SLCLS Genre Study discussion

Multi-Period Epics: Show how a specific place/geographic area or cultural/ethnic group change over time. Edward Rutherford and James Michener are examples of authors in this category.

Sagas: Focus on the characters' domestic lives and family relationships over multiple generations. Tend to be long books or multiple volumes. Examples include John Jakes's "North and South" and Barbara Taylor Bradford's "Ravenscar."

Clearly these two sub-genres are very similar and would appeal to many of the same readers. What really makes these two categories different, and what books have you enjoyed in these areas?

I fell in love with James A. Michener as a 17-year-old, and particularly remember Centennial. I am not sure that I've ever tackled a saga, probably because really fat books are intimidating. Now that I've adopted audiobooks into my repetoire, I'm looking forward to some recommendations in this area!

I totally agree with you that hefty tomes can be intimidating, which is why there is more of a movement to series and multi-volume storylines.

I have to say that any time a story is defined with the words "saga" or "epic" or "multi-generational" I immediately lose interest. I like more intimate stories, even if they are hundreds of pages long.

So often I too get turned off by the words, and it seems we are not alone, since not many people are posting to this discussion. However, when you think of some saga and epic writers like James Michener and John Jakes, these have been very popular in the past. Maybe we are now just too much of an immediate gratification and "fast" society and don't want to get deeply involved in a hefty tome.

Stephanie wrote: "I have to say that any time a story is defined with the words "saga" or "epic" or "multi-generational" I immediately lose interest. I like more intimate stories, even if they are hundreds of pages ..."

"Multi-generational" is the part that turns me off. I've tried a couple of these but by the time I get to the grandchild, or a character in the family that I do not like, I don't want to finish. So instead of continuing on the family's quest, I stop where I can be satisfied with the ending (even if it doesn't end happy).