Harry Potter (required reading)

One of the things that made the Harry Potter novels guide me through life's complexities as a kid was the fact that I grew up with the characters of the novel. As a 27 year old, I was in 4th grade when the Sorcerer's stone came out. Harry,Ron and Hermione where about my age from the first to the seventh book.

JK Rowling is able to capture the struggles and the feelings that young people go through and the HP novels are so character centric (especially the three main characters) we get mkuch time devoted to the exploration and overcoming of struggles that people that age endure. Even when the setting of the books is so highly fantastical, the very real characters draw us in and when we are able to put ourselves int their positions like that, we are able to to experience the fantastical world in an extremely real way.

Aunt Maria (required reading)

The witch's of aunt Maria come aross as conventional old ladies at first but you quickly learn that they are in complete control of the town that they live in and are using their witchcraft to have it functional exactly the way they want it too. 

In many ways, the idea of the witches being in control is very conventional to the archetype of the classic witch. Their subtle manipulation are staples of stories involving witches.

It doesn't take long for the readers to discover how nasty the witches are, particularly aunt Maria herself. The novel uses this slow reveal most effectively. Taking Aunt maria from unlikable old lady to a force of evil. This is really what makes the character of the witch great and I think Diana Wynne Jones understands that and uses it effectively.

The Hobbit (required reading)

The hobbit very much reflects the classic hero's journey tale. The journey is literal and Bilbo's transformation from a meek hobbit into a brave bugler falls right into line with other classic hero tales. 

There are ways in which the novel deviates however. The stakes of the journey -at the start, at least- essentially boil down to Bilbo getting dragged along a journey which has a goal that seems petty inconsequential to his own life. This seems unconventional to me because from the main antagonist's perspective, it seems like there is a lack of motivation for him to peruse the heroes journey. However, later in the novel, Bilbo find more of a place where he belongs within the driving story and there is a goal for him to accomplish, which is for him to do something he never would have expected and go on an adventure. 

Three Moments of an Explosion (required reading)

Three moments of an explosion is a a series of stories that can be called surreal but are written in ways and in a style that gives the book a very real feeling. Ultimately, while I loved the bizarre and often Disturbing (ensuring it was indeed a horror novel) it was the way they are told and how they unfold that really swept me into the world he created. 

The characters feel very real to me, and that is not only because they are "modern" characters that would fit in perfectly with modern society. But also because when we experience their thoughts and reaction to the bizarre scenarios, they act in a way that is very real. 

It is hard to say which direction the horror genre is going at one time and often, it seems like the horror media of today is going in all different direction. I think the fact that you can't really predict where it is going next, is proof that much of today's horror is attempting to tread into new territory (as evidence by this novel) or combine or flip past conventions on their head (evidence by movies like Cabin in the Woods). To me that is exciting, however I am also a fan of many of the conventional horror tropes of the past, so I hope modern authors, directors, etc keep them around.