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Fantasy Fiction

The "fantasy=escapism" equation is older than the genre as we know it. People in the old days boycotted the Theater, not just because it was a potential hotbed of wickedness, but because it was something other than Real Life and therefore odious to Sensible People. Some radical Christian sects have prohibited the reading of fiction on grounds that only the Bible has any literary value (....even though Jesus clearly told fictional stories).

In our day, fantasy as a fiction genre is more narrowly defined than simply "that which is not established fact." It encompasses stories of dragons, elves, dark and mysterious woods, magic (or majyck, or whatever the kids are calling it these days), unicorns, gnomes, etc. High fantasy usually takes place in a world or realm other than our own; low fantasy imports fantastic elements into the-world-as-we-know-it.

Certainly, there is plenty of fantasy fiction that can be defended on no grounds. The flood of worthless literary drivel with images of buxom maidens and swarthy sword-wielding savages with pointy ears on their paperback covers began sometime in the 1960s and has only increased as its putrid waters have swelled. But there's plenty of good fantasy, too, some of it among the best fiction ever written.

Because good fantasy, of course, has something to say about the human condition. Sometimes taking characters out of the humdrum of Earth-bound existence allows authors more artistic freedom to create the situations necessary to tell the narrative they have burning a hole in their imagination. Or sometimes they just make the story a bit more fun. Sometimes they make it darker, or scarier, or just plain more weird.

If you're J.R.R. Tolkien, the fantasy element plays a different role (mythmaking) than that of the story it frames (the sinfulness of sin and the cost of redemption). The point is, good fantasy isn't just about the fantastical. In most cases (Ursula K. LeGuin comes to mind), the unfamiliar is used to show how even it is ultimately familiar, and if we can see ourselves in the Edmund Pevensies and Gurney Hallecks we read about, the fantasy has done its job.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.
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Adventures of Pinocchio
by Carlo Collodi, translated by Geoffrey Brock, with an introduction by Umberto Eco and an afterword by Rebecca West
from New York Review of Books
for 10th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$11.90
Adventures of Pinocchio
by Carlo Collodi, translated by John Hooper & Anna Kraczyna
from Penguin Classics
for 10th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$12.75
Aesop's Fables
by Aesop, illustrated by Arthur Rackham
from Macmillan
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 1st-Adult
in Ancient Literature (Location: LIT1-ANC)
$12.74
Airborn
Airborn Trilogy #1
by Kenneth Oppel
from HarperCollins
for 5th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$10.19
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
Macmillan Classics
by Lewis Carroll, illustrated by John Tenniel
from Macmillan
Fantasy for 7th-Adult
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$14.40 (1 in stock)
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass
by Lewis Carroll
from Modern Library
for 10th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$9.35
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass
by Lewis Carroll, illustrated by John Tenniel
from St. Martin's Press
for 10th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass
by Lewis Carroll, illustrated by John Tenniel
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for 10th-Adult
Alloy of Law
Mistborn Chronicles Era Two: Wax & Wayne Book 1
by Brandon Sanderson
from Tor Fantasy
for 9th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$9.34
Annotated Alice
by Lewis Carroll
Definitive Edition from W. W. Norton and Co.
for 9th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Annotated Wizard of Oz
by L. Frank Baum, edited and annotated by Michael Hearn
from W. W. Norton and Co.
for 5th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Arthur
Pendragon Cycle #3
by Stephen R. Lawhead
from HarperCollins
Celtic Fantasy for 10th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
At the Back of the North Wind
Everyman's Library Children's Classics
by George MacDonald, illustrated by Arthur Hughes
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Fairy Tale for 4th-Adult
$17.00
At the Back of the North Wind
by George MacDonald, Illustrated by Jessie Willcox Smith
from Dilithium Press, Ltd.
Fairy Tale for 4th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
At the Back of the North Wind
by George MacDonald, illustrated by Frank C. Pape
from Living Book Press
for 4th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$11.04
At the Back of the North Wind
by George MacDonald, Illustrated by Jessie Willcox Smith
from David McKay Company
Fairy Tale for 4th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Avalon
by Stephen R. Lawhead
from HarperCollins
for 10th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
Baaa
by David Macaulay
from Houghton Mifflin
for 3rd-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Bands of Mourning
Mistborn Chronicles Era Two: Wax & Wayne Book 3
by Brandon Sanderson
from Tor Fantasy
Fantasy for 9th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$9.34
Beejum Book
by Alice O. Howell
Revised
for 9th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Beren & Luthien
by J.R.R. Tolkien
from Houghton Mifflin
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$35.00
Beren & Luthien
by J.R.R. Tolkien
from William Morrow & Company
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$16.14
Bilbo's Last Song
by J.R.R. Tolkien, Illustrated by Pauline Baynes
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for 3rd-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$16.99
Book of the Dun Cow
by Walter Wangerin Jr.
from HarperCollins
for 8th grade-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$16.99
Book of the Dun Cow
by Walter Wangerin Jr.
from HarperCollins
for 8th grade-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
Boxen
by C. S. Lewis, Major Warren Hamilton Lewis
1st edition from HarperCollins
for 4th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Boxen
by C. S. Lewis, Major Warren Hamilton Lewis
from HarperCollins
for 4th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$24.99
Children of Hurin
by J. R. R. Tolkien
from Houghton Mifflin
Fantasy for 9th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$16.99
Children of Hurin
by J. R. R. Tolkien
UK Edition from HarperCollins
Fantasy for 9th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Pop-Up Book
by Ian Fleming, abridged by Albert G. Miller, illustrated by Gwen Gordon and Dave Chambers
from Random House
for Kindergarten-Adult
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
Christmas Carol
by Charles Dickens, illustrated by John Leech
from J. G. Ferguson Publishing Co.
for 9th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Christmas Carol
by Charles Dickens; illustrated by Julian Brazelton
from Pocket Books
for 9th-Adult
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Chronicles of Narnia
by C. S. Lewis
from HarperCollins
for 2nd-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$25.49
Chronicles of Narnia Deluxe Hardcover
by C. S. Lewis
Deluxe Edition from HarperCollins
for 2nd-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$63.75
Complete Encyclopedia of Elves, Goblins, and Other Little Creatures
for 10th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Complete Fairy Tales
Penguin Classics
by George MacDonald
from Penguin Classics
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Folklore for 7th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$14.45
Complete Hans Christian Andersen Fairy Tales
by Hans Christian Anderson
from Avenel Books
for 8th-Adult
Complete Tales of Uncle Remus
by Joel Chandler Harris
from Houghton Mifflin
Animal Fantasy for 7th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$33.99
Complete Tales of Uncle Remus
by Joel Chandler Harris, retold by Julius Lester, illustrated by Jerry Pinkney
from Dial Press
Animal Fantasy for 7th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$50.00
Complete Tolkien Companion
by J.R.R. Tolkien & J.E.A. Tyler
3rd edition from St. Martin's Griffin
Lord of the Rings Reference for 8th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
Complete Tolkien Companion
by J.R.R. Tolkien & J.E.A. Tyler
3rd edition from St. Martin's Griffin
Lord of the Rings Reference for 8th-Adult
in Lord of the Rings (Location: LIR-LOTR)
$30.00
Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court
Books of Wonder
by Mark Twain (illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman)
from HarperCollins
for 8th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Conspiracy of Kings
by Megan Whalen Turner
Reprint from Greenwillow Books
for 9th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$9.34
Coraline
by Neil Gaiman
from William Morrow & Company
for 9th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$16.14
Crying for a Vision
by Walter Wangerin Jr.
from Simon & Schuster Macmillan
for 9th-Adult
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Cunning Little Vixen
by Rudolf Tesnohlidek
First Edition from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for 9th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Dark Tower
by C. S. Lewis
Reissue from HarperOne
for 11th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$17.99
Deerskin
by Robin McKinley
from Berkley Books
for 11th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Dracula
Puffin Classics
by Bram Stoker
from Puffin Books
for 10th-Adult
in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF)
$8.49
Dracula
Sterling Classics
by Bram Stoker, illustrated by Scott McKowen
Unabridged from Sterling Publishing Co.
for 10th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Dracula
Illustrated Junior Library Series 4
by Bram Stoker
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 10th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Dragonriders of Pern Omnibus
by Anne McCaffrey
from Del Rey
for 10th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
Dune Trilogy - Hardcover Boxed Set
by Frank Herbert
from ACE Publishing
Science Fiction for 10th-Adult
in Boxed Sets & Literature Packages (Location: FIC-BOX)
$127.50
Dune Trilogy - Paperback Trilogy Boxed Set
by Frank Herbert
from ACE Publishing
Science Fiction for 10th-Adult
in Boxed Sets & Literature Packages (Location: FIC-BOX)
$26.32
Earthsea Cycle
by Ursula K. Le Guin
from Graphia
for 7th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$41.61
Elantris
by Brandon Sanderson
from Tor Fantasy
for 8th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$18.69
Enchantment
by Orson Scott Card
1st edition from Del Rey
for 10th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$14.45
Endless Knot
Song of Albion #3
by Stephen R. Lawhead
2nd edition from Thomas Nelson Publishers
Celtic Fantasy for 9th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$12.00
Endless Knot
Song of Albion #3
by Stephen R. Lawhead
Reprint from Thomas Nelson Publishers
Celtic Fantasy for 9th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
Fall of Gondolin
by J.R.R. Tolkien
from Houghton Mifflin
for 8th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$35.00
Fall of Gondolin
by J.R.R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien
from William Morrow & Company
for 8th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$16.14
Fantasy Stories of George Macdonald - 4 Book Set
by George MacDonald, illustrated by Craig Yoe
from Eerdmans
Fantasy for 3rd-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Farthest Shore
Earthsea #3
by Ursula K. Le Guin
from Simon Pulse
Fantasy for 7th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$9.34 $4.00 (2 in stock)
Farthest Shore
Earthsea #3
by Ursula K. Le Guin
from Simon Pulse
Fantasy for 7th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$10.19
Farthest Shore
Earthsea #3
by Ursula K. Le Guin, illustrated by Gail Garraty
First Edition, 4th Printing from Atheneum
Fantasy for 7th-Adult
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$20.00 (1 in stock)
Finale
by Calvin Miller
from InterVarsity Press
for 10th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
Galahad and the Grail
by Malcolm Guite
from Rabbit Room Press
for 8th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$29.74
George MacDonald
by C. S. Lewis
from HarperCollins
Devotional Material for 9th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$13.99
George MacDonald
by C. S. Lewis
from Touchstone
Devotional Material for 9th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
George MacDonald: 365 Readings
by C. S. Lewis, selections from George MacDonald
from Collier Books
Devotional Material for 9th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
Glittering Plain
by William Morris
from Newcastle Publishing Co
for 7th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
Gulliver's Travels
Sterling Classics
by Jonathan Swift, illustrated by Scott McKowen
from Sterling Publishing Co.
Satire/Social Commentary for 9th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Gulliver's Travels
by Jonathan Swift, illustrated by Jon Corbino
from Doubleday & Company
for 10th-Adult
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Gulliver's Travels
by Jonathan Swift, illustrated by Warren Chappell
from Oxford University
Satire/Social Commentary for 9th-Adult
in 18th Century Literature (Location: LIT5-18)
Gulliver's Travels
Puffin Classics
by Jonathan Swift
from Puffin Books
Satire/Social Commentary for 9th-Adult
in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF)
$8.49
Gulliver's Travels
Penguin Classics
by Jonathan Swift
from Penguin Classics
Satire/Social Commentary for 9th-Adult
in 18th Century Literature (Location: LIT5-18)
Gulliver's Travels
by Johnathan Swift, illustrated by Robert Ingpen
from Welbeck Editions
for 10th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Harvey
by Mary Chase
from CreateSpace
for 8th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Harvey
by Mary Chase
from Dramatists Play Service
for 8th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Harvey
by Mary Chase
from Must Have Books
for 8th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$6.95
Hinds' Feet on High Places
by Hannah Hurnard
from Tyndale House
Allegorical and Moral Stories for 7th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$6.79
Hinds' Feet on High Places
by Hannah Hurnard
from Tyndale House
Allegorical and Moral Stories for 7th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Hinds' Feet on High Places
by Hannah Hurnard
from Benediction Classics
Allegorical and Moral Stories for 7th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
History of Middle Earth - Boxed Set
by J.R.R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien
from Del Rey
for 9th-Adult
in Boxed Sets & Literature Packages (Location: FIC-BOX)
$42.46
Hobbit
by J.R.R. Tolkien
from Houghton Mifflin
for 5th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Hobbit
by J.R.R. Tolkien
17th Printing from Ballantine Books
for 9th-Adult
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Hobbit (Annotated)
by J. R. R. Tolkien, Annotated by Douglas A. Anderson
from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
for 9th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$35.00
Hobbit - Audio Book CDs
by J. R. R. Tolkien; Andy Serkis (reader)
from Recorded Books, LLC
for 3rd-Adult
in Audio Books & Dramas (Location: CD-AUDIO)
Hobbit, The
by J.R.R. Tolkien
from Houghton Mifflin
for 5th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$34.00
Hobbit, The
by J.R.R. Tolkien
from Houghton Mifflin
for 5th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$34.00
Hobbit, The
by J.R.R. Tolkien, author and illustrator
from William Morrow & Company
for 5th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$75.00
If The South Had Won The Civil War
by MacKinlay Kantor
from Forge
for 9th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$15.99
Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell
by Susanna Clarke
from Bloomsbury Publishing
for 9th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell
by Susanna Clarke
from Bloomsbury Publishing
for 9th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$16.99
Journey to the Center of the Earth
by Jules Verne
from Reader's Digest
for 8th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Journey to the Center of the Earth
by Jules Verne, foreword by Isaac Asimov, illustrated by Edward A. Wilson
from Heritage Press
for 8th-Adult
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
King of Attolia
by Megan Whalen Turner
Reprint from Greenwillow Books
for 9th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$13.59
King Raven Trilogy
by Stephen Lawhead
for 9th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$48.42
Kingdom Far and Clear
Calla Edition
by Mark Helprin
from Dover Publications
for 6th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Last Unicorn
by Peter S. Beagle
from ROC Science Fiction
for 9th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$14.45
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