The water of the Wondrous isles vs The wood beyond the world: Which Should You Read?

The water of the Wondrous isles William Morris · 1897 ★★★★☆ 3.9 144 pages · ≈ 2 h 40 m · Challenging

“Whilom, as tells the tale, was a walled cheaping-town hight Utterhay, which was builded in a bright of the land a little off the great highway which went from over the mountains to the sea.”

The Water of the Wondrous Isles is a landmark in fantasy fiction. First published a year after Morris’s death in 1897 by Kelmscott Press—Morris’s own printing company—the novel follows Birdalone, a young girl who is…

The wood beyond the world William Morris · 1894 ★★★☆☆ 3.5 111 pages · ≈ 2 h 03 m · Challenging

“Awhile ago there was a young man dwelling in a great and goodly city by the sea which had to name Langton on Holm.”

William Morris is famous in no small part for his contributions to defining the genre of modern fantasy literature, and The Wood Beyond the World is a classic example of that influence. Written in a…