Liadin Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 I forgot Susan Cooper (The Dark is Rising). And I also enjoyed Marjorie Kellogg's Dragon Quartet at that age.Rethinking the "boys might not like Tamora Pierce" thing, I'm not so sure that's the case. Don't know if any of the guys on here read them as teenagers, but from the ones I've read, the main characters are generally fighters of one sort or another, and so unless your son just hates reading about girls as main characters there's no reason he shouldn't like them.ETA: I also forgot Diane Duane (So You Want to be a Wizard). Loved those books at probably about your son's age.Dammit, now you have me scrolling through the "show similar books" thingy on Amazon and realizing how many books I haven't read.Edit2: Margaret Peterson Haddix (the Shadow Children series). I didn't remember that that was written by a woman. Again, more sci fi than fantasy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Evil Hat Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 I'll add Sarah Micklem as the best underrated fantasy author that I know of.I'm intrigued, and the first one seems cheap on amazon. What's special about the series? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattD Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 My son is 14 and his reading level is definitely 14+. But I would say he's likely to miss a lot if a book is overly subtleOkay. See for me, right now, my list of the best would include Ursula Le Guin, Patricia McKillip, Catherynne Valente, Susannah Clarke, Elizabeth Hand, and Greer Gilman among novelists; Kelly Link, Nisi Shawl, Mary Rickert, Rachel Swirsky, Theodora Goss, and Angela Carter among writers of short fiction whose stories have been collected into books. They're all excellent, and justifiably lauded. But for a 14 year old young man, I'd recommend very few of them. Maybe McKillip: something like Od Magic or Atrix Wolfe might be good. But beyond that...yeah, Hobb is a good choice. Which Anne McCaffrey did you try? For a 14 year old, jumping right to The White Dragon might work best, I liked it a lot at that age. Martha Wells's Death of the Necromancer could be fine at that age, it's a fun book. Maybe Nina Kiriki Hoffman's Silent Strength of Stones....Liadin, you did see the part in the OP about YA books not being allowed, yes? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Underfoot Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 The Folding Knife is an excellent stand alone. Brilliant characterization, witty writing, the works. The opening may seem a bit odd, though I liked it, but if you stick with it to page forty or fifty you'll probably realize you want to read the rest in one sitting.Thanks! I'll have to check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liadin Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 I'm intrigued, and the first one seems cheap on amazon. What's special about the series?Dark, gritty fantasy, original, fantastic worldbuilding, superb writing style. (I can't say enough about the lyricism and the imagery, although I realize that's not what most people are looking for in a book.) Mostly focuses on the lives of lower-class people and women, which for me at least was a real breath of fresh air in the fantasy genre. The basic plot of the first book involves the main character becoming a knight's mistress and accompanying him to war in order to get out of her village (then in the second book everything gets turned on its head--can't explain much without spoilers though). The reason it stands out so much to me, aside from being epic fantasy that's not about princes for once, is probably because it feels so real--the author has an anthropology background so the society and religion are very carefully constructed and the limitations they place on the main character are frustratingly real, not manufactured plot devices that are easily overcome. It's obvious that she did a lot of research into the daily functioning of an army on the march. And it's very, well, gritty, in the best sense of the word--sex and violence are described in some detail, and things often turn out badly, in a way that fits in well with the themes and the setting.I honestly don't know why these books don't get more play, except that they're "feminist" (which is true, but in the sense of actually telling the stories of women in a repressive society as well as the men) and that the first one starts off kinda slow. They're more literary than action-driven. I thought the second was actually better than the first, and am eagerly awaiting the third. So there you have it.Liadin, you did see the part in the OP about YA books not being allowed, yes?I missed that part. :blushing: Not all the books I mentioned are YA though, depending where the teacher draws the line. Most of Robin McKinley's, some of Diana Wynne Jones's and all of Marjorie Kellogg's that I know of are classified as "adult," and still probably more easily understood by kids than the likes of Susanna Clarke or even Robin Hobb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Evil Hat Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 Sounds really interesting, though I'm curious about this part:(I can't say enough about the lyricism and the imagery, although I realize that's not what most people are looking for in a book.)Why wouldn't good writing and imagery be a plus in a book? Though I guess this may be a bit much thread drift... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grack21 Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 I'm gonna have to check Sarah Micklem out now. Isn't it funny when the one star amazon reviews actually get you interested in something? The person complaining about how it's anti-feminist makes me think its one of those rare books that actually IS feminist, instead of STRONG WARRIOR GIRL DRESS LIKE MAN OMG FEMINISM you see touted these days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liadin Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 Why wouldn't good writing and imagery be a plus in a book? Though I guess this may be a bit much thread drift...A plus, yes, but I think most people, including half-ish of the folks on this board, are more interested in action and fast-moving plots, and don't pay that much attention to the prose as long as it's functional. This crowd probably wouldn't be thrilled with Micklem's books.Back to the OP: do you know why the teacher isn't allowing the kids to read YA? Fourteen is the age it's more or less geared toward. If it's a length issue, fantasy books would probably exceed the minimum anyway, although if Harry Potter doesn't that's probably not it. Is it a matter of being exposed to new vocabulary and such?I'm gonna have to check Sarah Micklem out now. Isn't it funny when the one star amazon reviews actually get you interested in something? The person complaining about how it's anti-feminist makes me think its one of those rare books that actually IS feminist, instead of STRONG WARRIOR GIRL DRESS LIKE MAN OMG FEMINISM you see touted these days.Not to say that books about women dressing like men and fighting are always bad feminism, but this is probably fair. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattD Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 I honestly don't know why these books don't get more playI think the cover design makes them look like dreamy-eyed YA books, which don't get much play here, or in the adult section of bookstores where these books are shelved. I know I spent about three years thinking Firethorn was Just Another Teen Fantasy Book About A Girl With Red Hair And Green Eyes. Then I heard Micklem herself give a talk about the book and realized how wrong I was. She--Micklem--is very impressive in person, very articulate and aware of what she'd doing in the books. And I like that she's taking as much time as she needs to write them, rather than churning them out every year./threadjack Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
casrot Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 Mary Gentle is very good...I'll second this. Golden Witchbreed, Rats & Gargoyles, Ash: A Secret History and 1610: A Sundial in a Grave are all wonderful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liadin Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 I think the cover design makes them look like dreamy-eyed YA books, which don't get much play here, or in the adult section of bookstores where these books are shelved. I know I spent about three years thinking Firethorn was Just Another Teen Fantasy Book About A Girl With Red Hair And Green Eyes. Then I heard Micklem herself give a talk about the book and realized how wrong I was. She--Micklem--is very impressive in person, very articulate and aware of what she'd doing in the books. And I like that she's taking as much time as she needs to write them, rather than churning them out every year./threadjackTo threadjack further.... you mean the cover art for the hardcovers? If so, I see what you mean, although I always just found them creepy. I quite like the paperback cover of Firethorn.Agree on the taking her time thing. People complain about GRRM, but IMO the best authors are never the ones who publish a book every year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KatieG Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 I'm intrigued, and the first one seems cheap on amazon. What's special about the series?It's only cheap if you aren't interested in the Kindle edition. WTF? $16.99 for an ebook when the paperback is $7.99?Guess that's one author/series I'll have to skip until the prices are more in line with common sense. Which is too bad because it sounds interesting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grack21 Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 It's only cheap if you aren't interested in the Kindle edition. WTF? $16.99 for an ebook when the paperback is $7.99?Guess that's one author/series I'll have to skip until the prices are more in line with common sense. Which is too bad because it sounds interesting. You should probably give up reading then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inkdaub Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 Michelle West is one of my favorites of either gender. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grack21 Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 Not to say that books about women dressing like men and fighting are always bad feminism, but this is probably fair. I'm not saying its bad feminism so much as it's not feminism at all. Yet it somehow still gets marked that way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kosciuszko Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 What about men who dress like women and fight? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eurytus Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 What about men who dress like women and fight?You mean the Scots? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Papirolle Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 Let's not turn this into a Braveheart thread! :DOn topic: what about Judith Tarr's book The Hound and the Falcon? Is it any good? Is it YA? I saw it was about the 4th Crusade and it caught my interest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madking Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 Susana clarkes jonathan strange and mr.norrel is superb starts off a little slow but trust me stick with it. Think if jane austin, charles dickens, and sir arthur conan doyle got together to write a story about magic set in london 1800's. If you want something really dark and grittier try anne bishops the black jewels trilogy I think this would make a great hbo series as well for some reason I picture daniel craig as Sadi. Would definitely have to be an hbo or showtime series though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamanthaofHodorsfield Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 You also have Karen Miller (who also writes as K.E. Mills), Trudi Canavan, Fiona McIntosh (though I've only read her 'Quickening' trilogy, so I can't speak for the quality of the others).......hmm........I think somebody else has suggested Naomi Novik but I'll second the recommendation. Cinda Williams Chima was also a nice read for a YA novel. There is also Janny Wurts, but for a 14 year old boy, not sure he'd be into it tbh. There is also Rowena Cory Daniells whose 'Chronicles of King Rolen's Kin' started quite well and ended very badly imo; the ending was so rushed and contrived it ruined what had been a reasonably good setup. Yes it was nothing groundbreaking and the plot lines had been done a million times before but it wasn't bad.......until book 3. Same with Gail Z. Martin. Very interesting take on somebody being a necromancer, and then she goes and ruins it with cliche characterization and plotlines. J.K Rowling, JV Jones and Robin Hobb you've already mentioned.......nope, that's my female authors all authored out. In this genre anyway; I've got a few others in historical fiction and the likes.Edit: Sorry, just reread the OP and realised that he's not allowed to report on YA books, so that rules out Cinda Williams Chima. Sorry bout that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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