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3.79 AVERAGE
3.79 AVERAGE
A really nice collection of Asian legend/epic retelling short stories. Learnt a bit more about Asian culture from each author's brief note after their story, which is always nice.
4.5★
Read for O.W.L.s Magical Readathon - Divination: use a random number generator on your TBR (see my O.W.L.s TBR video here)
What a beautiful collection! I really enjoyed this, I'm so glad I finally got the chance to read it! Like all short story collections, there were of course a few that I liked less than others. But amazingly there wasn't a single one that I outright disliked. Even when the stories weren't that interesting to me, the writing was still so beautiful that I didn't mind reading it.
My favourites in this collection were Olivia's Table by Alyssa Wong, Spear Carrier by Rahul Kanakia, and The Crimson Cloak by Cindy Pon. These stories really stood out to me, The Crimson Cloak even made me tear up a bit.
My least favourites were Steel Skin by Lori M. Lee, and The Counting of Vermillion Beads by Aliette de Bodard. And with that said, as mentioned above, the writing was still so stunning that I still enjoyed reading them, even though the actually stories didn't quite capture me.
Just a really fantastic collection, there really isn't anything else that I could say about it. I highly recommend this to anyone who is a lover of fairytales
Read for O.W.L.s Magical Readathon - Divination: use a random number generator on your TBR (see my O.W.L.s TBR video here)
What a beautiful collection! I really enjoyed this, I'm so glad I finally got the chance to read it! Like all short story collections, there were of course a few that I liked less than others. But amazingly there wasn't a single one that I outright disliked. Even when the stories weren't that interesting to me, the writing was still so beautiful that I didn't mind reading it.
My favourites in this collection were Olivia's Table by Alyssa Wong, Spear Carrier by Rahul Kanakia, and The Crimson Cloak by Cindy Pon. These stories really stood out to me, The Crimson Cloak even made me tear up a bit.
My least favourites were Steel Skin by Lori M. Lee, and The Counting of Vermillion Beads by Aliette de Bodard. And with that said, as mentioned above, the writing was still so stunning that I still enjoyed reading them, even though the actually stories didn't quite capture me.
Just a really fantastic collection, there really isn't anything else that I could say about it. I highly recommend this to anyone who is a lover of fairytales
Read/listened to this for the Asian Readathon and it was an absolute delight. I like this collection of short stories.
I really wish I could rate this higher as the stories that were good were excellent. The bad ones, however, why where they published?
adventurous
informative
medium-paced
Forbidden Fruit by Roshani Chokshi - 4 stars
Olivia’s Table by Alyssa Wong - 5 stars
Steel Skin by Lori M. Lee - 4 stars
Still Star-Crossed by Sona Charaipotra - 2 stars
The Counting of Vermillion Beads by Aliette De Bodard - 4 stars
The Land of the Morning Calm by E. C. Myers - 4 stars
The Smile by Aisha Saeed - 5 stars
Girls Who Twirl and Other Dangers by Preeti Chhibber - 2 stars
Nothing into All by Renée Ahdieh - 4 stars
Spear Carrier by Rahul Kanakia – 3.5 stars
Code of Honor by Melissa de la Cruz - 2 stars
Bullet, Butterfly by Elsie Chapman - 5 stars
Daughter of the Sun by Shveta Thakrar - 3 stars
The Crimson Cloak by Cindy Pon - 5 stars
Eyes like Candlelight by Julie Kagawa - 4 stars
Olivia’s Table by Alyssa Wong - 5 stars
Steel Skin by Lori M. Lee - 4 stars
Still Star-Crossed by Sona Charaipotra - 2 stars
The Counting of Vermillion Beads by Aliette De Bodard - 4 stars
The Land of the Morning Calm by E. C. Myers - 4 stars
The Smile by Aisha Saeed - 5 stars
Girls Who Twirl and Other Dangers by Preeti Chhibber - 2 stars
Nothing into All by Renée Ahdieh - 4 stars
Spear Carrier by Rahul Kanakia – 3.5 stars
Code of Honor by Melissa de la Cruz - 2 stars
Bullet, Butterfly by Elsie Chapman - 5 stars
Daughter of the Sun by Shveta Thakrar - 3 stars
The Crimson Cloak by Cindy Pon - 5 stars
Eyes like Candlelight by Julie Kagawa - 4 stars
I got completely drawn into these short stories that all have Asian myths, legend, epics and fairy tales at their base.
There was a moment during the reading where I felt, that I now had had enough of daughters dealing with their mothers. The next story had a different focus and I was happy again.
All in all, this is an amazing collection of short stories. Definitely worthwhile to read each one of them. They take you to places all over the globe, sometimes into the future, into dystopian moments or legendary battle fields, or just this dance event that takes place in the diaspora of the US of A.
Each story is followed by a short overview over the story, myth, legend that was the basis for the retelling. And honestly, I would like more. Discover more of the myths, legends, folktales of Asia as well as retellings of these and I am sure other fabulous female authors who have a link into the region.
The rendition of the text through the narrator of the stories was somewhat a hit or miss for me, specially with the female voice. Sometimes it worked perfectly well, sometimes it did not.
List of Short Stories with their regional affiliation
Forbidden Fruit, Roshani Chokshi, Maria Maquiling, a Philippino folktale
Olivia's Table, Alyssa Wong, The Hungry Ghost Festival, a Chinese tradition
Steel Skin, Lori M. Lee, The Woman and the Tiger, [Ahmang] folktale
Still Starcrossed, Sona Charaipotra, [Mirza and Zahiva], a Punjabi folktale
The Counting of a Million Beads, Aliette de Bodard, [Tam Ghan], a Vietnamese folktale
The Land of the Morning Calm, E. C. Myers, [The Chassa Bonphuri], a Korean epic
The Smile, Aisha Saeed, The Story of Anarkolli, a South Asian legend
Girls Who Twirl and Other Dangers, Preeti Chhibber, Navaratri, a Hindu Festival
Nothing Into All, Renée Ahdieh, The Goblin Treasure, a Korean fairy tale
Spear Carrier, Rahul Kanakia, The Mahabharata, a South Asian epic
Code of Honour, Melissa de la Cruz, Asuangs, a Philippino folktale
Bullet Butterfly, Elsie Chapman, The Butterfly Lovers, a Chinese folktale
Daughter of the Sun, Shveta Thakrar, The Mahabharata, a South Asian epic
The Crimson Cloak, Cindy Pon, The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl, Chinese legend
Eyes Like Candle Light, Julie Kagawa, Kitsune, a Japanese myth
There was a moment during the reading where I felt, that I now had had enough of daughters dealing with their mothers. The next story had a different focus and I was happy again.
All in all, this is an amazing collection of short stories. Definitely worthwhile to read each one of them. They take you to places all over the globe, sometimes into the future, into dystopian moments or legendary battle fields, or just this dance event that takes place in the diaspora of the US of A.
Each story is followed by a short overview over the story, myth, legend that was the basis for the retelling. And honestly, I would like more. Discover more of the myths, legends, folktales of Asia as well as retellings of these and I am sure other fabulous female authors who have a link into the region.
The rendition of the text through the narrator of the stories was somewhat a hit or miss for me, specially with the female voice. Sometimes it worked perfectly well, sometimes it did not.
List of Short Stories with their regional affiliation
Forbidden Fruit, Roshani Chokshi, Maria Maquiling, a Philippino folktale
Olivia's Table, Alyssa Wong, The Hungry Ghost Festival, a Chinese tradition
Steel Skin, Lori M. Lee, The Woman and the Tiger, [Ahmang] folktale
Still Starcrossed, Sona Charaipotra, [Mirza and Zahiva], a Punjabi folktale
The Counting of a Million Beads, Aliette de Bodard, [Tam Ghan], a Vietnamese folktale
The Land of the Morning Calm, E. C. Myers, [The Chassa Bonphuri], a Korean epic
The Smile, Aisha Saeed, The Story of Anarkolli, a South Asian legend
Girls Who Twirl and Other Dangers, Preeti Chhibber, Navaratri, a Hindu Festival
Nothing Into All, Renée Ahdieh, The Goblin Treasure, a Korean fairy tale
Spear Carrier, Rahul Kanakia, The Mahabharata, a South Asian epic
Code of Honour, Melissa de la Cruz, Asuangs, a Philippino folktale
Bullet Butterfly, Elsie Chapman, The Butterfly Lovers, a Chinese folktale
Daughter of the Sun, Shveta Thakrar, The Mahabharata, a South Asian epic
The Crimson Cloak, Cindy Pon, The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl, Chinese legend
Eyes Like Candle Light, Julie Kagawa, Kitsune, a Japanese myth
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
sad
fast-paced
I love a good short story collection, and I very much enjoyed learning about where the authors drew their ideas from.