (some more than others) eg. The Circle Series, The Paradise Series, and The Lost Book Series are all very interconnected.

Ted Dekker is more about thought-provoking ideas than literary quality writing. Most of the time he writes well but there are a few exceptions. You may also notice that I mention that some books are "well-written" but average. That's because I didn't enjoy them/found them a bit boring.

My opinion follows:
(also, The Circle Trilogy and Thr3e were my entry into the world of Dekker, so I may be measuring the other books to that standard of enjoyment)

The Circle Series: (fantastic, Green has some sloppy writing)
Black: The Birth of Evil
Red: The Heroic Rescue
White: The Great Pursuit
Green: The Beginning and the End

The Paradise series: (fantastic)
Showdown
Saint
Sinner

The Lost Books series:
Chosen (average, some good ideas)
Infidel (average, some good ideas)
Renegade (above average, great ideas, some sloppy writing)
Chaos (above average, great ideas, some sloppy writing)
Lunatic (average, some great ideas
Elyon (average some great ideas)

Other books:
House (above average, some great ideas, some sloppy writing)
Skin (very good)
Immanuel's Veins (average)

Thrillers:
Blink (very good)
Thr3e (fantastic)
Obsessed (very good)
Adam (very good)
Kiss (average, well-written)
BoneMan's Daughters (very good)
Burn (good, well-written)
The Bride Collector (very good)
The Priest's Graveyard (very good)

The Caleb Series:
Blessed Child (above average)
A Man Called Blessed (average)

The Martyr's Song Series:
Heaven's Wager (very good)
When Heaven Weeps (fantastic, some sloppy writing)
Thunder of Heaven (average)

Friends from here will often recommend a book to me and say, "It's one of the favorites among the Book Thread frequenters." So, I was wondering... What are the general favorites among the NarniaWeb bookworms? I'd like to read them. I see tons and tons of books mentioned on here, which are liked well enough. But which ones are considered as the NarniaWebbers' favorites, overall?

Anything by:

-C.S. Lewis
-J.R.R. Tolkien
-George Macdonald

And I love the Temeraire Series by Naomi Novik!
They have great characters and I love the alternate history!

Here is a quick synopsis for the series:
The series of books revolves around the primary characters Temeraire and Captain William Laurence. Captain Laurence is a member of the British Royal Navy, serving in combat against Napoleon's navy when he recovers a dragon egg unlike any other known to the British. The egg soon hatches, and Temeraire, a Chinese dragon, is born. Temeraire immediately leaves an impression upon Laurence, and Laurence begins to think of the dragon as his dearest friend. This forces a change in the sailor's life, drawing him from the prestigious Royal Navy to the less desirable Royal Aerial Corps.

There have been seven books thus far, with nine planned altogether.

Book 1: His Majesty's Dragon
Book 2: Throne of Jade
Book 3: Black Powder War
Book 4: Empire of Ivory
Book 5: Victory of Eagles
Book 6: Tongues of Serpents
Book 7: Crucible of Gold (I just disliked one decision made about a character in book seven.)

@Princess Anna:
The Canticle Kingdom sounds like a good read!
I may look into it.
Thanks for sharing! That's cool you know the author.

Have you started The Sword at Sunset yet, Shantih? I should really read some more Sutcliff, but they're kind of hard to find and the uni library lost pretty much all of their's.

Sword at Sunset can be ordered through Amazon, I think. The Eagle of the Ninth, and its sequels, the Silver Branch and the Lantern Bearers are now in a combined omnibus edition. I found this out last year, when my old copy of the Silver Branch fell to pieces.

One of my favourite fantasy series was always the 'O' series by Maurice Gee, a New Zealand author, who wrote 'Under the Mountain'. An author called Geoffrey Trease wrote a lot of books I really enjoyed. Apart from Rosemary Sutcliffe, it was he who got me into historical fiction as a genre. The ones I enjoyed most were Crown of Violet (about Socrates & Athens), The Hills of Varna, Word to Caesar and Mists over Athelney, about Alfred the Great. Unfortunately these books are no longer around.

The ones I enjoyed most were Crown of Violet (about Socrates & Athens), The Hills of Varna, Word to Caesar and Mists over Athelney, about Alfred the Great. Unfortunately these books are no longer around.

You can buy them here:

http://www.amazon.com/Violet-Bookworms- ... 845&sr=1-1
http://www.amazon.com/Hills-Varna-Knigh ... 748&sr=8-7

~Riella

Ithilwen, did my post help you at all with your Dekker decisions?

Ithilwen, did my post help you at all with your Dekker decisions?

Yes, it did. Thank you. I'm going to write a longer post soon in response to everyone who answered me. Hopefully within the next few days. I just haven't had much time/energy today or yesterday due to a busy schedule.

~Riella

Have you started The Sword at Sunset yet, Shantih? I should really read some more Sutcliff, but they're kind of hard to find and the uni library lost pretty much all of their's.

I'm about 50 pages in, pretty good so far I know in the UK (according to our system at the bookshop I work in, anyway), availability of Sutcliff's work is very poor, other than those three Wagga mentioned - The Eagle of the Ninth, The Silver Branch and The Lantern Bearers, so I was lucky to come across that copy of Sword at Sunset. It's not too hard to get second hand though.