> there is a certain type of curious, intelligent, often young reader that delights in those details > The market for massive 18-book series is a product of th

> there is a certain type of curious, intelligent, often young reader that delights in those details > The market for massive 18-book series is a product of the happy match of that type of writer with that type of reader. But it's totally OK to not be that type of reader. Indifferent/stupid/old readers should probably keep reading Tolkien, Dickens and other authors known for published brevity - Melville or Tolstoy perhaps.