Wizards, dragons, magic, ancient prophecies, important quests, daring feasts of bravery and chivalry... Hey, wait, wait, where are you going?
What, are we too cool to talk about fantasy?
It's no longer low art for children, D&D campaigns, and Bad Lord of the Rings ripoffs.
It's now the stuff of prestige, of Oscar-winning trilogies, and the adaptational basis for the most popular show on television.
But even if you watch Game of Thrones, that doesn't necessarily translate into new fans of the literary genre.
To quote Washington Post critic Michael Derda, many readers simply can't stomach fantasy.
They immediately picture elves with broadswords or mighty-fued barbarians with battle axes seeking the bejeweled coronet of obeisance.
But the best fantasies pull aside the velvet curtain of mere appearance.
In other words, the genre is a lens to explore what we as a society find important to our pasts, our presence, and our future.
Fantasy and science fiction often fall under the umbrella of speculative fiction, and as a result they are often grouped together in marketing and especially in bookstores.
