Sword & Sorcery: "An earthier sort of fantasy" discussion

Poul Anderson's 1954 classic The Broken Sword is a must-read!

I've been meaning to read that one.

Been a while since I read this book. I think my folks still have a copy at their place. (That should tell you how long it's been since I read it.) I'll see if I can get my hands on it and join the read.

I have the paperback from the 70's, as well as an ebook version of the 1954 original, un-enhanced(?) story. I am curious to see how folks view the two different versions, and how well the tale holds up to it's contemporary competition; Lord of the Rings.

I read this book and I like it very much.

I read it when I was a teen. I don't think I'm going to try it again.

Apparently Poul Anderson's birthday was Nov 25th. Celebrate by commenting or reading the Broken Sword!

AlamoJack wrote: "I finished The Broken Sword today. Great read. How did I go so long without reading this book? The S&S elements, particularly the battle scenes, are wonderful to read in Anderson's stylized epic pr..."

Glad you enjoyed that Jack. I first "discovered" The Broken Sword by reading Michael Moorcock's review it in Wizardry and Wild Romance: A Study of Epic Fantasy (originally published in the Guardian). That sent me on a search for the book. I ended up getting the author's cut version which has some subtle differences.

Blackgate did a nice review of the comparisons:
https://www.blackgate.com/broken-in-t...

I adored most of the Elric novels, but have tried to read Revenge of the Rose twice and lost interest both times. If you tackle it please share your thoughts.

I read this a while ago and loved it. Though it is often lumped in with Sword & Sorcery, and I can see it, it's at least more S&S than high fantasy, I actually think it's prose, themes and structure is actually much more reminiscent of older sagas or epics like Beowulf.