Jake alerted me to the fact that David Eddings passed away. Eddings wrote the Belgariad, a series of books which was my first exposure to non-Dutch fantasy, and (if I remember correctly) even wrote the first non-Dutch books I read. Over the years, I have frequently re-read the Belgariad and the Mallorean, every time enjoying it. I have read quite some fantasy books since then, but apart from Guy Gavriel Kay’s “Fionavar Tapestry” I have not come accross works that capture me as much as Eddings did. He wrote more than I have read. I plan to address that oversight in the future.
If you haven’t read fantasy yet, you might like it. As Eddings himself explained in “The Rivan Codex”:
I planted more mythic fishhooks in the first couple of books of the Belgariad than you’ll find in any sporting goods store. I’ve said (too many times, probably) that if you read the first hundred pages of the Belgariad, I gotcha!!
Go ahead, give it a shot. It’s fun!