High Fantasy…
Im a very avid reader of fantasy, i love to read books on fantasy. I dont call myself a bookworm when it comes to reading books because for me reading is not a necessity but an entertainment, pleasure and relaxation. For me to completely engrossed in a book, there can be one genre, and that is fantasy.
I started reading fantasy books into consideration, meaning making reading as much as a routine as possible when i was in sec 2. I realised that my english werent so good at that time and if i dont buck up on english, im going to have a hard time and probably suffer when im past O levels. Having thought through what are the best books to read that will improve my english and at the same time, provide joy, i thought of fantasy. Ive always loved fantasy. Ive played Magic the Gathering, RPG games, Dungeons and dragons pen and paper RPG games before. So i thought, ive played the game, have i read any of them?
I can still remember my first fantasy book that i picked up in the library. Little did i know that the novel that i picked up would expand to almost 20 books in sequels and spinoffs and up to this day, ive read them all.
Written by R.A Salvatore, the first book that would become a lunching pad for one of the most successful books in the world of fantasy is entitled Homeland. The story takes place in a world called “The Forgotten Realms” and about this protagonist, a Drow, or simply put, an elf of the underdark. This mysterious race, vile and evil lives in an underground city, called Menzobarrenzen. Cousins to the elf on the surface world, this particular race hates light and thier cousins on the surface. Anyway, coming back to the main character, Drizzt Do’urden, he was raised in a world full of evil and dominated by the female races. The society of the Drow is such a way that they have different clans or more formally put it, Houses. Drizzt is of House Do’urden, the 8th most powerful house in the city.The ruler of the House is Matron Malice. This society has a weird hierarchy and political system, in which the first and most powerful House rules all and each and every House despised each other and constant war rages on for centuries, in a neverending fight for the top position. As you might have guessed, the society is chaotic and the drow love living in chaos and on the brink of destruction and ill intent. House Beanre is the first house and the most powerful, with the military and arcane strength of thousands of drows, male and female and also slaves. Each house has the right to rout or wipe out another house so as to be able to climb the ranking ladder within the society. This means that each houses constantly wage wars and perform spy mission on each other and the house that has been destroyed leaving no survivors will consider that house extinct, and thus the other house will be able to rise up in ranks.
Drizzt in his first books talks about the life of drizzt when he was young, being weaned and taken care of quite brutally by his sisters who all gained alot of power within the heirachy system in the House. As a male, Drizzt have always been despised and brutally treated by the females and this comes as a double edge sword. Drows are merciless and killing thier comrade is almost like a daily affair. Being brutally treated, he has whethered the tough life as a drow.
I wouldnt want to elaborate further as the plot really thickens from there. But suffice to say, its a great book and a great series.
Apart from R.A. Salvatore, ive also read books from Philip Pullman, His Dark Materials Trilogy, Robin Hobb novels and also planning to read Margeret Weis and Tracy Hickman novels of fantasy.
The reason why i read Fantasy books is because fantasy has the descriptive power, meaning that the descriptions in the book regarding anything the author is trying to convey are really done in such a way that its very detailed. You can gain alot from the writings of fantasy, not the content however, but the way it is written. Since fantasy requires alot of imagination and visualization of the mind, alot of description is needed and that is what i like most about fantasy books. It also stirs up your imaginations and really provide relief from the hustle and bustle of reality.
Thats why i like fantasy… and still continues reading them.. (darn.. no time to continue.. next time then..)
thecosmopolitanwanderer.blog 
Leave a comment