Depending on how you look at it, perhaps some or even most of these books are the best-written stories of all time, or in fact, the best-selling Sci-Fi, Fantasy, or Horror stories ever.  They are not in any particular order,  because certain of these stories really made a strong impression on me growing up (e.g. Frank Herbert’s books), and yet I’ve listed them without regard to their popularity.

Some of these are older classics that our parents may have read too, and some are pretty new (the latest Harry Potter for instance). Due to my own interests, several of these are on my personal “most recommended books of all time” list and I’ve certainly read most of these over and over.

Some of them don’t exactly fit into a given genre, but a few of them are either currently about to be released as movie versions, or are already top-selling book and movie franchises.

And if high-quality literature is something that you care about, then I’m sure you’ll agree that all of these are capable of taking you to another microcosmic universe, world, or parallel dimension, where romantic and strange things are happening.  A place where the long, hot, summer time months will go by more enjoyably, as you wander through these stories with a sense of wonder.

1. Harry Potter (Series) by J.K. Rowling (FANTASY ADVENTURE)
2. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (Series) by Douglas Adams (HUMOR, SCI-FI)
3. The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger (TIME TRAVEL)
4. Life of Pi by Yann Martel (FANTASY ADVENTURE)
5. The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien (FANTASY ADVENTURE)
6. The Lord of the Rings (Trilogy) by J.R.R. Tolkien (EPIC FANTASY ADVENTURE)
7. The Princess Bride by William Goldman (FANTASY ROMANCE)
8. Twilight (Series) by Stephenie Meyer (VAMPIRES, ROMANCE)
9. Ender’s Game (Series) by Orson Scott Card (SCI FI)
10. Interview with the Vampire (Series) by Anne Rice (VAMPIRES)
11. The Stand by Stephen King (HORROR, POST-APOCALYPTIC)
12. Dune (Trilogy + Series + Prequels) by Frank Herbert (SCI FI)
13. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll (FANTASY)
14. Dracula by Bram Stoker (THEE VAMPIRE)
15. Dead Until Dark (Series) by Charlaine Harris (VAMPIRES)
16. Outlander (Series) by Diana Gabaldon (TIME TRAVEL, ROMANCE)
17. The Shining by Stephen King (FANTASY, HORROR)
18. One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez (FANTASY – MAGICAL REALISM, ROMANCE)
19. The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay by Michael Chabon (FANTASY, SUPERHEROES, COMIC BOOKS)
20. Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson (FANTASY ADVENTURE)

Multiple generations of readers have made J. R. R. Tolkien’s epic story of Middle-earth one of the great successes of the fantasy genre. In fact, in 1999 in a poll of Amazon.com customers, his trilogy was judged to be their favorite “book of the millennium”. Last year, Tolkien was ranked sixth on the list of “50 Greatest British Writers” by The Times.

Considered to be the “father” of modern fantasy literature, his writings include a body of tales, poems, fictional histories, invented languages, and literary essays. To this day, Tolkien’s published work has inspired, and continues to inspire, artwork, music, films, video games and theatrical adaptations, even the founding of societies by his enthusiastic fans.

Indeed, Middle-earth has had such an enormous effect on the entire field of modern fantasy fiction, that to be “Tolkienian” or “Tolkienesque” has become a reference in popular culture equivalent to “Arthurian”. Interest in his enormously popular fictional creations, has generated a literary discipline known as Tolkein Studies, which focuses on what Tolkien fandom often refers to as Tolkien’s Legendarium.

Among many outstanding characters from the The Hobbit (1937) and The Lord of the Rings (1954-55), one of the most important supporting characters in the final parts of the trilogy is that of Gollum. Originally known as Sméagol, the character is named Gollum after his habit of making “a horrible swallowing noise in his throat”.

Gollum was the previous owner of the Ring, before Bilbo found it and carried it away to the Shire, where it ended up in the possession of Frodo. Right up to the end of the story, Gollum’s interactions are a constant source of trouble, in the form of “tricksy” deceits that almost defeat the purpose of Frodo’s quest, which is to destroy the Ring and defeat Sauron.

Last month was the online debut of The Hunt For Gollum by writer/director/producer Chris Bouchard. This new 40 minute indie fan film, which was inspired by the appendices from the classic Ring trilogy, was made for less than $5,000, and is available online for free. The production values are better than expected, so this short flick should be a pleasant surprise for LOTR fans, who will appreciate the creativity that went into it. I’m giving it my thumbs up, but check it out yourself on www.thehuntforgollum.com or http://www.dailymotion.com/HuntforGollum and tell us what you think.

Yes, Pablo Bley is going to blog on science-fiction, fantasy and horror – but I’m most looking forward to the horror.

My favorite book for years was John Saul’s Suffer the Children. If I remember correctly, some kids were trapped in a beachfront hole and forced to eat seaweed sandwiches while sitting next to a decapitated cat.

The horror, the horror.

Bley’s interests expand far beyond decapitated cats, however, and he’ll be updating Tucson with the latest in all three genres. He’s also the head of several Tucson Meetups, including one for vegetarians. Maybe he’ll give us some yummy chick pea recipes.

Check back soon for Pablo’s introductory post, where he’s sure to give a rundown on what he promises to provide.

Do you want to blog about books, literature, monsters or a similar topic? E-mail site Ryngmaster Ryn Gargulinski at rynski@tucsoncitizen.com