What's your experience with Conan?

[fanboy2000]

So, there's a new Conan movie coming out. It's probably going to be crap. But it's made me think about how many of us have read Conan stories by Robert E. Howard. Like Tolkien, Howard's stories are considered one of the cornerstone of D&D.

I don't like Tolkien, but I've been reading a lot of Howard this past year. I came to Howard late, in my 30s after I'd been playing D&D for years. By contrast, a lot of the people I see posting seem to have read Conan years ago when they were young. While that's simply not me.

So what have you read?

 

[Michael Dean]

I started reading the Conan books the year before the first movie came out. I was a freshman in HS and the school library had a beat up Ace Books copy of Conan the Conqueror. I was immediately hooked and soon bought all of the volumes and anything else by REH I could get my hands on.

 

[Meatboy]

I only read the Century Edition this past winter. I loved the history and thought that Howard put into his world but honestly about half way through I kinda got the point.... Conan's thews are steely and his laugh is elemental and gusty. Also if anything crosses his path that is not an unnamed horror from the pits of hell he will dispose of them in about 2 pages time.

 

[Crothian]

When I was in high school I think I went through and read everything of Howard's Conan I could fine. I really liked them at the time. I haven't read his stuff for a while though.

 

[TarionzCousin]

What's your experience with Conan?

He pillaged me. I don't like to talk about it.

 

[jonesy]

I read the Finnish translations a long time ago. Don't remember a whole lot. I've been meaning to buy them in English.

 

[Goodsport]

What's your experience with Conan?

 

[Diamond Cross]

He took my girl away from me and the Kushites killed her.

 

[Ahnehnois]

I've never read any of them, though I've read plenty of Lovecraft and I understand he and Howard were friends (albeit with very different tastes). I'm mildly curious as to what the appeal is.

 

[Blastin]

I just finished listening to the full anthologies. Some company came out with them: Unchanged from the original and in the order that he wrote them.

They are, for the most part, excellent. Even the one's that were obviously written just to make money are at least entertaining. Overall I was very impressed. The anthology also had a lot of information about RH, a few of his letters, and theories about his life and death.