Did you notice that all of the recommended books were entirely within the (very limited) Western exoteric tradition. Which is to say that perhaps with one exception none of the books were about esoteric Spiritual religion. And that none of them were from non-Christian (or non-Western) sources, which is quite strange in a time and place when every Spiritual, religious and philosophical point of view that has ever been made by human beings in all times and places is now freely available to anyone with an internet connection.

Which is to say that (mis)-informed by such a narrow entirely exoteric and Western (only) perspective such a person is essentially Spiritually, religiously, philosophically and culturally illiterature in this time and place.

Please therefore find a much more comprehensive wider and deeper Understanding of what we are as human beings and of Reality altogether via these references.
1. http://www.adidaupclose.org/Literature_Theater/skalsky.html
2. http://www.adidam.in/eastwest.asp
3. http://www.beezone.com/ArticlesTradition.html
4. http://www.beezone.com/whiteandorangeproject/index.html
5. http://www.dabase.org/up-1-3.htm
6. http://spiralledlight.wordpress.com/2010/08/24/4068
On the doubt mind that mis-informs all of Western “theology” and philosophy.
1. http://www.beezone.com/AdiDa/nirvanasara/chapter1.html

Actually, and this is relevant to Ryan’s critique, some have seen in SoIaF a more-or-less direct critique of epic fantasy in general and The Lord of the Rings in particular. GRRM makes explicit a lot of the elements that are just beneath the surface in the works of Tolkien and others—the classism, patriarchy, sexism, sexual violence, deep systemic injustice, and so forth that exist in these pastoral, feudal, medieval Europe-ish settings. (See this Metafilter comment for a better explanation than mine.)