Top 5 Wednesday: Favorite Maps

Before I jump into this topic, I would like to elaborate a bit on how I picked the five maps. For me, a map should not only be aesthetically pleasing, but it should be useful and add to the story. So yes, I do love all sort of maps, but in books, their utility is the most important factor for me.

As always, I would like to mention that Top 5 Wednesday was created by Lainey who can be found on YouTube as GingerReadsLainey.

Now, in no particular order, here are the five maps that I picked for this week's Top 5.

1. Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis

The thing that I love about the Narnia books is that the map changes in each installment depending on where the action takes place. This particular map is from Book 5: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. So you will see that the ocean takes up most of the map and Narnia is far to the left. The map also points to the spot where our main characters joined the ship.

2. The Grisha Trilogy by Leigh Bardugo

I love the maps in this trilogy. The first book has a map that is zoomed in on Ravka since that is where all events of that book occur. In books 2 and 3 we get the more expanded view of the world which includes the surrounding areas and Novy Zem where Alina and Mal travel. The map featured here is from Book 3 Ruin and Rising. Since the world in this trilogy is so unique, I did enjoy referring back to the map and found it extremely useful. I like to be able to picture where things are geographically so this was a big help. This map is also stunning: I love the font and pictures of various monsters featured in the story.

3. The Eragon Series by Christopher Paolini

This map is actually pictured on the end pages of the hard cover both in the front and in the back of the book. Even though the maps are monochrome they mirror the color of the book cover - which I thought was a cool way to do it. This particular one if from Book 4: Inheritance and as you see, it is green. Maps are essential to most fantasy novels and Eragon is not exception. I thought the map really helps to orient the reader and provides a better idea of the world.

4. The Land of Stories by Chris Colfer

I love how colorful this map is. It is also a fold-out which makes it easy to find and keep handy. I only read the first book in this middle grade series so I am not sure if the map changes/evolves in any way in later installments. However, I did refer to the map frequently while reading the book and found it extremely helpful. 

5. A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin

Martin's world is so incredibly complex, that a map is absolutely necessary. I did find myself referring to the map quite a bit especially when various military strategies and battle locations were discussed. My main problem with the original maps in the books (as pictured above) is that they are nearly unreadable. The font is extremely small and the maps are very detailed. Luckily, there is an abundance of Game of Thrones maps online - in full color, various portions of the world, etc, which makes it easier to navigate Martin's world