Garrett

I grew up reading Harry Potter, over and over again. I have no interest in reading it again.

But I have yet to find another book or series that captivates my brain with the passage of time. The school year continued on in the background, only mentioned with vague descriptions in between the important moments and events. It created, for my brain, what I can only describe as a sense of scale.

Can anyone recommend a book or series that creates a similar sense of *time* scale?

#Books #Bookstodon

Apr 23, 2024 at 8:17pmWeb
Show threadKevin RussellApr 23, 2024

@heygarrett

In Scifi
Big? Dune if you havent read it is an amazing engulfing read, Foundation is engrossing and mesmerizing, both well recommended.

Perhaps missed is the The Uplift Saga series including
Sundiver.

Show threadGarrettApr 23, 2024

@kevinrns I know nothing about Dune, so maybe that would be a good pick.

This is the second rec I’ve received for Foundation, so I’ll definitely be adding that to my list.

The Uplift Saga sounds interesting as well. Thanks!

Show threadRuss OApr 23, 2024

@heygarrett @BrianPierce I love Neal Stephenson's Baroque trilogy - Quicksilver, The Confusion and The System of the World.

Spans a few decades, sometimes non-linearly, with an epic sense of scale (in time, geography and subject matter), with the interwoven story threads each being great in their own right and awesome together.

Hope that's useful 😀

Show threadGarrettApr 23, 2024
@russ @BrianPierce I’ve actually DNF’d one of Neal Stephenson’s books, Seveneves. But a lot has changed in my life since then, so maybe I should take another look at it. I’m glad to receive recs for some of their other books. Thanks!
Show threadpetes_bread_eqn_xlsApr 23, 2024

@heygarrett @jwilker

Maybe not exactly what you’re looking for, because it literally spans centuries, but Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson (and its sequels) follows the first humans on Mars for years and years.

Show threadpetes_bread_eqn_xlsApr 23, 2024

@heygarrett @jwilker

On the other end of the scale, I like to re-read The Shining by Stephen King each November. The story lasts from fall to mid-winter. The weather turns worse chapter by chapter and it definitely feels like you’re experiencing the season alongside the characters.

Show threadGarrettApr 23, 2024
@petes_bread_eqn_xls @jwilker That actually sounds close to what I’m looking for. Unfortunately, I’ve had trouble enjoying King’s writing style. I’ll give it a look though. Thanks!
Show threadTénno Seremél’Apr 23, 2024
@heygarrett Sanderson's Mistborn (3 books) and Wax and Wayne series (4 books) happen on the same planet, but the later happens when the stuff of the former became a thing of legends and the setting evolved into an equivalent of our early XX century. And there will be books of the next era, which will happen even later.
Show threadShawn KingApr 23, 2024

@heygarrett @jawarajabbi How about The Dragonriders of Pern?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragonriders_of_Pern

Dragonriders of Pern - Wikipedia

Show threadhybrid havocApr 24, 2024

@heygarrett
Perhaps Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky. https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/a7c5852b-b050-40e0-a6db-0525d293d289

Might be a little on the nose, what with the magic school and all, but Babel by R.F. Kuang? https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/2cbea53a-21f7-45ac-8b42-84c0fdcee4e8

In a way, Orson Scott Card's Ender Saga (the Ender's Game series).

Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky

A race for survival among the stars... Humanity's last survivors escaped earth's ruins to find a ...

Show threadMichael SchneiderApr 24, 2024
@heygarrett the books span a much longer period than Harry Potter but Michael J. Sullivan’s books are really good. They are set in the same universe but each series of books covers a different era. Age of Myth is the first one chronologically.
Show threadStephanie 🎀Apr 24, 2024
@heygarrett My mom is listening to a book series called Keepers of the Light. I don’t know the author, but from the bits and pieces I’ve heard, it has similarities to Harry Potter. It’s a series of 9 books centered around a powerful main character named Sophie.