Pre-Tolkien Fantasy
Fantasy books that predate J. R. R. Tolkien's influence on the fantasy genre that began with his publication of The Hobbit in 1937.
Other Lists of Note:
Best Urban Fantasy
Best Alternate History
Best Dystopian and Post Apocalyptic Fiction
Best Epic Fantasy
Best Fantasy of the 21st Century
Best Science Fiction
Best Science Fiction of the 21st Century
Best Science Fiction of the 20th Century
Best Forgotten Science Fiction of the 20th Century
Best Science Fiction Fantasy Books
Best Space Opera
Pre-Tolkien Fantasy (Fantasy up through 1937)
Classic Fantasy (Fantasy written before 1980)
Fantasy by Decade:
1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s
1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, 2020s
Locus Recommended Fantasy:
2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011
Fantasy By Ratings:
More than 100000, 50000 to 99999, 25000 to 49999, 10000 to 24999
1000 to 9999, 100 to 999, Less than 100
Other Lists of Note:
Best Urban Fantasy
Best Alternate History
Best Dystopian and Post Apocalyptic Fiction
Best Epic Fantasy
Best Fantasy of the 21st Century
Best Science Fiction
Best Science Fiction of the 21st Century
Best Science Fiction of the 20th Century
Best Forgotten Science Fiction of the 20th Century
Best Science Fiction Fantasy Books
Best Space Opera
Pre-Tolkien Fantasy (Fantasy up through 1937)
Classic Fantasy (Fantasy written before 1980)
Fantasy by Decade:
1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s
1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, 2020s
Locus Recommended Fantasy:
2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011
Fantasy By Ratings:
More than 100000, 50000 to 99999, 25000 to 49999, 10000 to 24999
1000 to 9999, 100 to 999, Less than 100
334 books ·
356 voters ·
list created June 27th, 2009
by Greyweather (votes) .
Greyweather
2661 books
66 friends
66 friends
Susanna - Censored by GoodReads
3370 books
864 friends
864 friends
Teal
882 books
71 friends
71 friends
Jim
2249 books
77 friends
77 friends
Bill
5135 books
396 friends
396 friends
Diana
62 books
18 friends
18 friends
Mir
14877 books
447 friends
447 friends
Kirsten
3886 books
131 friends
131 friends
More voters…
Comments Showing 1-19 of 19 (19 new)
date
newest »
message 1:
by
Renee E
(new)
Jun 28, 2014 09:19PM
What? No Abraham Merritt?
reply
|
flag
Bryce wrote: "I'm kind of curious as to how The Lord of the Rings made it onto the "Pre-Tolkien" fantasy list? Haha. ;)"
Seriously. It is obvious that they don't belong on this list. Is it possible to remove them?
Seriously. It is obvious that they don't belong on this list. Is it possible to remove them?
This is a fantastic list. I'm going to get lynched for it, but I haven't managed to even finish The Fellowship of The Ring. Every time I attempt it, I barely get to a few pages in and fall asleep. I find him grandiose and pompous (and apparently he was kind of racist). To see a list from authors of works before the Tolkien craze is a breath of fresh air :)
Bryce wrote: "I'm kind of curious as to how The Lord of the Rings made it onto the "Pre-Tolkien" fantasy list? Haha. ;)"
Okay, I'm not the only one that had a problem with the "math" here :p
Okay, I'm not the only one that had a problem with the "math" here :p
Renee wrote: "What? No Abraham Merritt?"
Like:
The Ship of Ishtar
Burn, Witch, Burn
Dwellers in the Mirage
and The Moon Pool?
The latter was the first I read but not the best in my opinion. The other three I found most enjoyable
Have another four loaded on the iPad.
Like:
The Ship of Ishtar
Burn, Witch, Burn
Dwellers in the Mirage
and The Moon Pool?
The latter was the first I read but not the best in my opinion. The other three I found most enjoyable
Have another four loaded on the iPad.
That would be the Abraham Merritt. "Dwellers" may have been my favorite, with "The Moon Pool" very close. Also "The Face in the Abyss."
Huzefa wrote: "NM, i added it :)"
This is a list of pre-Tolkien fantasy. It obviously shouldn't include Tolkien because he wasn't before himself. Please read the description.
"Fantasy books that predate J. R. R. Tolkien's influence on the fantasy genre that began with his publication of The Hobbit in 1937."
This is a list of pre-Tolkien fantasy. It obviously shouldn't include Tolkien because he wasn't before himself. Please read the description.
"Fantasy books that predate J. R. R. Tolkien's influence on the fantasy genre that began with his publication of The Hobbit in 1937."
Ian wrote: "Huzefa wrote: "NM, i added it :)"
This is a list of pre-Tolkien fantasy. It obviously shouldn't include Tolkien because he wasn't before himself. Please read the description.
"Fantasy books that ..."
Oops u r right :)
Honest mistake :P
I associated it with pr LOTR
This is a list of pre-Tolkien fantasy. It obviously shouldn't include Tolkien because he wasn't before himself. Please read the description.
"Fantasy books that ..."
Oops u r right :)
Honest mistake :P
I associated it with pr LOTR
How do The Chronicles of Narnia (#24) predate The Hobbit? Either they don't or their date of first publication is wrong...
Booklovinglady wrote: "How do The Chronicles of Narnia (#24) predate The Hobbit? Either they don't or their date of first publication is wrong..."
Deleted.
Deleted.
Antony wrote: "This is a fantastic list. I'm going to get lynched for it, but I haven't managed to even finish The Fellowship of The Ring. Every time I attempt it, I barely get to a few pages in and fall asleep. ..."
Tolkien may have written about the races in his stories with great detail but he does not really care for real-life racism.
Tolkien may have written about the races in his stories with great detail but he does not really care for real-life racism.
I'm currently reading The Adventures of the Wishing Chair #1 by Enid Blyton and I also loved The Enchanted Wood, The Magic Faraway Tree and the Folk of the Faraway Tree by the same author (I just realized the magic faraway trilogy was published after 1937 and the wishing chair book in 1937, although it was a compilation of earlier stories. Let me add the wizard of oz to my pre-Tolkien list, I think it came out in 1900, and I won't mention all of the other post Tolkien books I like). I started The Hobbit and it was ok at the beginning / at times but I lost interest in it. For a long time I've had this idea that a boring fantasy novel is still more interesting than a boring sci-fi or mundane / non-speculative novel (and children's and YA fiction is, all other factors being equal, more interesting to me than literature for adults) and I'd like to think that I could pull through or somewhat enjoy any fantasy novel but I've had a wake up call with a few novels that's been kind of disappointing. Before The Hobbit I started A Wizard of Earthsea but it was depressingly boring for me as well. It started out interesting, I briefly got a little bored, it was interesting again, then I lost interest, I thought it would pick up after he visited the dragon of Pandor because that part was really interesting to me but I just couldn't get into it and the prose kind of turned me off (if other people enjoy the books I don't that's great. I don't believe they're objectively bad). Long before that it was the Girl Who Drank the Moon that I couldn't finish and there have been others over the years.
I also like traditional mythology (Greek mythology, African mythology, Native American mythology, Grimm's fairy tales, the Arabian nights etc.). It seems to me like most modern fantasy authors will want to avoid the use of magic for the sake of adventure and wish fulfillment because it's seen as 'simplistic' and unsophisticated etc. It's almost like the magic is incidental in many stories and just the means to push a story about good vs. evil or certain literary themes (I also like soft hearted characters, relatively moral role models, themes of universal compassion and insight into the human condition or social commentary though). I wish there was more of a return to the traditional fairy tale.
I also like traditional mythology (Greek mythology, African mythology, Native American mythology, Grimm's fairy tales, the Arabian nights etc.). It seems to me like most modern fantasy authors will want to avoid the use of magic for the sake of adventure and wish fulfillment because it's seen as 'simplistic' and unsophisticated etc. It's almost like the magic is incidental in many stories and just the means to push a story about good vs. evil or certain literary themes (I also like soft hearted characters, relatively moral role models, themes of universal compassion and insight into the human condition or social commentary though). I wish there was more of a return to the traditional fairy tale.
The Little Prince probably shouldn't be on here. Hobbit was published 1937, Prince was published 1943.
To be fair, while the Hobbit may have technically been published in 1937, it was not until the Ballantine editions in the mid 1960s that he became widely read and influential. I doubt any readers of Weird Tales would have known who he was... at least not before 1965.
I've always wondered what got The Hobbit to be popular, was it a cult book by the 50s fantasy writers?
1937 — C.S. Lewis famously called the book a “marvellous” classic-in-the-making
TIME documented the phenomenon in 1966, declaring that hobbits were the new literary heroes on American college campuses.
“[The] Rings trilogy was first published in the U.S. twelve years ago, had a small but dedicated coterie of admirers, including Poet W. H. Auden and Critic C. S. Lewis, but languished largely unread until it was reprinted last year in two paperback editions,” the story explained.
Since then, campus booksellers have been hard put to keep up with the demand. At the Princeton bookstore, says one salesman, it is the ‘biggest seller since Lord of the Flies.'”
1937 — C.S. Lewis famously called the book a “marvellous” classic-in-the-making
TIME documented the phenomenon in 1966, declaring that hobbits were the new literary heroes on American college campuses.
“[The] Rings trilogy was first published in the U.S. twelve years ago, had a small but dedicated coterie of admirers, including Poet W. H. Auden and Critic C. S. Lewis, but languished largely unread until it was reprinted last year in two paperback editions,” the story explained.
Since then, campus booksellers have been hard put to keep up with the demand. At the Princeton bookstore, says one salesman, it is the ‘biggest seller since Lord of the Flies.'”
Related News
It’s May, and in the U.S. that means it’s Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, dedicated to celebrating the culture, history,...
Anyone can add books to this list.