A subject for debate!

From Lev Grossman, the Six Best Fantasy Novels Ever Written (via the Volokh Conspiracy).

It hits some high points, to be sure, although the Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser stories are not novels, per se (he quibbled).

My own thoughts turned quickly to the subject of "What novels qualify as 'fantasy'?" Would Dune? The Book of the New Sun? What about The Stand? Or One Hundred Years of Solitude? I would say "no" for each of them, but it's not necessarily easy to parse. One commenter on the VC thread, for example, placed Dune firmly in the category of fantasy because of the precognitive effects of spice consumption, although faster-than-light travel itself would not have been considered "fantastic".

At any rate, you are probably dying to know (ahem. Play along with me, here) what my Six Best Fantasy Novels Ever Written are at this point. I am too. The Lord of the Rings must figure on the list, and the Narnia books and Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell are also strong candidates. Jack Vance's Lyonesse trilogy would probably figure in it, and Zelazny's Amber books might too.

I'll give it some thought.