HOL

I've read books which were authored by one person, and books which were co-authored. I suppose, when thinking of some of the more prolific of the single authors, the names Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett come up.

Recently there was the new BBC series based on the book that Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett co-authored: Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch (published in 1990).

This is one of those books which, when I read it, I laughed so much I cried. So good! Was this a successful co-authoring of a strange and wonderful book? Yes!

Then there are the co-authored books which somehow do not hit the spot for me. The original author, say, of a series of books, is awesome. Time goes by, situations change, and they are joined by a co-author.

This happened with the books of Dick Francis, which are extraordinarily good in that usually the protagonist of the story is a decent and good person, with a well-written story of danger, evocatively descriptive and just fun to read. (There is much conversation about how Dick Francis was joined with his wife, Mary, in co-writing the books.) Then he was joined by his son (Felix), and somehow the whole flavour of the books changed, sort of gradually but then more rapidly to where I simply didn't want to read them anymore. The books continue to have a large and happy audience, so that is a fine thing, too. But they are no longer my cup of tea. I preferred the books which were co-authored (even if not officially) with Mary.

Do you have any books which were co-authored and you really like them? (Or read them and dislike them when comparing them to the books written by the authors as individuals?)

Do you have any ideas of authors who could possibly join together and write an extraordinary story together?

Tell us!

I remember watching Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey and thinking it was as boring as watching peeling paint, but I thought the book was excellent. It was written by Kubrick along with Arthur C. Clarke. Fascinating beginning, interesting Martian happenings, intriguing visits to Jupiter and Saturn, and an unexpected ending. I highly recommend it.

I have been travelling past two weeks or so, so I had plenty of time to read books (and less time to post about them). I have read two of them that are lauded as one of the best of its genre or at least its authors are deemed as the “beginners” of the genre. Therefore, it would be quite interesting to see these two authors team up.

Lud-in-the-Mist by Hope Mirrlees actually came onto my radar because of Neil Gaiman. He is quite a big fan and I thought, if he likes it, there must be something to it. I have to say that Lud-in-the-Mist is one of the most delightful fantasies I have ever read, and I have read a lot. It is a lovely story with many layers of significance. The visuals and words are fantastic. Throughout the novel, there is a growing sense of tension as the plot unfolds. It has both a sense of humour and a sense of tragedy. It has a mystery element to it as well as some judicial drama. There are heroes and villains, as well as a villain who believes himself to be a hero. Ordinary individuals have been inspired to perform extraordinary things, while ordinary people have remained ordinary. It is a neatly written novel that crams a lot into its little more than 300 pages, and it wraps up in a dramatic and gratifying way.

Fritz Leiber is the father of “sword and sorcery” genre and even coined the term himself. I have started Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser Series with the “Ill Met in Lankhmar”, which is lauded as one of the best origin series set in the fantasy world. Reading Leiber's Lankhmar tales, I can see why they have persisted and continue to be so popular, as well as how they have profoundly affected the fantasy genre. They are a lot of fun and a must-read for any fantasy aficionados out there.

Due to the authors’ popularities and their fame in respective genres, I would love to see a co-authorship on a fantasy novel with Mirrlees’ characters and visual and Leiber’s action and story-telling.