Free Republic Book Club (6/16/07): What's your favorite series?

[Tanniker Smith]

The Free Republic Book Club is an informal gathering of readers and lovers of all genre of books, which meets on an irregular basis, which would whenever I remember to post something. The last meeting, Free Republic Book Club: (1/16/07) What's on Your Reading List for 2007? was quite a while ago. Sorry about that.

If you would like to be on this ping list -- or if you are on it and wished to be removed -- please send me mail.

This "week's" topic: What's your favorite Book Series?
For the sake of argument, let's define a "series" as any collection of books by an author (or authors) with the continuing characters or a continuing conflict/situation/whathaveyou that is longer than a trilogy.

[Brasil]

I have just discovered the James D. Doss Charlie Moon series. They are Native American themes set in southwestern Colorado. The books remind one of the Tony Hillerman books but Doss includes a lot of humor.

[RobFromGa]

Vince Flynn’s Mitch Rapp Series— great political fiction in the vein of 24!

[Gideon T. Reader]

Under the cover of ignorance, I’m going to put forth three separate series:

1-The series about Rome and Ceasar by Norfolk Island, (SP) resident Colleen McCullough, which includes: CESAR, CESAR’S WOMEN, The GRASS CROWN, FORTUNE’s FAVORITE, and The FIRST MAN in ROME. Beautifully researched and the dialogue is crisp and remarkably fun to read. Each book is in the multi hundred to over 1,000 pages. A “READER’s” treat.

2-The Hera Series by New Zealand writer Pauline Gedge.
Ancient Egypt at it’s most conspiratorial and bloody.

3-Anything by Wilbur Smith; some twenty or more novels placed in or about Africa from it’s earliest encounters with the White men, to right now. A rich and deep writer who has created not one but several families, with genealogical movement; black and white. Start anywhere but better if from the begining. Adrenaline at it’s best.

4-Since I pled ignorance by submitting three, I figured, as would a U.S.Senator, (i.e., disembler,liar and cheat), why not me as well; so here is a forth series worth mentioning.

The Sano series, by Laura Joh Rowland.
Following the career and life of humble police officer Sano up through ranks to the Shogun’s “personal investigator of odd occurrences and happenings” in the Tokgukowa regime in ancient Japan. Clever investigation and involved plots making for a better more entertaining form of CSI: Ancient Japan(Cue giant gong clash!)Lots of involved and twisted plots for reading.

[Right Winged American]

Series are my favorite, just scanning my SF/Fantasy folder:

Piers Anthony - Xanth
Roger Zelazny - Amber
Marion Z. Bradley - Darkover
Alan Cole, Chris Bunch - Sten
A. Bertram Chandler - Grimes
David Drake - Hammer's Slammers
Eric Flint - Ring of Fire/Grantville
Alan Dean Foster - Flinx/Commonwealth
Leo Frankowski - StarGuard
David Gerrold - Chtorr (took forever!)
Terry Goodkind - Sword of Truth
James P. Hogan - Giants
Robert Jordan - Wheel of Time
Elizabeth Moon - Paksnarrion
John Ringo - Alldenata
Fred Saberhagen - Dracula
William Mark Simmons - Halflife
E. E. Smith - Skylark, Lensman
David Weber - Honor Harrington/Dahak/March series

Those are just the ones with a bunch of books...

 

[eleni121]

The first that comes to mind is the Christian History Project— a series of books that deal with the history of Christianity -—superbly done...and fascinating reading.

http://www.thechristians.ca/

[eleni121]

The Space Trilogy by C S Lewis—not as well knownas his others

And Herbert’s Dune-—got through those years ago but still reverberate.

[19th LA Inf]

While they might not be my favorite series, I have recently enjoyed a series by “Gordon Kent”, pseudonym for a father/son team who both served and flew in ASW ops in the Navy. The current titles, in release order, are: Night Trap, Peacemaker, Top Hook, Hostile Contact, Force Protection, Damage Control, The Spoils of War. Like a lot of novel series, even including those of Patrick O’Brian, the writers tend to run short of new material down the line, but there is a lot of interesting techno stuff, which led me to learn a lot about S-3 aircraft that I didn’t know.

[ReignOfError]

I don’t go in for series much. I have friends who are waiting for the next book in several different fantasy series,but they just don’t interest me much. I have another friend who has devoted this year to reading Churchill’s complete WWII history, which is a bigger goal than I’m willing to commit to.

I’ll get, and probably finish, the final Harry Potter the week if not the day it comes out. The last series before HP that I was in a hurry to snag and read was the Hitchhiker’s Guide trilogy (of five). I read The Green Mile, but only after it was all finished, and that’s not a novel series, but a single novel published in serial form.

My gripe with series, as you point out in a few examples, is that they tend to accumulate filler. The quality of each book is kind of hit or miss.

So what am I reading? I’ve been on a history and biography kick lately, reading Ellis Washington bio, His Excellency, McCullogh’s 1776, and over the last couple of years Isaacson’s bio of Ben Franklin and McCullogh’s of John Adams. I just finished In Cold Blood, a book I can’t believe I never read before now, and I”m working on Doris Kearns Goodwin’s Team of Rivals, a bio of Abe Lincoln and his Cabinet. In between non-fiction, I squeezed in Hannibal Rising. I also recommend to anyone Bernard Lewis’ history of the Middle East, but reading it is not a task to be taken lightly.

When I finish the Goodwin, my plan is to zip through at least a half-dozen Vonnegut novels as my own personal memorial to the guy. I did something similar when Douglas Adams died. Adams was easier — he’d only written seven novels.

[CindyDawg]

I don’t care too much for series. I like to finish the story:’) The last one I read though, I think, was the “Left Behind “ ones. I liked them but didn’t like waiting months for the next one to come out.

[ReignOfError]

Since the books have the same protagonist, would the work of Tom Clancy be considered a series?

I would definitely consider them a series. Even when Clancy departs from the timeline -- as in Without Remorse -- he manages to tie it in to the narrative. In WR, Jack Ryan has a cameo as the teenaged son of the Baltimore cop investigating ... the stuff (I don't want to give spoilers).

My big beef with the Jack Ryan series is that Clancy fell prey to ever-increasing expectations -- each book had to end with a bigger bang than the last, to a degree that began to border on the absurd. To his credit, I think Clancy saw that -- which is why his latest books are prequels (Red Rabbit) or following another tangent (the Rainbow Six series). Because, let's face it, there isn't much of anywhere else to take the character of Jack Ryan unless Clancy wants to crown him the Messiah.

[CatoRenasci]

I read the Foundation trilogy (Foundation, Foundation and Empire, and Second Foundation) in high school around 1963 or 1964, the other books didn't come out until much later. I actually liked the earlier ones better, the later books just weren't as fresh. I read all (or almost all) the Burroughs Mars books in junior high.

It's curious: I have (now college aged) daughters who, despite my attempts to interest them in my vast collection of SF, can't get much beyond Tolkien, CS Lewis, and Lloyd Alexander - the fantasy stuff, like Harry Potter. I was actually much more successful at getting them to read serious literature than SF. I guess that 'hard science' and 'military' SF is pretty much a guy thing.

[Keltik]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flashman ------------ Brigadier-General Sir Harry Paget Flashman VC KCB KCIE (5th May 1822 - 1915) is a fictional character originally created by the author Thomas Hughes in his semi-autobiographical work Tom Brown's Schooldays, first published in 1857. The book is set at Rugby School, where Flashman is a notorious bully who persecutes its eponymous hero, Tom Brown. In Hughes' book, Flashman is finally expelled for drunkenness. 20th century author George MacDonald Fraser had the idea of writing a series of memoirs of the cowardly, bullying Flashman, portraying him as an antihero who cuts a swathe through the Victorian wars and uproars (and the boudoirs and harems) of the 19th century. Flashman - a self-described and unapologetic 'cad' - constantly betrays acquaintances, runs from danger or hides cowering in fear, yet he arrives at the end of each volume with medals, the praise of the mighty, and the love of one or more beautiful and enthusiastic women. Ultimately, Flashman becomes one of the most notable and honoured figures of the Victorian era. --------- My favorite novel in the series is the third, Flash For Freedom (1971), a brilliant satire on race relations: ------ http://www.amazon.com/Freedom-Flashman-Papers-George-MacDonald/dp/0006511279/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/102-8789047-4779355?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1182011400&sr=1-1

[DancesWithCats]

Now, see? That’s the best part of chatting with people with similar interests. Hadn’t heard of Paul Scott, but will definitely be looking for his books now as the subject and the way you’ve described his writing just catches my interest.

My favorite is James Patterson, esp. his Alex Cross series. And I do like Patricia Cornwell as well but not so much on her Women’s Murder Club series.

When my son was younger (he’s 19 next month) I read aloud to him every single Harry Potter book and anxiously awaited the next one to arrive in the series. We had hours of great fun with it and then watching the movies too when they came out. He was 16 when I read the last to him! LOL Wouldn’t tell his friends that, I’m sure.

And of course, when my daughter was little (in her 30’s now) I read to her all the J.R.R. Tolkien books. We didn’t care for the stupid animated ‘Hobbit’ though. They ruined it.

Tom Clancy? Just found every TC ever published I think in a thrift shop that closes for the summer and I bought every one. I won’t need a hobby for awhile. LOL Looking forward to reading those.

Happy Reading folks!!

[DancesWithCats]

Anybody catch the Opus cartoon the other day about him deciding to become a reader!? If I knew how to post a cartoon, I’d put it up. Can somebody do that? I laughed like mad!

[codercpc]

When the Harry Potter series first became popular, my young son brought the book home from school all excited to be finally "reading" it. Unfortunately for him, it was still about two years above his reading capability. Fortunately for me, I took that as an opportunity to bring my reading to him back into vogue (he was at that age that all boys begin to pull away from Mommy). We would lay in bed every night and I would read to him. By the time the second book came out, he would read a page or two to me, then I would take over.... and so it went over the next few books. It became the habit for us to read the books together.

For the last two books, my now teenage son was truly to old to lay in bed with Mom and be read to. So I would buy 2 books on opening day, and we would read them at the same time, and discuss them as we went along (he was usually a chapter or two ahead of me, so I would beg him not to spoil it.) After we were both done, I would then donate the extra book to the Public Library, so others could benefit.

My now 17 year old son has already prepurchased his own copy of the book, and plans to line up at midnight to buy it. I will be sleeping comfortably and letting him stand in line to buy us both one!!!!

Harry Potter holds such a dear space in my heart for those close Mom and Son moments that I will remember the rest of my life. The stories aren't that bad either ;>.

So for all of these reasons, Harry Potter gets my vote for the best series ever written!!!!!!

[Paperdoll]

Thanks for the Ping, TS.

Harry Potter is definitely not on my list, long or short. C.S. Lewis is always there, and W. Dale Cramer ranks very highly. Also Jane Smiley, Jan Karon, and, oh, yes, Jane Kirkpatrick are good summer reads, but anything Nicholas Sparks is great any time of the year.

Lately though I’ve been on a nonfiction kick - 1776, by McCullough; Mayflower, Philbrick; Atomic Iran, Corsi; The New World Order, Robertson; and of course, The Reagan Diaries, Reagan.

Must look soon for Land of Lincoln? I think it is titled.

[Tanniker Smith]

I don’t care too much for series. I like to finish the story:

I know what you mean. I hate when things are wide open. That said, I don't mind another visit to a place that I liked. For example, the HP books usually have complete stories in them, even though they are building to the end. (The Goblet of Fire was left a little too much hanging for my tastes, actually.) And the Sue Grafton books are episodic (at least the ones that I read were).

On the other hand, I remember the first NetForce book I picked up. There were characters having a subplot that had absolutely nothing to do with the book at all, but were there because they were in the previous book. That I hate.

One last example I can give:
Kingmakers Sword, by Ann Marston and
The Western King, by Ann Marston
are two great books read by themselves. Unfortunately, they are the first two books of a trilogy in which book three (while okay) was disappointing. And then she made a second trilogy. It ended okay. (I had to finish it although I didn't pay for any of those books.)

[Travis McGee]

The Travis McGee series by John D. MacDonald, naturally!

[DancesWithCats]

Sounds like we had a similar experience with HP and our sons, codercpc! It was a magical, fun time for both of us and I know I’ll always treasure those times that we had together. The books are imaginative, fun, scary and relate so well the maturing of a young boy whose start in life was so very difficult ... as it was for my own son (adopted at age 5 ... rough background and would bring tears to your eyes). So for many reasons, I just love HP!

Glad you found such a delightful connection with your son as well! And yes, as a reading tool? They were great!

[daisyscarlett]

While not necessarily my favorite series, it is high on my list....Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum books. A new one is being released on Monday in Hardcover, "Lean Mean Thirteen". The series begins with "One for the Money".

Last year, I went to her book signing and I never saw so many diverse people at a signing. Her books are very funny.