There's one table in the back of the library where the story scouts go to hold all their book club meetings.

If they are feeling really enthusiastic about a story, one of them might drop by here to talk all about it to anyone around. Of course, the librarians come by every so often, to reveal one of their favorite books from the archives or personal collection, and passing patrons have been known to stop by to discuss a book or two.

There are a few rules, of course. Authors can't hype their own stories here, and you're supposed to talk about good stories, not bad ones. But it's fun all the same.

I'm taking a few moments to talk about and draw attention to Rise, one of my early recommendations.

If there's one word that can be used to describe this tale it's PERSPECTIVE. In this story the Breezies are faced with what for them is an ancient, implaceable enemy, one that threatens their very existence. Though small and few in number, they are determined to survive. One young Breezie in particular finds herself thrust unwillingly into the front lines of the battle, only to find out her enemy is not what she'd been raised to believe.

This tale is both entertaining and a lesson that can be applied to one's own life. How many times have we faced a situation that seemed insurmountable when we were younger, only to find out it wasn't as bad as we first perceived after some reflection? That's the takeaway.

It is my hope that stories like these will find a greater audience, and enrich its readers by so doing.

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My first one was Tennyson's Time. It's all about a tree that Apple Bloom planted named Tennyson, and you can really feel how much Apple Bloom cares for him. It's a tragedy, so it's pretty sad, but it's a really good story.

I really like the way it's written.

Dark clouds loomed overhead, but that didn’t stop Tennyson from showing his vibrant green leaves to Apple Bloom. The wind was blowing, and with it he swayed his branches down to stroke her face with those leaves, causing her to giggle. She sighed, taking the time to sniff and nudge his newly-grown Golden Delicious apples, the first he’d ever made. She exhaled, eyes closed and bearing a proud smile.

“Look, Applejack!” the filly yelled. “Tennyson’s grown his first apples!”

It's a one shot, and more than two years old, so I don't think it gets noticed much, and it's only got 34 upvotes, which is a shame...

--Sweetie Belle
Note: Just as a reminder, anypony can talk about stories here, not just story scouts an' librarians...

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Thank you so much for recommending that one. Stories like that are rare, but extremely nice to find. I have the feeling it will be even better after a second read, for I'm thinking there are nuances I might have missed. Thanks again!

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You're welcome!

One nice thing about this thread is that while stories might get missed when they are added, this allows us to sort of recommend the ones we add a bit more, where everypony can see it. It also lets anypony passing by have a chance to talk about stories they liked more than they might in the recommendation thread, too.

I expect for a while I'll be adding stories I read a while ago that I know I liked...

--Sweetie Belle

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I was looking through the very back of my favorites, and saw a fanfic I remember loving back in the day. I started going back through it, and it's just as good as I remember.

So I thought I'd mention Twilight's List here, by kits. kits may be gone, but it's still a great story.

Twilight Sparkle prides herself on following and sticking to her plans, but she isn't as organized as everypony thinks. Her master list, the plan for her life, has an item that she has never been able to check off; and the time has come to fix that. How hard can it be? All she needs to do is go on a date and get a kiss.

What can I say about this? Things that caught my eye:

Twilight beamed. With this many lists, organization was sure to triumph.

Great characterization right there.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash, the two ponies she felt exemplified the traits that her romance novels seemed to indicate would complement her own the most.

This can only lead to bad things...

Then over to Rainbows POV:

The farm pony had said something about her trees needing to be ‘pruned’. Dash tried to snort, but the wind made it really hard to tell if she had. Pruning apple trees, a likely story. Everypony knew prunes didn’t come from apples; maybe kumquats or something, but not apples. That pony really needed to relax a bit and take some time off!

Rainbow, don't ever change.

“Oh it was so super cool!” Pinkie Pie bounced into the air. “Zoom! Whoosh!” She thrust her hooves left then right in a pantomime of Dash’s flight, ending with a backward somersault flip and a final “Wheee!”

Perfect Pinkie Pie, right there.

So, great characterization, a fun plot, and wonderful writing. Okay, so it has 2805 upvotes and probably doesn't need attention, but I thought I'd mention it anyways...

--arcum42

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It's hard to talk about why Teacher's Pet is a good story, but it is, an' I recommend it.

Fair or not, most classes have that one perfect student, that one little flower that the teacher can't help but adore. Cheerilee's class is no different.

--Sweetie Belle

You know, I once recommended the story I just added for the Last Roundup. It didn't get in the week it was eligible, though there were less recommendations then there were stories recommended, but I still stand by that recommendation, and I thought I'd copy it over here.

I thought I'd suggest Fervidor's Paper Promises: (published Sep. 24th)

Filthy Rich has a problem. His daughter, Diamond Tiara, keeps breaking her promises to treat her classmates with more respect. In fact, she doesn't even seem to really understand what a promise is. Since punishing her does not seem to have much effect, Mr Rich is forced to consider a more creative parenting method. But how can he make such a spoiled, materialistic little filly as Diamond Tiara see the value of a promise?

With money, of course!

A few other people's opinions on it:

"wow... now THAT is probably one of the best examples of what could of worked as a straight Diamond Tiara episode in the show as one could hope for!

Holy crap, that was a great moral lesson, and taught in a way that a child could understand. xD"
Talaros

"Very nice story all around! "
Elric of Melnipony

"Ohhh. It's not often that you get a fanfic story that really feels true to the show. Heck, in a lot of ways it does the 'moral' thing far better than the show does. Though I guess I can't imagine FiM ever explaining the idea of fiat currency to its audience. Still, in terms of tone and execution, it was pretty darn awesome indeed. And it made for a most excellent bit of Tiara redemption, Fervidor. Bravo!

As a bonus, I love seeing Filthy portrayed in a good light. Honestly, the show actually holds him up as an honest businessman that cares about the deals he makes, and the ponies he makes them with. Yet he seems to often fall into the role of a crook, or an insufferable snob."
Luminary

Letting other people speak for me seemed like a good idea on this one.

--arcum42

I just thought I'd say that anypony who hasn't read Young Eyes an' the sequel, Open Eyes, probably should. They're both oneshots by Lapis-Lazuli and Inky J, and they're really good.

This is the description of Young Eyes:

When Dinky Doo finds something unexpected under her bed, she decides to find out what put it there.

You see, there are lotsa things that adults don't believe in. But Dinky does. 'Cause they are.

Anyways, go read them. They're really well written, an' I'd love it if the authors did more in this universe. There's some great world building...

--Sweetie Belle

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Well, what's really adorable are those two stories. And, um, I don't see any mushroom pizza...

--Sweetie Belle

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Note: Just as a reminder, anypony can talk about stories here, not just story scouts an' librarians...

Oh? Well, in that case, I'd love to show you all something just... I mean... it's beyond belief how amazing a story of only 5k words can be.
Those Who Live Forever deserves so much more attention than it has received. Check out my review for more detailed thoughts.