My favorite literature genre is science fiction, but I have read a bit of fantasy too. In fact, I have been reading it all of my life, as I suspect you have.

(I think it not unreasonable to say that all fiction is fantasy. The stories are birthed in the imaginations of the writers of fiction.)

My first exposure to fantasy was at a young age with Go Dog. Go by P.D. Eastman, and Green Eggs and Ham by the inestimable Dr. Suess. Those books were soon followed by the likes of Marguerite Henry's Misty of Chincoteague; Anne Sewell' s Black Beauty; and all of The Little House on the Prairie novels by Laura Ingalls Wilder.

In fifth grade I found Doctor Doolittle by Hugh Lofting~ which reminds me I must reread it now that I am in my second childhood

I then discovered Gothic Romance. I read every Victoria Holt novel I could lay hands upon beginning with The Mistress of Mellyn which I read at least ten times.

It was in high-school that I started reading straight-up science fiction with Arthur C. Clark and Issac Asimov.

Subsequently I ran into science fiction-tinged-with-fantasy in the novels of Andre Norton, first reading The Moon of Three Rings and Anne McCaffrey's Dragon RIders of Pern series.

Lastly, I must mention the ultimate writer of fantasy, JRR Tolkien. His novels The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings Trilogy are filled with poems that are actually the songs of Middle Earth. Wasn't it delightful when the poems were set to music in Peter Jackson's film adaptations?

I look forward to reading the poetic submissions to the Fantasy Poetry Contest.