Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever
by Stephen Donaldson
Our Price: $20.15
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $3.94 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Stephen DonaldsonEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1993-07-26
ISBN: 0006473296
Number of pages: 1120
Publisher: Fontana
Book Reviews of Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever
Book Review: Let's Get Down to the Nitty Gritty
Summary: 5 Stars
I've read all of the reviews here and have something to say to those with negative opinions of this series: for those of you who have relayed your reviews succinctly, I respect your collective opinions. This series is not for everyone. But to those who's reviews seemed to reflect confusion, please give this series another try. You obviously did not 'get it.'
This series is not about a fantasy land within which Covenant travels, such as other fantasy books dictate - yes, it is a story of a man who travels through the Land, however it is mostly about what happens to a person (physically, emotionally, mentally) who contracts and suffers with leprosy. The Land was Covenant, literally. When you look back at the characters, at the nuances of the Land, at the abilities of the Lords and such, and then put these details to the variety of physical aspects of the body, you can see a whole other series and story taking place.
Covenant was the Land. Though it is dreary and somewhat tiresome to read, the first book - Lord Foul's Bane - is the most important. It is where you, the reader, learn all you need to know about leprosy. Apply all that you learn there to the rest of this series, and the next three books, and you have a deeper understanding of Donaldson's genius.
BTW: on a side note, Donaldson - a master of language - spent some time in India with his father, who worked very closely with lepers. His experiences there shine through in this series.
The follow-up series' first book - The Runes of the Earth - follows the same pattern as this sets of series, except instead of leprosy the story follows a more psychological approach, mainly psychosis. I am anxious to read the next three books in the final series of this epic.
When I read this series and the series that followed, I was so stunned by everything - the story, the characters, the method of Donaldson's writing - I could read nothing else for a year. It was roughly 12 months later that I finally broke down and bought the Myth series by Robert Aspirin to 'clean my pallet' so that I could once again read a serious fantasy series.
And know that this series was written well before most of the fantasy series you have probably read.
Summary of Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever
The acclaimed fantasy epic, together in one volume.Literature & Fiction Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in Literature & Fiction Books
Little Womenby Louisa May Alcott
Scribner; Published: 1986-06-30; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.49
Price in other shops:
The Killing Groundby JACK HIGGINS
HARPERCOLLINS PUBLISHERS LTD; Published: 2007; Hardcover; Book
Saving Fish from Drowningby Amy Tan
4th Estate; Published: 2005; Paperback; Book
Life Expectancyby Dean Koontz
Harpercollins Pb; Published: 2005-08-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.00
Constant Princessby Philippa Gregory
Touchstone/Simon & Schuster; Published: 2005; Hardcover; Book
Wolf of the Plains (Conqueror, Book 1)by Conn Iggulden
Harper; Published: 2007; Paperback; Book
Saharaby Clive Cussler
Harper Collins Pb; Published: 2005-03-21; Paperback; Book
Perelandra (Cosmic Trilogy)by C. S. Lewis
Voyager; Published: 2005-11; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.64
Price in other shops:
The Lord Of The Rings: Part 2 The Two Towersby J. R. R. Tolkien
Harper Collins Publishers; Published: 2001; Paperback; Book
Red Marsby Kim Stanley Robinson
Trafalgar Square; Published: 2001-06; Paperback; Book
Similar Books and other products
Fatal Revenant: The Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenantby Stephen R. Donaldson
Ace Trade; Published: 2008-08-05; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.87
Price in other shops:
Against All Things Ending (The Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, Book 3)by Stephen R. Donaldson
Putnam Adult; Published: 2010-10-19; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $17.50
Price in other shops:
Fatal Revenant (The Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenant)by Stephen R. Donaldson
Putnam Adult; Published: 2007-10-09; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $5.30
Price in other shops:
The Wounded Land (The Second Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, Book 1)by Stephen R. Donaldson
Del Rey; Published: 1987-10-12; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.25
Price in other shops:
The One Tree (The Second Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, Book 2)by Stephen R. Donaldson
Del Rey; Published: 1987-10-12; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.25
Price in other shops:
White Gold Wielder (The Second Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, Book 3)by Stephen R. Donaldson
Del Rey; Published: 1987-10-12; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.25
Price in other shops:
The Runes of the Earth (The Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, Book 1)by Stephen R. Donaldson
Ace Trade; Published: 2005-08-30; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.59
Price in other shops:
The Second Chronicles of Thomas Covenant (Boxed Set): The Woundedl Land (1), The One Tree (2), White Gold Wielder (3)by Stephen R. Donaldson
Del Rey; Published: 1983; Paperback; Book
Best price: $79.00
Second Chronicles of Thomas Covenant (The Second Chronicles of Thomas Covenant)by Stephen Donaldson
Harpercollins Publishers; Published: 1994-02-07; Paperback; Book
Best price: $21.53
Against All Things Ending: The Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenantby Stephen R. Donaldson
Ace Trade; Published: 2011-09-06; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.48
Price in other shops: