"Hi,
my name is Dymphna, and I'm a Potterholic."
And apparently,
so are you. Why else would you be in this meeting room? Only two reasons
I can see:
[1] You've
read books 1 through 5 a million and one times each, you've seen both
PS/SS and CoS so many times, you've nearly worn out your DVD/VHS copy
(or copies) and your family is complaining because the player is so tired,
it whines every time someone puts something in it. You've joined thousands
of yahoo groups and you surf fansites at all hours, but you're starting
to get restless. You're surprised someone hasn't called those nice men
in white coats to come pick you up yet. This obsession is about to drag
you completely over the edge. You need a distraction. NOW.
Or
[2] Perhaps
you aren't as obsessed as some of us and you just like the realm of fantasy,
magic, dragons, and such, and are simply looking for some more recommendations
along those lines. You're sane and normal and are wondering why everyone's
got their knickers in a bunch about this Potter kid.
To all of
you "1"s, I sympathize. I'm one of you. This page is mostly
for you all to keep a small grip on your varying levels of sanity.
To
all of you "2"s, all I can say is, "Man, are you strong-willed!"
I simply do not understand you, but you're welcome to use anything you
may find useful here. Unless, of course, it's my idea. Then you'd better
give me some credit for coming up with it. Or I'll send the "1"s
after you. *evil grin*
Reads
Tolkien:
I highly
recommend Tolkien. His works are feats of literary art and absolute masterpieces.
If you've already read The
Lord of the Rings and The
Hobbit, try some of his other stuff, like The
Silmarillion, Unfinished
Tales, or The
Histories of Middle Earth, or Giles
of Ham. There's tons,
folks. Go out and immerse yourself in Middle Earth. You won't regret it!
Tolkien is the BEST
ever!
Terry Pratchett: For example, his Discworld
Series is a fantastic
place to escape to and forget, at least momentarily, your withdrawal symptoms.
Just be warned, his books are written in a different style, i.e. no chapter
divisions. Takes a bit of getting used to, but is well worth the effort.
Phillip Pullman: He's got various hilarious stories,
like I
Was a Rat, and the His
Dark Materials trilogy is complete and quite good.
Terry Brooks: Shannara,
anything
Shannara! Not to mention The
Magic Kingdom of Landover and the
Word and the Void Trilogy. This is good stuff, folks. It doesn't get
much better! (Short of having books 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and
7; dear sweet lord, if only!)
Chronicles of the Shadow War trilogy: Shadow
Moon and Shadow
Dawn and Shadow
Star. Chris Claremont (famous for his work with the X-Men) wrote them,
based on a story by George Lucas (most known for the Star Wars films).
Wait don't run away! I swear they're better than Star Wars: Episodes 1
and 2, and they have nothing
to do with the X-men, either. This trilogy is a continuation of the movie
Willow (which I recommend in "Views" below).
Irene Radford: Her Dragon Nimbus series, like
The
Glass Dragon, The
Perfect Princess, The
Loneliest Magician, and more are very good fantasy reads. I'm still
working on this series, as well as the Dragon Nimbus Histories.
But I recommend any
of her work even though I haven't read all of it yet, as thus far
it has all been wonderful.
Piers Anthony: He
rocks. He just rocks. Xanth
is the coolest place ever.
Douglas Adams: The
Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, of course. And then try
some of his other works. I haven't read it all yet, but I have heard nothing
but great things and so far, I personally have found him completely awesome.
I also recommend getting your hands on the audios
of the Guide, because they're priceless. Absolutely priceless. (If
you do, send me a copy, please? I
will beg! ... Okay, so maybe not,
but I would do something very big for you and love you
forever.)
Tamora Pierce: The
Song of the Lioness Quartet, The
Immortals series, The Protector
of
the
Small
series, The
Circle
of
Magic
series, and The
Circle
Opens
series
are all wonderful, and I know she's got more. Browse
around and read as many as you can. They're wonderful, especially
for young women and girls.
Diana Wynne-Jones:
The
Chronicles of
Chrestomanci are lovely, and I was reminded of them by a reader of
this site: a Ravenclaw by the name of Samantha. Thank you, Samantha. ^_^
Diana also has lots more
works to check out.
The Last Unicorn by
Peter S. Beagle: This
one is a classic and a fantastic read to boot. One every fantasy fan
should know. Go read it. NOW.
The Princess Bride: S.
Morgenstern's Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure (The 'Good
Parts' Version) by William Goldman. If
you don't have a tattered, beloved copy of this already, you soon will.
~_^
C.S. Lewis: C.S. Lewis
is one of my personal favorite writers and I highly recommend any
and all of his works to everyone. I especially recommend
The
Chronicles of Narnia. It is an incredible masterpiece of a series.
Children and fantasy readers alike will find something beautiful and worthwhile
in this one. (Though, if you can find a set that begins with The Lion,
the Witch and the Wardrobe, you'd be better off, as that's how the
series is actually supposed to be read. The publishers have changed the
order in the past few years, and I'm not sure I understand why. I don't
agree with the change at all. According to this
site's FAQ
(#10), it was changed to fit the chronological order instead of the publishing
order. Like the webmaster of that site, I recommend starting with The
Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and continuing in publishing order.)
The Neverending Story by Michael
Ende: A
fantastic book that anyone who has seen the films should read, because
it is in-depth, imaginative, vivid and goes far beyond the world of the
films.
Views
Willow
Labyrinth
The
Princess Bride
Robin
Hood: Men in Tights
Robin
Hood: Prince of Thieves
Dark
Harbor
Blade
and Blade
II
The
Dark Crystal
Galaxy
Quest
Lord
of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring (EE)
Lord
of the Rings: The Two Towers (EE)
Dos
1) Learn how to knit and knit some house scarves or some Weasley sweaters.
2) Sew a costume of your favorite character. Wear it out in public and
ask anyone who looks at you funny if they know the way to Diagon Alley.
(Or, if you're a Slytherin, Knockturn Alley.)
3) If you are still in school (college, too), begin labelling all your
professors as either Snape, McGonagall, Lockhart, Dumbledore, Lupin, Trelawney,
etc. based on their personalities and/or looks. Begin referring to them
that way in conversations as well as in class. Note their reactions, and
owl me stories about your
experiences.
4) Create a role-playing character for yourself in the Wizarding World.
Take it one step farther. Begin to live as that character: insist
that people refer to you as your character, wear wizarding robes everywhere
you go, carry a wand at all
times, etc.
5) Buy an owl. Train it to carry messages. Use it as your sole method
of communication. (No phones, no letters, no email, etc.) Okay, you can
still talk to people face to face. Or stick your head in a fireplace,
if you know how they pull that one off. I don't recommend it if you don't
know the proper spell, though.
6) Create a website dedicated to your obsession and update. Update a lot.
Every chance you get.
7) Become obsessed with Alan Rickman, or some other actor and spend huge
amounts of time looking for their movies and pictures and commence drooling
over your new (and, hopefully, very attractive)
obsession.
I'll be
adding new things here every now and again when I come across something
else I find that looks worthwhile to share. And of course, suggestions and
recommendations are welcome. Just send me an owl.
If you'd like, tell me how you'd like to be acknowledged, and I'll be sure
to do so if I add your suggestion. If you have any questions or find broken
links or anything of that nature, also be sure to owl
me and tell me.
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