Book Review
2011-04-19
by Darknut
The Tough Guide to Fantasyland
1996 by Diana Wynne Jones
This is supposed to look like a splendid holiday destination.Verdict: 
Sarcasm is such a great invention, and this book is just oozing with it.
I read a lot of books. For some reason I hadn't felt like talking about that on here, perhaps because it wasn't "cool" enough. But by now it's clear that my coolness is not a concern, and I may as well share. The existence of more reviews in the world ought to assuage my fear of spending time reading a book that might turn out to be terrible. Well, OK, let's say I'm afraid only when I don't already know it's going to be terrible.
This is a very silly book. The Tough Guide feigns to be a encyclopedic travel guide, presenting expectations as if you're a Tourist to be lead about Fantasyland by the Management, but these are all code for the true subject matter, which is the relationship between readers and authors of magical-fantasy novels. It's really all just an excuse for this author to make fun of all the clichés that recur in works derived a little too much from Lord of the Rings. The author even goes so far as to point out the Official Management Terms that are always used to describe certain things, which is code for overused, moot terminology.
You might like this book if you're the type that enjoys itemized encyclopedias that officialy define all of the people, places, and things of your favorite fantasy series du jour. You might not like this book if you're unable to not take your favorite fantasy series du jour too seriously and admit how cheesy it really is. Also, the author is British, which means the humor is rather subtle. I think that the criticism presented in this book could apply just as well to the storytelling in your D&D campaign. It's worth pointing out that despite all the cynicism, the author has shown remarkable insight into the genre, so there ought to be something to be learned here.
I got hint of this book while reading through Atomic Rockets, a discussion about making your sci-fi less offensive to educated people, which makes reference to The Tough Guide to the Known Galaxy, which acknowledges it's an homage to Diana Wynne Jones' book just before it makes fun of Aliens with Forehead Ridges.
In case you haven't been paying attention, Diana Wynne Jones was the author of many books, including Howl's Moving Castle, which is just different enough from the anime to be a worthwhile and charming read.
