Our Fantastic Week Ahead: July 18

After we published our "fantastic fun" last Friday, we found two more links that we really wish we had included in our Harry Potter-themed list:

• Amazingly wonderful-looking drinks inspired by many of the Harry Potter characters.  I'm particularly impressed by the reasoning that went into the creation of the "Severus Snape."  Also, I realize that linking to alcoholic drinks first thing on a Monday morning might not be the most appropriate thing in the world, but I figure that these descriptions are so detailed and thoughtful, that they qualify as literature in and of themselves.  Right? (The Backyard Bartender)
• Also, an imagined conversation between J.K. Rowling and George R. R. Martin (one that probably also included a discussion of the best use of initials in an author's name). (Imgur)

This second link provides a nice transition to two reviews of Martin's latest book--A Dance With Dragons--that we found noteworthy.  The first, written by Lev Grossman, was published in Time magazine; the second, written by Dana Jennings, was published in The New York Times.  What we found interesting was how both of these reviews compared Martin to Tolkien in a very favorable way.  Grossman calls Martin "the American Tolkien," and Jennings takes it a step further, ending her review with, "Tolkien is dead. And long live George Martin."

I haven't read A Dance With Dragons yet, but I disagree with Martin being named "the American Tolkien" and would like to suggest an alternate candidate--something that I do in an article that will be posted this afternoon.

We have a number of other exciting things going on this week as well!  Kat Howard will be posting her thoughts on the 10th Anniversary Edition of Neil Gaiman's American Gods, Adam Miller will report on what he thought of the first book of The Farseer Trilogy, and we will let you know what we though about Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part II.

We're also introducing a new feature on Wednesdays where we recommend a short story--something that we hope will get you over the mid-week doldrums  So make sure you check in regularly so you don't miss out on any of the fun!