Patron Picks: Fantastic Realms at Open Book Hour
What are you reading? Every month at our Open Book Hour at Mid-Manhattan Library at 42nd Street, readers meet to trade fiction and nonfiction book recommendations. If you'd like to join us, Open Book Hour meets the second Friday of every month at 2 PM in Room 67A at the Mid-Manhattan Library.
Next up: On March 8, we'll talk about revolutionary women in literature. You can see information on upcoming discussion themes, and check out our past reading lists (and printable versions.)
February Open Book Hour: Fantastic Realms
In February, Open Book Hour readers shared selections that go deep into worlds beyond our wildest imaginings. Middle
Earth, Atlantis, Discworld, Narnia, Westeros, Xanadu… From fables and legends to parallel worlds and alternate universes, these are some of our favorite fantasy and mythical worlds.
Atlantis Foundby Clive Cussler (1999)
Joan W. recommends this page-turner about an ancient city discovered in the Antarctic.
Time and Again by Jack Finney (1970)
Joan W. also recommends this interesting story about a time-traveling carriage located in Central Park, describing the book as unique and engaging.
Joan recommends anything by Octavia Butler ("fascinating stories that investigate social issues in futuristic settings") and Isaac Asimov ("master of science fiction and fantasy.")
To the Bright Edge of the World by Eowyn Ivey (2016)
Helen recommends this man-versus-nature story of a colonel exploring the Alaskan territory in 1885; it is a "great example of how certain natural landscapes can seem unearthly or fantastic."
The Time Machineby H.G. Wells (1895)
Another reader was was surprised by the happy ending in The Time Machine, which "seemed pasted on at the end."
In this Wells classic, an unnamed narrator travels "into futurity," encountering two races—the Eloi and the Morlocks—who represent the upper and working classes, respectively. Wells wrote this imaginative political fable in 1895.
What fantastical worlds do you like to visit through books? Please share your recommendations in the comments section below. And join us in March!