D&D General How many books/authors of the original AD&D Bibliography have you read? Do you feel you see D&D differently than people who have not read any?

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Yeah, there's a definite drop-off in quality. I think it coincides with the death of his wife and subsequent alcoholism. Both things that would've understandably affected his writing deeply.

The subject matter is pretty problematic, too. I think the "guest" on the ship and the way they traveled would get blasted by audiences (and probably even publishers) today.

That said, the first four (?) collections are astonishingly good. Like "if you haven't read them, stop reading this thread and order them immediately" good.

 

[Yora]

Heh, I missed that there was a musical!

As for Conan, though the writing remains aces, unfortunately there are plenty of racist and sexist elements that grate for modern readers in plenty of his stories.

[citation needed]

People are free to not like it, but accusations like that demand evidence.

 

[Blue Orange]

[citation needed]

People are free to not like it, but accusations like that demand evidence.

The depiction of the black pseudo-African corsairs in a clearly subservient position in Queen of the Black Coast, the Native American stereotype Picts in Beyond the Black River (though there's a bit of an aesop about how Aquilonia really should leave them alone), the frequent use of Stygians as faceless mook enemies in Hour of the Dragon. The Vale of Lost Women has a tribe of brown-skinned lesbians who want to sacrifice the white Livia to a bat demon, but Conan's agreed to help her because they're both white and has earlier rescued her from the Balakah tribe... As for sexism, he spanks women to keep them in line a few times and frequently tosses them over his shoulder, though they all come willingly to him, being supermuscular and all. Howard was actually something of a feminist for his era (you have him arguing with Lovecraft at one point over this), and has strong female characters like Belit in Queen of the Black Coast and Valeria in Red Nails; they fight well, though not as well as Conan. But most of the time they just need to be rescued. (Howard was writing to make money and his preferences lay more to the Belit/Valeria types when he had a freer hand.)

There's a bit of a complication in that Howard thought barbarism was better than civilization, so the stereotypes kind of cut the opposite way sometimes. Nonetheless, 1930s guy really did think like a guy from the 1930s. (As opposed to his buddy Lovecraft, who thought like a guy from the 1830s...)

 

[MGibster]

But, an important note - I was playing RPGs and AD&D before I read anything on the list. So, it is more that my gaming influenced my reading habits, rather than the other way around.

Same here. I didn't even read the Lord of the Rings books until shortly before the Peter Jackson movies came out. It's unlikely I'll ever get around to reading most of the books listed in the OP and I don't really have any interest in them. I think it's weird that Roger Zelazny's Amber books are listed because nothing about them screams AD&D to me. But then none of the fantasy books I've read throughout my life have resembled D&D very closely. Not even the books based on D&D.

 

[Garthanos]

The only one I might check out someday is Moorcock.

I consider that one vital.... he is sort of the anti-conan.

 

[Lanefan]

But then none of the fantasy books I've read throughout my life have resembled D&D very closely. Not even the books based on D&D.

For me, a few have very much mapped to D&D in some ways.

Eddings' Belgariad maps well to some of the less-magical class archetypes. Jordan's Wheel of Time maps fairly closely to D&D in many ways, other than the "spells" are all psionic. More recently, Lynch's Gentlemen Bastards maps well to a guild of Thieves.

And Eames' Kings of the Wyld sends the whole thing up marvllously!

 

[MGibster]

For me, a few have very much mapped to D&D in some ways.

Eddings' Belgariad maps well to some of the less-magical class archetypes. Jordan's Wheel of Time maps fairly closely to D&D in many ways, other than the "spells" are all psionic. More recently, Lynch's Gentlemen Bastards maps well to a guild of Thieves.

And Eames' Kings of the Wyld sends the whole thing up marvllously!

I started reading The Wheel of Time books around 1990-1991 when the paperback version of Eye of the World came out. I even attempted to create a D&D campaign based on the setting which is what led to my revelation that D&D was not a generic fantasy game. I don't find that WoT maps to D&D at all really. I suppose there's the zero to hero, but that's something found in a lot of fiction including Star Wars and Apocalypse Now that I can't really point to it as something specific to D&D.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Yeah, Joseph Campbell -- and the works he cited -- predate D&D by several decades.

 

[JEB]

Comparing 1979's Appendix N to 2014's Appendix E is making me wonder what 2024's analogue will look like. Will authors like Lovecraft still be on there? (Will there even be a recommended reading section?)

 

[Garthanos]

I started reading The Wheel of Time books around 1990-1991 when the paperback version of Eye of the World came out. I even attempted to create a D&D campaign based on the setting which is what led to my revelation that D&D was not a generic fantasy game. I don't find that WoT maps to D&D at all really. I suppose there's the zero to hero, but that's something found in a lot of fiction including Star Wars and Apocalypse Now that I can't really point to it as something specific to D&D.

Jordan was a DM for his kids and being TaVeren were intended to mean PCs... I purchase the d20 version of Wheel of Time Roleplaying. And they tried to make the magic feel right but it kind of didnt