Post by GRWelsh on Jan 11, 2024 9:26:01 GMT -5
I started reading LORD FOUL'S BANE (1977), the first book in THE CHRONICLES OF THOMAS COVENANT by Stephen R. Donaldson. This is one of those fantasy series that was very popular in the 80's but I never got around to reading it. My friend Ken read LORD FOUL'S BANE in 1981 or so and told me nearly the entire story, so no surprises so far. Basically, it is a portal fantasy with an unlikeable protagonist who doesn't believe in the fantasy world that he gets transported to. I actually like that premise since it is close to how I think people really would react in such a situation... You'd probably think you were hallucinating, dreaming, or going crazy. The writing so far is good, and he uses a lot of rare words so I've been making use of the dictionary. The fantasy world itself -- "The Land" -- is well portrayed. We'll see how it turns out.
Ken is the person who introduced me to D&D. We met through a common interest in reading material. In 7th grade, I saw a paperback copy of PERELANDRA by C. S. Lewis on his desk and asked him what it was about. He told me all about it, and that is what began our friendship. I read a lot, but Ken always read more and went through many books and fantasy series when we were in middle school and high school. I remember Ken trying to explain D&D to me during a class in 7th grade, and I just couldn't grasp the concept. The way I remember it, he told me about the 'strange dice' and how you would roll a d20 and it would determine what you play: a man, elf, dwarf, gnome, etc. I was fascinated, and could only tie it back to the DUNGEON! boardgame that I'd played once in the summer of 1979 while on vacation visiting a family in California, as well as the Rankin Bass version of THE HOBBIT. Ken owned the BASIC D&D boxed set (1977) edited by Holmes, and I don't think he quite grasped the game yet, either. But later on we played much D&D and then AD&D together. Ken liked "The Land" setting of THE CHRONICLES OF THOMAS COVENANT so much that he included in his D&D campaign world. He had a drawing of an entire continent where he placed "The Land" which included other original areas of his own design with names like Doom's Reach and Candar. I asked "Is Doom's Reach ruled by Lord Doom?" and he answered no.
Ken is the person who introduced me to D&D. We met through a common interest in reading material. In 7th grade, I saw a paperback copy of PERELANDRA by C. S. Lewis on his desk and asked him what it was about. He told me all about it, and that is what began our friendship. I read a lot, but Ken always read more and went through many books and fantasy series when we were in middle school and high school. I remember Ken trying to explain D&D to me during a class in 7th grade, and I just couldn't grasp the concept. The way I remember it, he told me about the 'strange dice' and how you would roll a d20 and it would determine what you play: a man, elf, dwarf, gnome, etc. I was fascinated, and could only tie it back to the DUNGEON! boardgame that I'd played once in the summer of 1979 while on vacation visiting a family in California, as well as the Rankin Bass version of THE HOBBIT. Ken owned the BASIC D&D boxed set (1977) edited by Holmes, and I don't think he quite grasped the game yet, either. But later on we played much D&D and then AD&D together. Ken liked "The Land" setting of THE CHRONICLES OF THOMAS COVENANT so much that he included in his D&D campaign world. He had a drawing of an entire continent where he placed "The Land" which included other original areas of his own design with names like Doom's Reach and Candar. I asked "Is Doom's Reach ruled by Lord Doom?" and he answered no.