Friday, July 15, 2016

Book Blogger Hop No. 58: Favorite Authors, Most of Whose Books I've Read



Welcome to the Book Blogger Hop,
hosted by Billy @


For more information, click HERE.


What to Do

1.) Post on your blog answering this week's
question:

Name an author or authors most
of whose books you've read,
and would recommend to others.

(submitted by Elizabeth @ Silver's Reviews)

2.)  Enter the link to your post in the
Linky list on Billy's blog.

3.)  Visit other blogs on the list and
comment on their posts. 

4.)  Be sure to find out next week's
question when you visit
Ramblings of a Coffee-Addicted Writer!

Note
There was some confusion recently
with the topic questions, so 
some of us who are participating are 
answering another question this week..
Billy has given us a choice of which 
one to answer. Since I had not replied
to this question yet, I am doing so this week.


My Answer

There are four such authors -- two of them in the Young Adult Fiction genre, one in the adult Literary Fiction genre, and one in the adult Fantasy genre.

These are my two favorite YA Fiction authors. 







https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3090465-the-twilight-saga?ac=1&from_search=true


Anyone who has visited my blog from time to time knows how much I love The Twilight Saga! The story of Bella, a human girl, and Edward, a brooding vampire, is one that I will always treasure! I have read all four books three times, and recommend this series to all romantics!




 



https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18362144-harry-potter


I will ALWAYS love this series!!  I don't care how old I live to be -- I will forever be enchanted and enthralled by these books which tell the wonderful adventures of "The Boy Who Lived"! I heartily recommend these books to all lovers of fantasy, young and old!! I need to re-read the entire series, but have read the first book twice. I can't wait for the release of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, because I'm going to the midnight release party in my Gryffindor robe, with my Hermione Granger magic wand!!!!

The following are my favorite authors who wrote for adults. Tolkien, however, also wrote The Hobbit, which is more for young  adults. I have also read that novel, which is a prequel to his major work, The Lord of the Rings.








https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35.The_Lord_of_the_Rings


These are the very BEST adult fantasy novels I've ever read! I can remember when I read  them for the very first time (I've re-read parts of the first book from time to time), and feeling sad that I couldn't go live in Middle-Earth..... I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE these books!! I happen to own this particular, GORGEOUS, edition, too!  I definitely recommend them to all those who are addicted to the Fantasy genre! And yes, Frodo lives!!







Hesse was a very prolific writer, and won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1946. I think he should be in the Magic Realism genre, because, while not exactly fantasy, his novels do tend toward some surrealism. His characters are larger than life, too, and wrestle with many profound issues. I would recommend this author for those who enjoy reading novels that contain deep psychological and philosophical themes. I have read most of the books written by Hesse. Besides the ones below, I've also read Beneath The Wheel, Demian, and Steppenwolf (the only one of his books I totally dislike), but the following are my favorites.




https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5955.Narcissus_and_Goldmund


This novel, first published in 1930, beautifully depicts the tension and conflict between the flesh and the spirit. It tells the story of the two medieval men named in the title, one of whom is a contemplative monk, content with the spiritual life, while the other is a restless artist, whose quest is of another type: that of art and the emotions.





https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16635.Magister_Ludi?ac=1&from_search=true


Also known as The Glass Bead Game, this utterly fascinating novel chronicles the life of Joseph Knecht, a young musician who is chosen to reside in Castalia, a fictional European province reserved strictly for the life of the mind. The Castalian Order is a quasi-monastic group of men who devote themselves to playing "The Glass Bead Game", mastery of which requires years of study in music, mathematics, and cultural history. My only quibble with this novel is that women are not included in this intellectual utopia! The novel was first published in 1943, and was the one that won Hesse the Nobel Prize for Literature.



https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52036.Siddhartha?ac=1&from_search=true


This is the story of Siddhartha, the son of a Brahmin, whose search for enlightenment takes place during the time of Gautama Buddha (most likely between the fourth and seventh centuries, BC). In order to write this profound novel, Hesse immersed himself in the study of Hindu and Buddhist philosophy. The book was first published in 1922.





What do you think of my choices?
Have you ever read these books?
Please leave a comment,
and I'll go check out your post!





6 comments:

  1. I always put Hermann Hesse on my list also. I simply enjoy reading his books more then anyone else's.

    Magister Ludi is such a unique book. It is different from anything else I have ever read. You raise a really good point about women in the society that Hesse depicts. He missed the boat on that.

    Tolkien is also a great choice. He is by far the greatest fantasy writer I have read.

    I really need to get around to reading the more contemporary writers that you mention and everyone else has gotten to before me :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hey, Brian!

      I LOVE "Magister Ludi"!! It's a bit slow, but that's because it's a philosophical novel. It needs to be pondered as one reads.

      Hesse definitely missed the boat on not having women be included in his Castalia. That's not too surprising, though, considering that he lived in a very patriarchal society.

      The main reason I dislike "Steppenwolf" is that the woman the main character, Harry Haller, has an affair with is totally NOT an intellectual. Instead, she draws him into the experience of "Life" through immersion in sensory experiences. I'm sick and tired of women being viewed as being the harbingers of the senses, as the total opposites of intellectual inquiry and activity. Men are viewed as being the archetypes of immersion in such pursuits. This is where we get the literary trope of the shy, reclusive, or tormented MALE genius who is "initiated" into sex and the life of the senses by a savvy woman, whom, of course, he MUST then eventually 'TRANSCEND". Right. Then, equipped with a greater knowledge of the delights of the flesh, he proceeds to dazzle some poor, innocent little virgin, coming across as such a world-wise, as well as intellectual, powerful being. SO SICK OF THESE STEREOTYPES.

      I really should subject myself to the torture of reading "Steppenwolf" again, just so I can lambast this novel in a review! I can relate to Harry Haller on several levels, but I CANNOT relate to the woman he ends up "transcending". I resent being stereotyped as a woman, being told, by a male writer, no less, how I'm SUPPOSED to feel. I would tell this to Herr Hesse to his face, were he alive today, and I could meet him in person!!

      Well, enough of my little rant, lol. I still love the guy's work, for the most part.

      As for Tolkien, your assessment is absolutely correct. He IS the greatest fantasy writer ever!!!! In fact, Geroge R.R. Martin owes a LOT to him! And I recently found out that the RPG game, "Dungeons and Dragons", was even influenced by Tolkien's work! AWESOME.

      You should really read the Harry Potter series, Brian. It does start off as being more for children, but the novels "mature" as Harry Potter does. Rowling's imagination is just staggering, too!! (I must confess that I do wish she had written about a female hero, but oh, well....)

      I doubt you'd like The Twilight Saga, although a minority of men like it. But these books were written to appeal to women's deepest longings for love and understanding. It's kinda sad that we females should have to look to fictional characters and worlds in order to get such validation....but anyway, the books are, indeed, great fiction, negative criticisms notwithstanding. I LOVE them dearly!! It might seem rather contradictory for me to love these books, but one of the things I love about them is that, in the last book of the series, Bella becomes a powerful vampire, and emerges as her own woman.

      Thanks for another great comment!! :)

      Delete
  2. I need to read more Herman Hesse. I read Siddhartha in high school because it was required reading and ended up really enjoying it. However, I've never searched out any of his other books. I need to change that.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi, Katherine!

      Hesse is indeed a great writer, and I was totally obsessed with him when I was in college. I do dislike his female stereotypes, but I still love his work. The novels I mentioned in this post are just AWESOME. The sole exception, in my honest opinion, is "Steppenwolf", in which the female stereotyping reaches the heights of absurdity.

      I hope you do get to read some of his work in the future!

      Thanks for dropping by and commenting!! :)

      Delete
  3. Now this is an eclectic list! Harry Potter of course, hands down my fave, but I am sad to say I haven't read the others ony our list :(

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi, Verushka!

      Yeah, I do have eclectic reading tastes! Lol. YAY for Harry Potter!!! I can't wait for the release of "Harry Potter and the Cursed Child"!! It's now less than TWO weeks away!!!!

      If you like romance, I definitely recommend The Twilight Saga. You probably won't like the paranormal stuff, though. As for the books by Tolkien an Hesse, they are also TERRIFIC!! I highly recommend them!!

      Thanks fro dropping by and commenting!! :)

      Delete

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