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So you think you know your epic
fantasy? You've read Tolkien and T.H. White and a
whole bunch of other writers. You know the difference
between Eddings (The Belgariad) and Eddison (The Worm
Ouroboros). You know the name of Gandalf's horse, his
traveling companions, and his arch enemy...but is it
enough to call yourself "Grand Elf of Epic Fantasy?"
Below you'll find twenty-- sometimes easy, but more
often tough--questions designed to sort the elves from
the hobbits. Print them out if you like, test yourself
and your friends and partners. See how you do. Much
luck, brave wayfarers. You'll find a link to the
answers at the bottom of the page. And remember, no
using your magic powers to cheat or confuse your
opponents. (-:
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Tolkien
1. Although Tolkien was a British citizen
who lived most of his life in England, working as a professor
of Anglo-Saxon at Oxford, he was actually born in this
country:
2. Whilst Tolkien was at Oxford he formed a
close friendship with this other great writer of fantastic
literature:
3. In the first book of the Lord of the
Rings, The Fellowship of the Rings, the name of the tavern
where Frodo tries on the ring and makes himself invisible in
front of a roomful of people is:
Classic Series
4. Ursula K. LeGuin wrote her first Earthsea
novel in 1968. In this book we meet Ged, who becomes The Wizard
of Earthsea. Ged is the character's true name, but names have
power in LeGuin's universe and he's more commonly known
as:
5. Although Frank Herbert's Dune is science
fiction, in many ways it reads like epic fantasy. Like Tolkien,
Herbert was a world builder. He worked on a huge canvas,
creating a complex feudal society, complete with secret
societies, monsters and medieval strongholds. There are
references to Dune in many epic fantasies. One of the most
often pointed out is Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series,
where his sorceror-nuns, the Ais Sedai, are noted for the tight
control on society, their power, beauty, and agelessness. Just
like these women from Dune:
6. Speaking of Robert Jordan, which year was
the first book in the Wheel Of Time series, The Eye of The
World, published?
King Arthur and His Circular Knights
7. In T.H. White's classic retelling of the
legend of Camelot, The Once & Future King, Arthur doesn't
begin life as Arthur, but rather as an orphan with this
unfortunate name:
8. Most modern day interpretations of King
Arthur and the knights of the round table owe a debt to the
fifteenth century writer, Thomas Mallory, who collected all the
various tales, myths and half-truths that were hanging around
at the time and threw them all together in his Le Morte
D'Arthur, which was printed in 1485. Little is certain about
Mallory, except that he was a knight who fought in the French
Wars (and may have seen Joan of Arc burned at the stake) and
that he wrote the Le Morte D'Arthur while in jail. According to
official records Mallory was arrested for:
Food & Drink
9. English writer, Diane Wynne Jones wrote
The Tough Guide To Fantasyland , which is a fun book lampooning
all the traditions of epic fantasy. In it she skewers such
fantasy staples as STEW, which is the food of choice in most
fantasy lands, and is always thick and brown and meaty, and
BEER which is always dark and bitter and frothing with foam.
However, certain foods and drinks often rise above the standard
fantasy faire. This dish in Terry Goodkind's Sword of Truth
series has proven so popular with readers that Mr. Goodkind has
now posted the recipe online. Is it:
10. The Blue Wine of Astibar was featured in
this book by Canadian writer Guy Gavriel Kay:
Fantastic Art
11. When this artist was commissioned to
paint the cover for the Renaissance fantasy, The Golden Key,
written by Melanie Rawn, Jennifer Roberson and Kate Elliott, he
painted a self portrait on the cover. Who is this
artist:
Otherwise Known As
12. Robin Hobb is the bestselling author of
the Farseer trilogy and the Liveship Traders series, but she
also wrote the wonderful urban fantasies, Cloven Hooves and
Wizard of the Pigeons, under this name:
13. New epic fantasy, The Runelords, was
written by David Farland, who is also known as this
award-winning SF writer:
Star Wars
14. Which bestselling fantasy author has
written the novelization to Stars Wars: Chapter 1, The Phantom
Menace:
Women in Uniform
15. In The Deeds of Paksenarrion by
Elizabeth Moon, the heroine runs away from home to join a band
of mercenaries. Ms. Moon writes with unusual depth and insight
about the world of barrack life. This may be because Ms. Moon
actually spent time in the armed forces. Did she
join:
What's In A Name?
16. Roger Zelazny's Amber is probably one of
the best loved fantasy series of all time. In the first novel,
Nine Princes in Amber, the hero, Corwin, finds himself in a
hospital room with no memory of who he is or how he got there.
Eventually he discovers he's one of nine princes of the true
world, Amber. And his father is named after this Shakespearean
character:
17. Marion Zimmer Bradley's popular Darkover
series is set in a cold mountainous world where magic is worked
in great matrixes by an elite aristocracy known as:
18. The harsh northern landscape of A Cavern
of Black Ice, by J.V. Jones, is peopled by warring clans with
ancient histories and long-lived hatreds. One of the clans is
named Dhoone, in honor of the classic adventure novel Lorna
Doone written by:
19. The Gormenghast Trilogy is a huge,
gothic rambler of a series, set in a shambling castle that
boasts layer upon layer of cellars and secret rooms. Its
"kitchen boy makes good in an ancient and cavernous fortress"
plot has been influencing writers of epic fantasy ever since.
The first book in the series was published in 1946, and was
written by:
The Last Word
20. What epic fantasy series ends with the
sentence, "Peace, tremulous, unexpected, sent a taproot out of
nowhere into Morgon's heart." Is it:
I warned you it wasn't easy! So, what you
really want to know is "How did I do?" The answers can be found here, along with a ranking system so you can discover whether you're a Grand Elf of just a plain Little Hobbit!
