On the 1st of August 1996, 'A Game of Thrones' by George RR Martin was published for the first time, which makes today the 25th anniversary of that event and a cause for some celebration, in my opinion.

GRRM was already known as a writer of fantasy and sci-fi works, having published his first short story in 1971, his first novel in 1977, and had won a number of awards for his fiction. He was also known as a TV writer with his work on The Twilight Zone and Beauty and the Beast.

In 1994, he gave his agent the first 200 pages of what would become 'A Game of Thrones', along with a pitch letter outlining how he saw the story developing, which can be read here. Those of us who have read all the books to date will recognise the huge changes George made between that initial letter and what was on the page (to some relief, especially as regards the proposed Jon/Arya/Tyrion love triangle!).

Though sales of the book did not put it in the category of runaway bestseller at the time, the reviews were largely positive; "its tapestry is satisfyingly rich and complex, weaving together dozens of characters, major and minor, in a wide spectrum of shades of hero and villain, all vivid and memorable" was one of the most common themes, with praise being awarded to GRRM's descriptive writing, and his ability to marry plot to characterisation (more of the original reviews can be found here). Despite its size, some 672 pages long, it was tightly plotted and well structured through use of character's points of view for each chapter.

This first book was followed by 'A Clash of Kings' in 1998, 'A Storm of Swords' in 2000, 'A Feast for Crows' in 2005 and 'A Dance with Dragons' in 2011. The series has become a huge entity in its own right; as of this year, over 90 million copies of the books have been sold. GRRM himself has been nominated for and won many awards for the series - including, famously, losing out on a Hugo award for 'A Storm of Swords' to JK Rowling - and has published several other related works, such as the 'Dunk and Egg' novellas and the Fire and Blood series charting the history of the Targaryens.

The book itself is a joy to read, evidenced by the recent re-read by our pals at the Close the Door podcast, and as part one of a series is an excellent set-up for all the many things that come later.

Happy silver anniversary, 'A Game of Thrones', the little book that could!