Campaign for the American Reader: Six top read-aloud books for grown-ups

Saturday, June 25, 2016

Six top read-aloud books for grown-ups

Christian McKay Heidicker's new book is Cure for the Common Universe.

For Tor.com he tagged six of the best read-aloud books for grown-ups, including:

Best Read-Aloud Series: The Magicians by Lev Grossman

Why: This series was pitched to me as “Harry Potter goes to college, with sex and drugs and all that that implies.” I think that analysis does a disservice to the work. Unlike Hogwarts, the magic here feels … more realistic, if that makes any sense. It’s dangerous and difficult and worms into dimensions most of its users don’t understand. And when they do understand it, they wish they hadn’t. Grossman’s trilogy about kids in a magical school tackles more adult themes. What do you do when you reach your goals and feel dissatisfied? How do you come to terms with growing up and leaving Hogwarts behind? The Magicians contains pockets of magic so deep that I felt lost when I went out into the world, knowing the only way to find my way back again would be to keep reading.

Who Will Curl Up In Front of You: Those who feel disenfranchised from Harry Potter and the real world. Also, goths.

Tips: Make big, gopping predictions about where the story’s headed (and prepare to be delightfully wrong). The first volume’s climax is slightly anti-climactic. Don’t stop.

Runner-ups: Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin, Discworld by Terry Pratchett, A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams.