Book Recommendations: Fantasy Edition

Have you ever started reading a fantasy novel, full of magic and mystery, and felt the ordinary world slip away? Fantasy is my favorite book genre, and it has been since I could read. I have begun building my library, and I would like to share my favorite books with you for your entertainment and reading pleasure. In the list below (and the ones to follow), I will provide titles, authors, and some summary, but I will do my best to leave this largely spoiler-free. 

Please note that this list contains several of my favorite fantasy books, but not any classic fairy tales or retellings of fairy tales. Those get their own list. :-D 

So, without any further ado, here are the first five fantasy books on my shelf. 

Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones 

• One of my favorite novels of all time. Studio Ghibli did an animated film adaptation of this book, which is how I found out about it. There are some differences, but I love both the movie and the book. There’s magic, curses, baked goods, talking fire, different realms, and old ladies. Whether you’ve seen the movie already or not, you should read this. Sophie is the eldest of three sisters, which is very unlucky. While every girl in Market Chipping chatters and worries about being stolen by the infamous Wizard Howl in his moving castle, 17-year-old Sophie stays in her father’s shop, working. Her sisters get to go out and make their fortune in the world while she sits at home, but then one day, she knows not how, Sophie runs afoul of the Wicked Witch of the Waste and is cursed. Stuck as an old woman who can’t tell anyone what happened to her, she takes refuge with the dread Howl and meets a scarecrow, a dandy, an apprentice, and a fire demon. Sophie must dodge the Wicked Witch, find her sisters, and break her curse, all while figuring out the enigma that is the Wizard Howl. It’s a super fun read.  

The Chronicles of Prydain by Lloyd Alexander 

• This is one of the best fantasy series I’ve ever read; for me it ranks up there with Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings (which I also love, but will discuss another time). There are five books in the series-The Book of Three, The Black Cauldron, The Castle of Llyr, Taran Wanderer, and The High King-and they largely follow the adventures of Assistant Pig-Keeper Taran, a boy who longs for adventure but is stuck taking care of a wizard’s prophetic pig. You remember that saying, “be careful what you wish for”? Yeah, Taran gets his wish-and far more than he ever wanted. Along the way he makes good friends in Eilonwy, a strong-willed and no-nonsense princess; Fflewddur Fflam, a bard; Gurgi every-faithful; and Doli. Taran’s adventures as he grows into a man always keep me in suspense. 

The Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro 

• This story is set just after King Arthur’s time and features an elderly couple, Beatrice and Axl, who decide to go to their son’s village for a visit. The problem? They, and everyone else in Briton, don’t remember their son, or anything else, really. The Mist keeps everyone from remembering much else besides who they are. To find their son and regain their memories, Axl and Beatrice team up with an old Sir Gawain and Saxon warrior, Wistan, to find the ancient dragon that breathes the Mist and slay it. The Buried Giant is a beautifully structured narrative and it honestly makes me cry whenever I read it. Kazuo Ishiguro is a literary genius. 

The Little White Horse by Elizabeth Goudge 

• This has been one of my favorite books since I was thirteen years old. Maria Merryweather is orphaned as a young teen and, along with her long-time governess Miss Heliotrope, goes to live with her new guardian, Sir Benjamin on his estate, Moonacre. (Isn’t that one of the most charming names for a place you ever heard?) Sir Benjamin tells Maria cheerfully that he is a Sun Merryweather, and she is a Moon Merryweather, so they shall get on splendidly. He gives her a charming little tower room, just the right size for her, and Maria soon discovers both her imaginary friend from childhood and an ancient mystery surrounding Moonacre and her family history.  

Whether your taste is for lots of action and adventure or for more simple, coming-of-age tales, I hope you find something to read here.

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