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anna_jig's review against another edition
5.0
Me ha encantado este relato. El estilo de la autora, divertido y directo, todas las referencias y, sobre todo, la situación que presenta, con la que es tan fácil identificarse...¡Muchas gracias por traducirlo!
trish204's review against another edition
5.0
Disclaimer: I REALLY HATE how Goodreads doesn't allow pages for short stories. When I wrote this review, the short story was listed on its own, not as part of some magazine I know nothing about. *sighs* The title of the story I'm reviewing here is A Witch's Guide to Escape: A Practical Compendium of Portal Fantasies and it's by Alix Harrow.
As is usual with short stories and/or novellas, I only found out about this when a friend of mine read and reviewed it because it is nominated for an award this year. But, like the librarian in this story, I don't hold with award winners (or nominees) only so I actually like discovering certain stories this way only (in fact, I positively hunt them down on my GR timeline). ;)
The story is that of a librarian. She's not only tattooed but also a witch. She can hear the books whisper, checks out the really old ones so they don't feel too bad/abandoned, and knows which human to pair with which book.
She meets a black teen who only ever checks out one book, reads it repeatedly despite the ending, and who seems to be depressed. She pairs him with certain other books over time. A witch only ever helps those in need.
What is so brilliant about this story is not just the books mentioned in it (which either make you nod in recognition or checking them online) that show just how well-read the author herself is. It's not the fluent and pretty writing style that combines the feel of a magical library (that made me think of dark wood, sunlight and times past) with modern titles and laser scanners. It's that I could hear the books whisper as well. How they spoke to the librarian, spying for her, helping her help the boy; that they had their very own personalities.
As a bibliophile who strokes her books and talks to them, this was paradise and I wish it wasn't just a short story.
There is tragedy, there is beauty, there is humour and ... books that need to be read as much as we need to read them.
How many authors can write and publish a short story that makes you feel as if you had spent years in their cozy and comforting magical world that smells of paper and ink? Exactly!
You can read the story for free here: https://www.apex-magazine.com/a-witchs-guide-to-escape-a-practical-compendium-of-portal-fantasies/
As is usual with short stories and/or novellas, I only found out about this when a friend of mine read and reviewed it because it is nominated for an award this year. But, like the librarian in this story, I don't hold with award winners (or nominees) only so I actually like discovering certain stories this way only (in fact, I positively hunt them down on my GR timeline). ;)
The story is that of a librarian. She's not only tattooed but also a witch. She can hear the books whisper, checks out the really old ones so they don't feel too bad/abandoned, and knows which human to pair with which book.
She meets a black teen who only ever checks out one book, reads it repeatedly despite the ending, and who seems to be depressed. She pairs him with certain other books over time. A witch only ever helps those in need.
What is so brilliant about this story is not just the books mentioned in it (which either make you nod in recognition or checking them online) that show just how well-read the author herself is. It's not the fluent and pretty writing style that combines the feel of a magical library (that made me think of dark wood, sunlight and times past) with modern titles and laser scanners. It's that I could hear the books whisper as well. How they spoke to the librarian, spying for her, helping her help the boy; that they had their very own personalities.
As a bibliophile who strokes her books and talks to them, this was paradise and I wish it wasn't just a short story.
There is tragedy, there is beauty, there is humour and ... books that need to be read as much as we need to read them.
How many authors can write and publish a short story that makes you feel as if you had spent years in their cozy and comforting magical world that smells of paper and ink? Exactly!
You can read the story for free here: https://www.apex-magazine.com/a-witchs-guide-to-escape-a-practical-compendium-of-portal-fantasies/
requiem4trillium's review against another edition
5.0
Hugo nominated short story.
Finding the right Book for a person.
Finding the right Book for a person.
tis_sandor's review against another edition
5.0
A fantastic short story. It manages to get so much charm and emotion in to such a short read. I loved it and recommend it.
lindzey's review against another edition
3.0
I read "A Witch's Guide to Escape: A Practical Compendium of Portal Fantasies" by Alix Harrow due to its inclusion in the Hugo voter's packet.
The premise of this story is that the librarian is a witch, which both gives her insights into what books somebody needs to encounter, and into the books themselves. (Which, while not quite characters, do at least get lonely.)
I enjoyed spending time in this world, and I would eagerly read more by this author. Only giving 3 stars because it felt like a test piece, gearing up for a longer work.
The story focused on a foster kid who comes to the library for escape. The witch librarian fed him some classical escapism, but he gradually needed more serious books, which leads the witch to a dilemma, because the magic books that yield the actual assistance that she judges he needs are strictly prohibited from circulation and she would be kicked out of her profession for recommending one.
The premise of this story is that the librarian is a witch, which both gives her insights into what books somebody needs to encounter, and into the books themselves. (Which, while not quite characters, do at least get lonely.)
I enjoyed spending time in this world, and I would eagerly read more by this author. Only giving 3 stars because it felt like a test piece, gearing up for a longer work.
The story focused on a foster kid who comes to the library for escape. The witch librarian fed him some classical escapism, but he gradually needed more serious books, which leads the witch to a dilemma, because the magic books that yield the actual assistance that she judges he needs are strictly prohibited from circulation and she would be kicked out of her profession for recommending one.
urwa's review against another edition
4.0
His caseworker was one of those people who say the word “escapism” as if it’s a moral failing, a regrettable hobby, a mental-health diagnosis. As if escape is not, in itself, one of the highest order of magics they’ll ever see in their miserable mortal lives, right up there with true love and prophetic dreams and fireflies blinking in synchrony on a June evening.
mdpenguin's review against another edition
5.0
I should probably wait until I'm done crying to write about this short story. It is just so beautifully true. It really gets to the heart of the sublime pain of needing to help someone find their way out and lays bare how important escape can really be.
thealbatross's review
A Witch’s Guide to Escape: A Practical Compendium of Portal Fantasies by Alix E. Harrow
Short and sweet: a foster boy with little hope begins coming to the library. The librarian witch supplies him with books to grow his mind and soothe his soul, but grapples with keeping the one book he truly needs (a magical guide to escape/portal worlds) away from him-- as she is sworn to do.
Short and sweet: a foster boy with little hope begins coming to the library. The librarian witch supplies him with books to grow his mind and soothe his soul, but grapples with keeping the one book he truly needs (a magical guide to escape/portal worlds) away from him-- as she is sworn to do.