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Post by paperexplorer on Dec 1, 2023 23:09:10 GMT
to buying me one because I was not a reader And did that work? I went from never reading to constantly reading, but I only ever read the two FFs: Fighting Fantasy or Footrot Flats So yeah, it worked. I went from no reading to massive reader to now a writer. I'm actually putting a homage to Rebel Plant in my latest book as well.
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Post by mooncat on Dec 2, 2023 18:10:27 GMT
Also got mine from one of those school book-ordering brochures in the early 90s. Island of the Lizard king. Had no idea it was a gamebook and it was probably also my introduction to fantasy in general. After that I discovered my local library had tons of them, plus I started picking up my own.
Interestingly, I work in the library service now (in Canada, emigrated 8yrs ago) and I can see the entire catalogue of all libraries in Alberta and there's still a handful of copies of FF floating about! Randomly too, from all points in the series. One rural library has a copy of Curse of the Mummy...
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Post by CharlesX on Dec 2, 2023 20:48:45 GMT
Also got mine from one of those school book-ordering brochures in the early 90s. Island of the Lizard king. Had no idea it was a gamebook and it was probably also my introduction to fantasy in general. After that I discovered my local library had tons of them, plus I started picking up my own. Interestingly, I work in the library service now (in Canada, emigrated 8yrs ago) and I can see the entire catalogue of all libraries in Alberta and there's still a handful of copies of FF floating about! Randomly too, from all points in the series. One rural library has a copy of Curse of the Mummy... I wonder whether their copy of Curse Of The Mummy is Puffin or Wizard. Collectors must reckon Puffin edition is more valuable but in my book Wizard is the 'better' version despite introducing a couple of new errors. It is a similar situation with Wizard series 2 edition where some errors are eliminated but others introduced.
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Post by mooncat on Dec 2, 2023 21:18:05 GMT
Also got mine from one of those school book-ordering brochures in the early 90s. Island of the Lizard king. Had no idea it was a gamebook and it was probably also my introduction to fantasy in general. After that I discovered my local library had tons of them, plus I started picking up my own. Interestingly, I work in the library service now (in Canada, emigrated 8yrs ago) and I can see the entire catalogue of all libraries in Alberta and there's still a handful of copies of FF floating about! Randomly too, from all points in the series. One rural library has a copy of Curse of the Mummy... I wonder whether their copy of Curse Of The Mummy is Puffin or Wizard. Collectors must reckon Puffin edition is more valuable but in my book Wizard is the 'better' version despite introducing a couple of new errors. It is a similar situation with Wizard series 2 edition where some errors are eliminated but others introduced. Just checked, it's the Puffin edition. I will not steal from a library. I will not steal from a library. I will not steal from a library. I will not steal from a library. I will not steal from a library...
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IoannesKantakouzenos
Traveller
Being slowly eaten alive by a Ghoul
Posts: 106
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy (Aventuras Fantásticas)
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Post by IoannesKantakouzenos on Dec 6, 2023 17:10:49 GMT
Got my first FF book (TWoFTM, btw) as a Christmas gift. Actually, the following books in my collection arrived via the same route, either birthday or Christmas gifts - until I was old enough to buy them myself.
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Post by Law on Dec 10, 2023 11:53:37 GMT
Ah... So easy to remember. Year five of primary school, 9, going on 10, (2002-2003 term) reading time in the afternoon and lo and behold, in our small adjoining library, I found these four bad boys on one of those spinning rectangular cuboid shelves.
Safe to say: I devoured them, or at least, I beat Stealer and Forest honourably but even using finger book-marking quick saves couldn't help me beat Phantoms or Slaves - two easy ones, two tough as nails!
Our teacher, Miss Kelly, I kid you not, was such a fan of the series herself that when the Wizard re-releases were being published in 2002, she bought the initial collection and gifted them out to the class for Christmas. I got 'City of Thieves' and my twin brother won 'Deathtrap Dungeon'.
For the next year or so, my brother generously lent me DD but then jealously hoarded 'Armies of Death', 'Appointment With F.E.A.R', 'Island of The Lizard King' (reflective gold lettering title edition) and even WoFTM!
Not to worry though, I got four more titles bought for me for my birthday as well (Sagittarius) and I think I may have got the better of him... Offers to trade, as we had for our first books were now rebuffed! He didn't know what he was missing, ha!
My brother was the bigger reader of more varied literature between us, but I definitely outdid him in replaying this set until the pages were as sun browned as books from the 1950's, completing 'Sorcery!' and augmenting my collection with 'Legend of Zagor', 'Temple of Terror' and 'House of Hell'. All new Wizard editions I'm afraid!
Sadly the 'Lone Wolf' series then utterly snatched my attention away, since the whole 84' series was available at my high school library, from books one to twenty.
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Post by Peter on Dec 11, 2023 8:42:21 GMT
Now I'm starting to feel smug - my first book was the first one. My sister said I might like it. She was right. Then we were getting them from the monthly book club orders.
I remember looking through the catalogue each month to see if there was an FF book that month, and excitedly snapping it up if there was one. We would speculate on what it would be about, what gameplay features it would have, etc.
When they announced that they would start publishing new titles monthly, I remember feeling worried - how would they maintain the standard with such a rapid output? And how would my wallet manage the increased pressure? I also felt concerned that with a higher frequency, I wouldn't be able to properly digest each book before the next one was in front of me. And that we would lose the spark of anticipation - the magic would die.
Eventually, all these things combined and I stopped buying them at 26, when I realised I wasn't really reading them anymore. Many years later, after seeing them popping up in charity book fairs and the like, I thought I would be able to complete my collection for a few dollars a book, so I started looking out for them.
So the earlier ones are all first editions, but the later ones are just whatever I found first or cheapest. And as a youngster, I didn't appreciate "wear and tear" or "long-term", so the very first book (not captioned "FF1" but simply "a fighting fantasy gamebook"), which could have been virtually priceless, instead has virtually no price.
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Post by drmanhattan on Dec 16, 2023 0:24:14 GMT
Thank you Mrs Warne, English teacher and school book club leader for calling me over one lunchtime to tell me about a book I would love, WoFTM, 1982 I guess? So much joy over the next few years and I still dip my toes back in fondly and reminisce on those good old days
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Post by CharlesX on Dec 16, 2023 18:19:42 GMT
Thank you Mrs Warne, English teacher and school book club leader for calling me over one lunchtime to tell me about a book I would love, WoFTM, 1982 I guess? So much joy over the next few years and I still dip my toes back in fondly and reminisce on those good old days Brings to mind a couple of memories from my secondary school. I coincidentally had an English teacher called Mrs Warner, but that's not the main one. I remember one of these school reading things where you would read a few paragraphs out of some fiction. One kid (not me) instead of reading from one of the classics or at least a respected bestseller chose to read reference one of The Warlock Of Firetop Mountain, explaining before and after reading the concept of gamebooks. I don't think the teacher responded. Like it or not, at the time TWOFM was a bestseller and was probably getting kids reading. I'd actually rather kids read say Twilight than the latest David Walliams or some drecky L. Ron Hubbard work.
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Post by alziel on Dec 19, 2023 10:08:10 GMT
My first was tWoFM - all the way back in 1982, from a bookstore! I was 12.
The first thing to catch my eye was the stunning cover artwork and the text stating 'Part Story, Part Game...etc'. When I flicked through it and saw the layout, the stats, the rules, the adventure sheet etc... it took me just 2 minutes to decide that I wanted it (I had a book voucher), so I dashed to the check-out, and then pestered my mum to finish her shopping up and get us home ASAP! Lol
The rest, as they say, is history... :-)
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