The Mythopoet's Master Fantasy Reading List

For the past couple of years I have slowly been studying modern fantasy literature and compiling a list of what I think comprises a comprehensive reading list of the modern fantasy genre, with emphasis on fantasy set in imaginary worlds over fantasy set in alternate version of our own world. Though the latter are by no means excluded. There are also many works which straddle the borders between fantasy and science fiction. Even when such works are generally viewed as part of the science fiction genre, I will include them if I think they have impact on the fantasy genre and thus are worth studying.  Sometimes many works by an author are included particular if that author is a significant contributor to the genre or if an author's works have a large range of subject matter and style that is useful to study. Sometimes whole series are included if I feel the whole series is significant and worthy of study, sometimes I only include individual books from series. Often times I won't know whether I should include more books in a series for study until I've read the first book myself. This is a personal judgement. I would encourage anyone reading the works on the list to pursue further works from any author they find to resonate with their personal tastes even if I did not.

This list is a Work in Progress. There is a lot of good information out there about classic works of fantasy, but there are just as many worthy works of fantasy that have fallen, more or less, into obscurity. Thus I often spend time trolling through lists of fantasy books found on various sites around the internet and usually come away with the names of several volumes I had never heard of before to add to the list. I am always on the lookout for new titles or authors to add and probably won't come to what I feel is a final version of the list for years to come yet. Once in a while I come across clearer information than I had before which leads to changes to the existing list rather than simple additions. I might remove a certain book by a certain author in favor of another of that author's works which I judge to be more worthy of study. It is rare indeed that an author's work would disappear altogether.

Slowly working through the list has already benefited me greatly in my efforts to learn the craft of storytelling and given me tremendous amounts of fuel for my imagination. I still have a long way to go but it looks like it will be a fun journey. And I hope that this list will be useful to any other individuals interested in studying the genre.

The List

*John Ruskin: The King of the Golden River (1851)
*Phantastes: A Faerie Romance for Men and Women by George MacDonald (1858)
*The Wood Beyond the World by William Morris (1894)
The Well at the World's End by William Morris (1896)
The Wallet of Kai Lung by Ernest Bramah (1900)
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum (1900)
*The Gods of Pegana by Lord Dunsany (1905)
*Time and the Gods by Lord Dunsany (1906)
*The Sword of Welleran and Other Stories by Lord Dunsany (1908)
*A Dreamer's Tales by Lord Dunsany (1910)
*The Night Land by William Hope Hodgson (1912)
*The Works of H.P. Lovecraft (1917-1935)
*The Moon Pool by A. Merritt (1919)
*A Voyage to Arcturus by David Lindsay (1920)
*The Worm Ouroboros by E.R. Eddison (1922)
*The King of Elfland's Daughter by Lord Dunsany (1924)
*Lud-in-the-Mist by Hope Mirrlees (1926)
War in Heaven by Charles Williams (1930)
Zothique stories by Clark Ashton Smith (1932-)
*Conan the Barbarian stories by Robert E. Howard (1932-)
Jirel of Joiry stories by C.L. Moore (1934-)
The Island of the Mighty by Evangeline Walton (1936)
*The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien (1937)
*Out of the Silent Planet by C.S. Lewis 1938
*Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser stories by Fritz Leiber (1939-)
*The Roaring Trumpet and The Mathematics of Magic by Fletcher Pratt and L. Sprague de Camp (1940)
*The Sorcerer's Ship by Hannes Bok (1942)
*The Book of Ptath by A.E. van Vogt (1943)
Titus Groan by Mervyn Peake (1946)
The Well of the Unicorn by Fletcher Pratt (1948)
The Dying Earth by Jack Vance (1950)
*The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis (1950-1956)
The Tritonian Ring by L. Sprague de Camp (1953)
The Broken Sword by Poul Anderson (1954)
*The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien (1954-1955)
*The Once and Future King by T.H. White (1958)
The Weirdstone of Brisingamen (1960) and The Moon of Gomrath (1963) by Alan Garner
*A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle (1962)
Labyrinths by Jorge Luis Borges (1962)
Witch World by Andre Norton (1963)
*The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander (1964)
*Dune series (Dune, Dune Messiah, Children of Dune, God Emperor of Dune) by Frank Herbert (1965-1981)
*The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle (1968)
*The Earthsea Trilogy (A Wizard of Earthsea, The Tombs of Atuan, The Farthest Shore) by Ursula K. LeGuin (1968, 1971, 1972)
Dragonflight by Anne McCaffrey (Dragonriders of Pern Book 1, 1968)
The Face in the Frost by John Bellairs (1969)
Red Moon and Black Mountain by Joy Chant (1970)
Deryni Rising by Katherine Kurtz (1970)
*Nine Princes in Amber by Roger Zelazny (1970)
*Elric of Melniboné by Michael Moorcock (1972)
Watership Down by Richard Adams (1972)
*Perelandra by C.S. Lewis 1972
*That Hideous Strength by C.S. Lewis 1974
The Forgotten Beasts of Eld by Patricia McKillip (1974)
The Sword of Shanara by Terry Brooks (1977)
*Lord Foul's Bane by Stephen R. Donaldson (1977)
A Spell for Chameleon by Piers Anthony (Xanth Book 1, 1977)
Beauty by Robin McKinley (1978)
The Neverending Story by Michael Ende (1979)
The Book of the New Sun (The Shadow if the Torturer, The Claw of the Conciliator, The Sword of the Lictor, The Citadel of the Autarch) by Gene Wolfe (1980-1983)
*The Changing Land by Roger Zelazny (1981)
*Dilvish, the Damned by Roger Zelazny (1982)
Little, Big by John Crowley (1982)
The Elfin Ship by James Blaylock (1982)
Magician (Riftwar Saga) by Raymond E. Feist (1982)
Pawn of Prophecy by David Eddings (The Belgariad Book 1, 1982)
The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger by Stephen King (1982)
*The Anubis Gates by Tim Powers (1983)
*The Color of Magic by Terry Pratchett (1983)
Web of light by Marion Zimmer Bradley (1983)
Alanna: The First Adventure (The Song of the Lioness) by Tamora Pierce (1983)
Dragons of Autumn Twilight by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman (1984)
Mythago Wood by Robert Holdstock (1984)
The Black Company by Glen Cook (1984)
Legend by David Gemmell (1984)
The Man of Gold by M.A.R. Barker (1984)
Her Majesty's Wizard by Christopher Stasheff (1986)
*Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones (1986)
The Time Master Trilogy by Louise Cooper (1986)
Soldier of the Mist by Gene Wolfe (1986)
Taliesin by Stephen R. Lawhead (1987)
War for the Oaks by Emma Bull (1987)
The Crystal Shard by R.A. Salvatore (Icewind Dale Book 1, 1988)
Sheepfarmer's Daughter (The Deed of Paksenarrion) by Elizabeth Moon (1988)
*The Dragonbone Chair by Tad Williams (1988)
The Boat of a Million Years by Poul Anderson (1989)
*The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan (1990)
The Phoenix Guards by Steven Brust (1991)
*The Magic of Recluce by L. E. Modesitt Jr (1991)
*Wizard's First Rule by Terry Goodkind (1994)
*Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb (Farseer Trilogy book 1, 1995)
The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman (1995)
Sabriel by Garth Nix (1995)
*A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin (1996)
*The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling (1997-2007)
*Stardust by Neil Gaiman (1998)
The Sum of All Men by David Farland (1998)
*Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson (Malazan Book of the Fallen, 1999)
*Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier (1999)
*Storm Front by Jim Butcher (Harry Dresden Book 1, 2000)
Perdido Street Station by China Mieville (2000)
Kushiel's Dart by Jacqueline Carey (2001)
American Gods by Neil Gaiman (2002)
*Eragon by Christopher Paolini (2002)
The Curse of Chalion by Lois McMaster Bujold (2002)
*Inkheart by Cornelia Funke (2003)
The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud (2003)
Tales of the Otori books by Lian Hearn (2003)
*Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke (2004)
*The Darkness that Comes Before by R. Scott Bakker (2004)
Elantris by Brandon Sanderson (2005)
His Majesty's Dragon by Naomi Novik (2005)
Priestess of the White by Trudi Caravan (2005)
*The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch (2006)
The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie (2006)
*The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss (2007)
Ysabel by Guy Gavriel Kay (2007)
The Painted Man by Peter V. Brett (2008)
The Way of Shadows by Brent Weeks (2008)
The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N. K. Jemisin (2010)
Hounded by Kevin Hearne (Iron Druid series) 2011
Prince of Thorns by Mark Lawrence (2011)
The Night Land, a Story Retold by James Stoddard, William Hope Hodgson (2011)

Notes:
* denotes works I have already read.
Suggestions for works that should be added to the list are gratefully accepted.

My Personal Favorites from the List So Far:

The Gods of Pegana by Lord Dunsany (1905)
Time and the Gods by Lord Dunsany (1906)
The Sword of Welleran and Other Stories by Lord Dunsany (1908)
A Dreamer's Tales by Lord Dunsany (1910)
The Works of H.P. Lovecraft (1917-1935)
The King of Elfland's Daughter by Lord Dunsany (1924)
Lud-in-the-Mist by Hope Mirrlees (1926)
Conan the Barbarian stories by Robert E. Howard (1932-)
The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien (1937)
The Space Trilogy (Out of the Silent Planet, Perelandra, That Hideous Strength )by C.S. Lewis  (1938, 1972, 1974)
Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser stories by Fritz Leiber (1939-)
Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis (1950-1956)
The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien (1954-1955)
The Once and Future King by T.H. White (1958)
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle (1962)
Dune series (Dune, Dune Messiah, Children of Dune, God Emperor of Dune) by Frank Herbert (1965-1981)
The Chronicles of Amber, The Corwin Cycle by Roger Zelazny (1970-1978)
Elric of Melniboné by Michael Moorcock (1972)
The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle (1968)
The Earthsea Trilogy (A Wizard of Earthsea, The Tombs of Atuan, The Farthest Shore) by Ursula K. LeGuin (1968, 1971, 1972)
The Changing Land by Roger Zelazny (1981)
Dilvish, the Damned by Roger Zelazny (1982)
The Anubis Gates by Tim Powers (1983)
Discworld series by Terry Pratchett (1983-present)
Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones (1986)
Storm Front by Jim Butcher (Harry Dresden Book 1, 2000)
Inkheart by Cornelia Funke (2003)
Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke (2004)
The Night Land, a Story Retold by James Stoddard, William Hope Hodgson (2011)