So if you could pick one… only one… genre fiction book out of all the ones you’ve read, with an eye toward showing someone who only reads genreless fiction (if there is really such a creature)…
What book would it be?
For my part, with only that scenario in mind, I would probably pick a Stephen King book (probably It or The Stand). Not because I believe it to be the best writing ever. Because what he excels in is the ability to grip his readers and not let them go until he’s quite, quite done with them. That’s the trap I would want to lay for a reader who didn’t have any interest in genre fiction.
If I wanted to pick absolutely the best genre book ever written by anyone I’ve read… that would be harder.
Strong candidates include To Say Nothing of the Dog, by Connie Willis. Or The Curse of Chalion, by Lois McMaster Bujold. Or The Innkeeper’s Song, by Peter Beagle. I don’t think I could choose one of those… it’s just going to have to be a threeway tie.
What would you pick?
Kathleen
No related posts.
It’s hard in SF/F because so many great books are part of trilogies/series, and people sometimes don’t want to make that kind of commitment right away. When I was in this situation, I recommended Ursula K. LeGuin’s “Gifts” as a good intro to fantasy, because it’s short, powerful, and beautifully written. That was only semi-successful; apparently the “names were too weird.”