tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28103455.post1788491460768935094..comments2024-03-09T05:53:59.542-05:00Comments on Oz and Ends: American Fantasy Before the WarUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28103455.post-17520448412525700162007-09-18T18:07:00.000-05:002007-09-18T18:07:00.000-05:00Eleanor Cameron died in 1996 (or was it '97). Her ...Eleanor Cameron died in 1996 (or was it '97). Her son David, who was the basis for the David in the Mushroom Planet books, died about 6 months after she did.<BR/><BR/>She was working on another Mushroom Planet book when she passed away. She finished a manuscript, titled Stones from the Moom, I believe. It needed a lot of work still, which she recognized, since she left a bunch of notes for changes.<BR/><BR/>She attended a couple Winkie conventions in the mid-1980s.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28103455.post-85447708572822730232007-09-17T10:31:00.000-05:002007-09-17T10:31:00.000-05:00Canada claims Eleanor Cameron, author of the Mushr...Canada claims Eleanor Cameron, author of the <I>Mushroom Planet</I> books (1954-), but since she grew up and lived most of her life in California, I think we can count her as another American. <BR/><BR/>That sort of not-very-scientific science fiction offers another clue to what happened to fantasy writing in the 20th century. Though there was science-based speculative fiction before, it became a powerhouse genre in the 1900s. <BR/><BR/>That may have simultaneously pushed fantasy toward more "old-fashioned" forms (fairy tales, high fantasy, sword and sorcery) while providing a separate outlet for readers' out-of-this-world interests. Fairies became aliens, fairylands became other planets, magical washtubs became spaceships.J. L. Bellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15405157000473731801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28103455.post-8425030628380726372007-09-17T10:21:00.000-05:002007-09-17T10:21:00.000-05:00Well exactly. I apologize for not being more clea...Well exactly. I apologize for not being more clear. When I said pre-1960 I meant fantasies (which you so rightly assumed). I suppose there was the delightful "Journey to the Mushroom Planet" books, but I'll be looking forward to reading the other titles that occur to you.fusenumber8https://www.blogger.com/profile/16216979020263363698noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28103455.post-54959321892486503052007-09-16T19:50:00.000-05:002007-09-16T19:50:00.000-05:00Yes, but they're British. Other pre-1960 British c...Yes, but they're British. <BR/><BR/>Other pre-1960 British children's fantasies still popular include P. L. Travers's <I>Mary Poppins</I> (1934-), Lucy M. Boston's <I>Green Knowe</I> (1954-), Mary Norton's <I>The Borrowers</I> (1955-), and Michael Bond's <I>Paddington</I> (1958-).J. L. Bellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15405157000473731801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28103455.post-84337728203926410752007-09-16T00:24:00.000-05:002007-09-16T00:24:00.000-05:00Well, actually, "The Chronicles of Narnia" and "Th...Well, actually, "The Chronicles of Narnia" and "The Hobbit" are pre-1960...Jayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03766446206846532440noreply@blogger.com