I’ve been a lover of book series ever since I was a kid.   When I was in elementary school I remember reading the Sweet Valley High and The Babysitter Club books; I wanted to be those girls, so badly!  I even tried creating my own Babysitter’s Club, that failed completely.

In Junior high I fell in love with V.C. Andrews and read all of her series up until they were publishing her unpublished works after her death.  Even then, I felt like there was a reason they had been unpublished, and it’s kinda sad when people take advantage of an artist’s death just to make more money.   Then there was the Clan of the Cave Bear books, which I (scandalously) found in the high school library.  There was a bit of an uproar about that, if I recall correctly.  That’s one series that doesn’t really belong in the categoy of fun childhood reads, though, cuz I’m still eager for the publication of the latest novel.

I’ve blogged about some of my favorite series on the blog before, but they’ve always been series that I would go back and re-read, because they remain timeless, to me.  For a change, I decided to write about my very first favorite series, that while completely absorbing at the time, attempts to go back to it have failed. While all of the series listed above were good books, none of them captured my attention like the works of David Eddings.

It was during the summer after I graduated from high school that my aunt brought me a box of books from a garage sale, containing all four fantasy series, available at the time: The Belgariad, and it’s sequel The Mallorian, The Elenium, and The Tamuli.  In a period of two weeks I managed to read all 18 novels, and then I went to the library and tracked down his two other novels, High Hunt and The Losers.   Looking back, it was David Eddings who turned me onto Fantasy books, and after him I went through a period when I read almost nothing but fantasy.  It’s still a favorite genre, but I’m branch out a lot more, now.

What loved about them was that for the first time I was transported into a world whereanything was possible.  Magic (which I was fascinated with) was made as simple as will and command.   Even today, ordering my word through my will is one of my most ardent wishes.  I also found the characters to be very real and endearing.  Polgara was my most favorite and I was thrilled to find an entire book on her history, and Belgarath was the friendly grandfather figure that I really missed in my teen years.

In my first few years of university I jumped on the Eddings’ newest releases, but for some reason, the magic was gone for me.   This didn’t just appeal to the newest series, Dreamers, either.   I recommended the Belgariad to my boyfriend at the time (now my husband)  and I don’t think he even got through the first book.  I tried to read them again, and what held me rapt for two weeks that one summer just wasn’t there.  I found the books to be simple, slow and a little juvenile and to be honest it made me sad; it was like discovering there’s no Santa Claus.

David Eddings was once quoted as saying, ”I am here to teach a generation or two how to read. After they’ve finished with me and I don’t challenge them any more, they can move on to somebody important like Homer or Milton.”   Maybe that’s what happened to me; I grew up and went on to more challenging and more sophisticated novels, although, that could be arguable.  

Regardless, I will always look upon the Eddings’ series fondly, as old friends, and maybe I’ll come back to them again, some day.  I’ll also continue to suggest them to new readers of fantasy, or even as YA fiction, because they are good books.   I couldn’t have been drawn to them fin the first place, if they weren’t.    I think that if David Eddings’ goal was to teach a generation to appreciate fiction, then he was successfull.   I just learned, in my research for this article, that he died in June 2009, and I think that he can rest now, comfortable in knowing that he was successful, not just for his writing, but for opening up worlds to thousands of readers.

Happy Canada Day!

When I was working towards my Bachelor of English, I was required to take a Canadian literature course, and to be honest I dreaded it, at the time.    I don’t remember much about the course, and virtually nothing about what I read, except it did teach me what Canadian literature is.   It has a distinctive feel, a unique taste, like the authors all share the same secret spice that no one outside of Canada gets to know about.   It taught me that Canadian literature carries the skies, the winds, the golden plains, the mountains, forest and beaches, in it’s very words.  If you are Canadian, Canada is in your blood, it defines us.   In honor of our great country’s 143rd birthday, here are some of my favorite Canadian authors.

Margaret Atwood –  The greatest Canadian author of my lifetime, in my humble opinion.   Margaret Atwood is the one author I remember reading in my literature course.   I had read ‘The Handmaiden’s Tale’ as a teenager, and it remains my favorite.     I’ve read her works over and over again and they never lose their feeling.  The characters and the worlds she creates remain alive even after the story is gone.   Part of this could be  because she doesn’t need a happy ending to make an impression; her characters stay with you because they feel real, and because of that you care a great deal for them.

Kelley Armstrong –  I consider Kelley Armstrong’s books to be my guilty pleasures.   I own her entire ‘Otherworld series’, greedily tracking down every novel I could and devouring them in days.  Before these books, the closest I had come to paranormal fiction was Anne Rice, and that’s not even close to the same.   I loved the concept of werewolves, and fell in love with the characters of the Pack.   Like many readers, however, I was a little leery about the changing narrators in the series,  until I realized I loved all the characters.   Kelley Armstrong makes werewolves, vampires, witches, demons and necromancers exciting, sexy and emotionally charged.  She brings them into mainstream fiction better than any other author I’ve read, because she makes them the good guys.  She shows us that our preconceived notions of the world just might be wrong, and challenges us to change our perceptions.  I haven’t read her YA series, but I little doubt that it’ll be anything but amazing.

Robert Munsch –  I know that Robert Munch isn’t a novelist, but he is one of the top selling Canadian authors of all time.  I grew up with him, I read his books to my kids now, and they never grow old.  ’Paper Bag Princess’ is still my favorite kids books, and “I love you Forever’ still makes parents cry.  I remember, when I was in elementary school, that he visited and did a reading for my grade.  His distinct story telling style remains with me to this day, and I still read his stories to my kids with his voice in my head.  I know that he’s had some personal problems, but he’s owned up to them and as turned around and asked parents to make it a lesson to teach our kids.  Not only is he a wonderful influence towards children’s literature, he’s someone I can deeply respect.

These are just a few of my favorites, there are tons more Canadian authors out there, and many more I would like to read, some day.   If you want an idea of who is a Canadian author, this website is a great resource to start at.  Canadianauthors.net Happy reading!