Fantasy with Friends is a weekly meme hosted by the good people over at Pages Unbound. Fantasy with Friends poses questions each Monday about fantasy, either as a genre as a whole or individual works.
This week’s prompt is:
Do you prefer low or high fantasy? Or both?
As with almost every question I can think of along these lines, I’m going to have to go with “the one I’m currently reading/most currently read.” Unless, of course, I didn’t like that book. I can name favorites on either side of that division (although I’m afraid some purists would consider a lot of things I dub “low” are “high” thanks to the subjective nature of the categories).
But…wand to my head, I’d have to say high fantasy is my preference. I want all the bells and whistles—magic users, fantasy creatures, mystical MacGuffins, ancient prophecies, maybe even a Chosen One, and so on. They can be dark or silly—the escapism from this world, the
Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled Citywas so entertaining that I didn’t even notice there was zero magic, and is the first example I can think of for “low” fantasy. The minimal (or at least seemingly minimal magic of) The First Law trilogy or the Eddie LaCrosse books is really appealing—sure, there’s a possibility that a dragon or wizard might show up, but basically it’s about a human, their wits, and ability to use a weapon against some challenge. Although it’s a lot of fun to see when the high fantasy elements do seep in. I have to admit that in the last few months I’ve read two fantasy novels that were so low, I lost patience with them and kept muttering “where’s the fantasy?” as I read them.
Most of the cozy fantasies I’ve read qualify as “low,” if you cave out a caveat or three. And it’s generally the “low” parts of those that make them the most interesting, the interpersonal stuff plus the other—opening a jam shop, becoming a local beat cop, baking, running a bar and creating nachos, and so on. The “high” bits are just what make them cozy fantasy, and not cozy fiction.
But when you (in the general sense, not necessarily you) think of “Fantasy,” you’re inevitably thinking of High Fantasy—the One Ring, Dragons, mages like Raistlin, vorpal swords, elves, dwarves, kenders/hobbits/halflings, goblins, orcs, and so on. There’s a reason for that. They’re characteristic of the genre, they’re what (probably) initially attracted you to the genre, and they are the source of a lot of the fun of the genre.
I’m really looking forward to some of the other posts in response to this prompt, if only because I expect a good recommendation or six.
Do you have responses to this? (either for the comment section below or from your own post)
Krysta
I agree that all those staples of high fantasy are what made me fall in love with the genre! Wizards, dragons, unicorns–that’s definitely what I think of when I think of “fantasy.” So I have to go with high fantasy as my preference, but, really can you go wrong with fantasy? Low fantasy can be fun, too!
KWHR
Yeah, I do not know if I would have enjoyed fantasy if my gateway was low fantasy, but I do think low fantasy can be done well. I tend to think many folklore tales (not all of them of course) pull off low fantasy well. Many of Grim and Anderson’s tales I think fit nicely into low fantasy. There are usually just enough fantastical elements to add intrigue and mystique while also still carrying a frightful plausibility to real world experiences. A video game series that does low fantasy immense justice is the “Thief” series, especially as steampunk technology of the Hammerites often creates greater wonders to people than the glimpses of nature magic the Pagans are capable of producing.
Becky's Book Blog
There is something special about reading a book and getting enveloped in a new world/magic system, but I also love low fantasy books for making our world a little more magical.
cyberpunkgir1
I like both high and low fantasy. Having the right amount of fantasy in low fantasy is what makes it intriguing. Plus its not over whelming, which makes it good new comers in the genre.