Fantasy books set during/between the world wars

February 19, 2009 9:34 PM

I'm looking for books and/or movies that have a supernatural/fantasy aspect and are set in the era between the World Wars.

Faries, werewolves, sorcery, the living dead. Carnies, hobos, shellshock, Bolsheviks, Nazis. I have no books to offer up as an example because I've never encountered one. Any suggestions?

posted by honeydew to media & arts (19 comments total)

Topper has ghosts in the Roaring Twenties - and the wit holds up today.
posted by roger ackroyd at 9:45 PM on February 19

You do say "during," so technically Pan's Labyrinth could count; it takes place shortly before the end of WWII.
posted by Tomorrowful at 9:47 PM on February 19

The Great Game series by Dave Duncan is good. I guess technically it's not really the era between World Wars, it starts with World War I.

Also, the Timeshare series by Joshua Dann are quick, run reads.
posted by gt2 at 9:56 PM on February 19

or "Fun" reads even.
posted by gt2 at 9:57 PM on February 19

Water for Elephants is almost a fantasy book, set in the Great Depression.

Aren't the some of the Narnia Chronicles set during pre-WWII? Also, some of the Oz books were written post-WWI and occur concurrently with the era.

Lots of monster movies came out pre-WWII - King Kong comes to mind.
posted by jabberjaw at 9:57 PM on February 19

War With the Newts sort of fits. I'm not sure when it's officially set, but it was written in 1936 and there are som parallels to Hitler's rise to power. I say sort of fits because it's more scifi than pure fantasy.
posted by chndrcks at 10:04 PM on February 19

Can you hear those jungle drums?
It's The Ghost Who Walks!
posted by Fiasco da Gama at 10:05 PM on February 19

Isn't Indiana Jones exactly what you are looking for?
posted by ghost of a past number at 11:48 PM on February 19

The 20s and 30s? Well, there's HP Lovecraft and his chums, that could keep you going for a while.
posted by Artw at 12:09 AM on February 20

The sadly short-lived HBO series Carnivale takes place between the two World Wars, and it's definitely supernatural in theme.
posted by Parasite Unseen at 12:24 AM on February 20

How about Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow. Not a great film, but definately fits the bill. In a similar vein is The Rocketeer.

And speaking of veins.... if your talking stylistically rather than strictly historic, how about Perfect Creature? Vampires as clergy, nifty weird retro mix of 1920's and 19th Century technology and setting. However, other than the fact that it has vampires in it, it really isnt a typical vampire/fantasy flick. More of a cop/mystery movie. Sort of.
posted by elendil71 at 3:01 AM on February 20 [1 favorite has favorites]

Ian Rutledge series by Charles Todd. They are mystery stories where Rutledge brings home a ghost from WWI.
posted by rakish_yet_centered at 5:35 AM on February 20

Carnivale, everything else is secondary.
posted by mdwiffle at 5:45 AM on February 20

Laberinto del fauno, although it is set in Spain between the wars.
posted by JJ86 at 6:31 AM on February 20

Some of Charles Williams' novels were written and set in that period: some mysticism and supernatural detective stuff. He was one of the Inklings along with Tolkien and C.S. Lewis.

William Hope Hodgson: kind of Lovecraftian horror. "The House on the Borderland" is quite popular.
posted by TheophileEscargot at 9:05 AM on February 20

My first thought was the breathtaking Mythago Wood and sequels, but I see that it takes place from 1946-1948. Close enough to not get this answer flagged, I hope!
posted by Ian A.T. at 10:06 AM on February 20 [1 favorite has favorites]

It's a little later than the era you've specified, but Jo Walton has a series of books set in an alternate post-WWII Britain where England & Germany made peace in 1941. No faeries & werewolves, but plenty of Nazis and a few Bolsheviks. I've read Farthing and Ha'Penny, and I see there's another volume out, Half a Crown, which I now must read.
posted by fogovonslack at 10:16 AM on February 20

How about "The Blind Assassin" by Margaret Atwood? The fantasy/sci-fi stuff is somewhat separated from the more historical sections, but is written in that sort of pulpy inter-wars style. At any rate, it's just a fabulous book.
posted by delayed-reaction android at 1:56 PM on February 20

I came in to recommend Dave Duncan's The Great Game series, but gt2 beat me to it.

Most of the action takes place in a fantasy world, but the characters travel back and forth between there and inter-war Britain, particularly in the trilogy's second book.
posted by the latin mouse at 4:10 PM on February 20