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Six Degrees Of Separation: Visiting the Worlds of Wonder

Six Degrees of Separation for books is a monthly meme hosted by Kate. Each month Kate decides on a starting book and based on that everyone builds a chain of six books. Feel free to join in and post your link here.

Starting point: Wonderland (Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland)

Wonderland is reached by rabbit hole. One of the many characteristics of this crazy place is, that one can assume various sizes. Apparently, eating (magic?!) mushrooms is involved.

Location: In the world of dreams

1. Oz (The Wonderful Wizard of Oz)

Traveling to Oz can be done by cyclone or hot-air balloon. Oz is inhabited by witches, flying monkeys and other fantastic creatures including fighting trees, which are said to have inspired Tolkien’s ents.

Location: Beyond the desert

2. Narnia (The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe)

You get to Narnia through a wardrobe and only children of a certain age are allowed. In Narnia, you will have to be prepared to fight evil, but at least a wonderful lion will be by your side.

Location: In a different world. And it is flat!

3. Fantastica (The Neverending Story)

Fantastica can be reached by reading a very special book. The Neverending Story is a multilayered, metaphysical tale, where the story and the reality of the (fictional) reader are interlinked. The reader enters the story and can read about himself, but the story also affects the reader back in the real world.

Location: In our imagination

 

4. London Below (Neverwhere)

You get to London below by falling through the conceptual cracks of the city. I love this creative, fascinating and dangerous place, where classic fairy stories meet modern, urban fantasy.

Location: Below London

5. Multiverse (His Dark Materials)

Traveling between universes is done by using a special knife, which can cut openings between worlds. Crossing parallel worlds may cause severe complications though, which has to be dealt with in this amazing story featuring armoured bears, demons, witches and much more.

Location: A multiverse presumably spans everything

6. Multiverse+ (In the Darkness: That’s Where I’ll Know You)

You may need a few stimulants to travel between universes in this story. However, readers don’t need any external stimulants to experience a thoroughly surreal trip. The plot is truly indescribable.

Location: Multiverse – see above.

This time I stayed in the world of fantasy and imagination and I love each and every one of my chosen books. I suspect, behind my rational facade, there might be a child hiding, still wondering about the amazing worlds surrounding us – real or imaginary. Where did your chain take you?

37 comments

    • Thanks, I thought it was the obvious way to go, having recently finished The Wonderful Wizard of Oz! Great choice of starting book btw.

    • Aww, thanks! Actually, I don’t read much fantasy these days, but I did as a child. Didn’t you read any fantasy as a child? To be honest, I used to be one of those people who had to work hard not to wrinkle my nose at Harry Potter, but after actually having read the books, I’m completely won over.

      • See… I think all children start out reading fantasy. I mean, think about it… Winnie the Pooh, Wind in the Willows, Wizard of OZ. They’re all technically fantasy. How any of us move from that onslaught of fantasy to literary fiction is no less than miraculous.

        • Haha, yes, you are right. I suppose, it is a gradual transition, happening so slowly, we barely notice it. Judging from the popularity of Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones, etc, a lot of people maintain their fondness of the fantasy worlds though.

  6. Great idea for a chain! I fear I fell at the first hurdle this month – poor old Alice suggested nothing to me, so I’m even more impressed than usual at how other people have managed to find inspiration from it.

    • Ah, too bad, I should have liked to see your chain. Maybe next month? We are starting with Jane Austen’s Sanditon, which I remember you reviewed recently. Unfortunately, I haven’t read it, but I guess I can google or link to another unfinished book. Or do a full chain of unfinished books. I love this meme, so many possibilities…

    • Thanks! I like to do a theme and I realised, I’ve read more fantasy than I thought.

  8. I really enjoyed reading your chain. It took me back to books I’ve loved – Oz, Narnia and Multiverse (His Dark Materials). I haven’t read the other three books though, but they look good, especially Neverwhere. I read lots of fantasy as a child, but not so much these days πŸ™‚

    • I am glad you enjoyed it! Neverwhere, was good fun and I would highly recommend it. I don’t read that much fantasy either, but my favourite series include Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter and Rivers of London, so perhaps I really ought to read more.

  10. Great chain of thought! None of these are really my genre but I know His Dark Materials is going to be on tv soon (this week I think) so I’ll probably give it a go and see if I like it as a tv series.

    • Ah, I didn’t know about the television version. I watched the movie The Golden Compass, which is based on the first book of His Dark Materials, but I much preferred the book. I hope they do a better job with this series.

        • That sounds kind of promising.πŸ˜€ I hope, it will improve though, because the books were more than ok, actually, they were pretty amazing! I like the idea of the daemons as well, they play a big role in the story.

  12. You certainly have stayed in the realm of alternative worlds… nice to have a series of links with a common theme – I seem to be incapable of that!

    • I admire the way some people manage to do some very creative variations of this meme. I am not good at being creative, but I like the theme idea. Probably, it is just a question of having the right starting book.

  13. I’ve been looking forward to your next one of these! I definitely think you stayed it, and I suspect (or hope!) we all have a child within us with that same curiosity!

    • Well put! Hopefully, we do maintain some of the curiosity we had as children, but I fear we sometimes have to dig deep to find it. With a busy life, it is easy to get caught up in commitments and obligations and forget to enjoy the small and large wonders around us.

  15. I’m glad I’ve caught this post – great theming! And ideal for this present time; it would be rather nice to be able to slip into an alternative universe at the moment!

    • Yes, sometimes it would be tempting to escape reality and just slip down the rabbit hole! I am not sure, I would be as cool as Alice, if I ended up in such a world, though. Good to see you again 😊 hope all is well!

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