fantasy

Juvenile Fiction Selection: The Matchstick Castle

Brian finds himself spending the summer with his Aunt and Uncle in Boring, IL after his dad gets a job as a scientist in the South Pole.  Brian is sure Boring will live up to its name, but when he and his cousin Nora discover a giant wooden house in the woods their summer becomes a lot more fun.  They soon befriend the eccentric family that lives in the crazy castle and are on their way to many summer adventures with their new friends.

The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

It all began forty years ago when the man boarding at his family’s home commits suicide. This tragic event upsets the balance in the universe and strange things start to happen. A shadowy creature appears in human form as Ursula Monkton, the family’s new boarder. The narrator knows she is evil, but what can a seven-year-old do when his family loves her? Out of options, the narrator has only one person left he can turn to—an eleven-year-old girl named Lettie Hempstock. She, along with her mother and grandmother, are immortals, and together they protect him from the Ursula creature, bringing order back to the natural world. Pulling readers in from the very beginning, this story is reminiscent of a Roald Dahl novel for adults, although all ages will enjoy this well-written fantasy. 

Need a Good Fairy Tale?

Whether you want a classic story told in an unexpected way, or just love the magical feeling of a well-told story full of castles and princesses, you are sure to find the perfect fit with these books.

A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

In this first novel of her Shades of Magic series, Schwab introduces three cities in three worlds. Although each city is named “London,” they couldn’t be more different.

Kell, the adopted prince of the magically vibrant “red” London, is a man with no past and the rare ability to "step" between each of the three Londons. Lila, thief and pirate-hopeful of “grey” London, gets by just fine without magic, as the rest of her world has for as long as anyone can remember. Holland, of “white” London, serves a vicious and cunning diarchy, which forces its subjects to fight over magic in a brutal struggle for survival.

None of them know what happened to “black” London, the forsaken fourth London consumed by the sorcery it sought to control. But when a piece of the ruined world suddenly ends up in Kell's hands, all three cities will learn how deeply power can corrupt. If you’re craving a fantastic adventure, this book is enchanting.

Children of Blood and Bone

In a land of magic, where maji can command fire, dance with water, and bring souls back to the mortal plane, a king and his empire are determined to get rid of magic once and for all. Anyone who has magic is enslaved or killed, including the mother of Zélie, who is now on a dangerous mission to strike back at the king and return magic to Orïsha. This novel – the first in an anticipated trilogy and already in works to become a movie – builds a fantasy world that explores how humans often react when faced with others who are different. Author Tomi Adeyemi has built a deep allegory reflecting the world in which we live today.

Grimmer Fairy Tales

There is something in the cold crispness of autumn that makes me yearn for a good fantasy novel. Something dark and with a few chills of its own. If you feel so motivated as to follow in my footsteps, might I suggest these “grimmer” examples of modern fairy tales.

Storm Front: Book 1 of The Dresden Files

Harry Dresden, Wizard for Hire, items found, problems solved, no love potions. That is a fairly short and innocuous ad for what is quite possibly my favorite modern fantasy series. It is certainly no high-art feat of literary fiction, but Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files, set in a gorgeously portrayed modern Chicago, is a fast and addicting series. The first title, Storm Front, starts the series with our hero working alongside the Chicago Police Department to solve a string of inexplicable murders. So hang on as Harry interviews vampires, questions mobsters, and cons faeries, all to save a town that does not even believe in magic. I hope you find it as spellbinding as I did.

How Long 'til Black Future Month?: Stories

'Stories is a series of short pieces written by the award winning, and critically lauded N. K. Jemisin.

Each story in this collection has a drama and life to it that transcends its compact page count. Inside you will find fantasy stories, sci-fi, and/or horror stories, each from the perspective of a different narrator, that speaks to being black, and American. These writings are rich, and wonderfully composed by Jemisin’s unique and engaging style, and I found myself closing out this collection craving more. If you want a varied and captivating story to tide you over this month, you owe it to yourself to reserve this as soon as possible.

 

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