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twicomb's review against another edition
4.0
Introduction
5 stars. This introduction was so detailed and so wonderful that it deserves its own rating. An overview of faeries through time and countries, literature and art.
The Boys of Goose Hill by Charles de Lint (poem)
5 stars. Felt like something I heard in childhood long ago.
CATNYP by Delia Sherman
4 stars. A fun, different take on faeries in modern day NYC. Focuses on humans who have been stolen into Faerie and who want to return to the human world. Bonus points for setting much of it in the NYC library.
Elvenbrood by Tanith Lee
3 stars. Well-written but nothing particularly new here. A modern-day tale of a family who moves to a small country town. The daughter is nearly stolen away by fairies, until her brother sets out to save her.
Your Garnet Eyes by Katherine Vaz
3 stars. Set in Brazil. Interesting culture-specific details. But I felt like I was stumbling through the story as I read.
Tengu Mountain by Gregory Frost
5 stars. Possibly my favorite in the book. Inspired by classic fairy tales and set in ancient Japan, rich with visual detail. Beautifully crafted. A young artist sets out to visit his aunt high on a mountainside, despite warnings from a mysterious monk who gifts him an iron ring.
The Faery Handbag by Kelly Link
5 stars. Strange and wonderful, about the not-so-imaginary land of Baldeziwurlekistan kept safe inside a grandmother’s handbag.
The Price of Glamour by Steve Berman
2 stars. It just didn’t grab me. It felt like an exercise in creating a world where fairies lived in Victorian England, not a story first and foremost.
The Night Market by Holly Black
3 stars A dreamlike meandering through a fairy-related story set in modern-day Philippines.
Never Never by Bruce Glassco
4 stars. For the first part I would have rated it as 3 stars, but I ended up at 4, since I became more emotionally invested than I expected to be. What seems like just a one-trick story vehicle actually is a clever way to address larger philosophical questions of being. Essentially, what happens when villains must exist for a hero to live out their story? Captain Hook is the villain here, but Tinker Bell is an eerily omnipotent figure with sympathy for his situation.
Screaming for Faeries by Ellen Steiber
Rounding up to 4 stars. I really liked the modern-day setting and seeing how fairies might impact someone’s “everyday” life. The overall theme felt like it was laid on a little heavy but I understand what the author was going for. A girl babysitting for her niece gets more than she bargained for when fairies end up visiting her own home and trashing her bedroom in the process (but also teaching her about love).
Immersed in Matter by Nina Kiriki Hoffman
5 stars. A surprisingly sweet yet deep story, that feels like you heard it long ago, being told to you as you fell asleep. Slow beginning but the world-building is relevant and the story is worth the wait. A young fairy learns how to transform into different animals. He longs to connect with horses, and takes the risk of transforming temporarily into a human to do so.
Undine by Patricia McKillip
Rounded up to 5 stars. I liked a few other stories more, but this was still one of the best in the book. And in terms of what the editors were looking to do with this book - tell stories that cast classic faeries in new or interesting lights - this story is probably the best example in the whole book. Told from the POV of an undine who is out to snag her first love from above the waters, and what happens when he ends up snagging her.
The Oakthing by Gregory Maguire
5 stars Another standout in this collection. The one-sided dialogue of the old woman with the oakthing is wonderful, as is the character of the old woman herself, and her gumption and attitude toward the world. When the eldest member of a household is left behind as the family flees the farm during WWII, how does she react (and how does she treat the wood fairy who’s moved into the house in the few hours she was gone)?
Foxwife by Hiromi Goto
4 stars I love all things kitsune. I did get a little lost in some places. But I loved the writing style and the small details that took a classic world and made it feel like a new world I hadn’t read about before. Maybe I should round this up to 5 stars. A young woman is pulled into a strange world where she interrupts a kitsune wedding and is taken hostage. The bride-to-be longs to escape as well and entreats her for help.
The Dream Eaters by AM Dellamonica
2 stars I really tried to get into it, but ultimately I found it a bit boring (which to me is the worst thing in writing).
The Faery Reel by Neil Gaiman
5 stars (poem) It’s Neil Gaiman and it’s a poem about fairies. Not surprising that it was great. What’s more surprising is the level of emotional resonance he was able to create in such a short piece.
The Shooter at the Heartrock Waterhole by Bill Congreve
4 to 5 stars. Modern Australia. This story made me feel strange and uneasy, like a fever dream, which is probably a good compliment for this sort of story. When a young man assigned to take down invasive bird species at a watering hole accidentally shoots a fairy and believes he’s killed her, it sets him on a toad trip that comes full-circle.
The Annals of Eelin-Ok by Jeffrey Ford
5 stars. As soon as I read the setup, I was all set for it to just be another not-so-original story. By the end of it, I was honestly choked up. The story of one of the Twilmish, faeries who live in sand castles and live their whole lives in the space of just one day (or night, depending upon the tides).
De la Tierra by Emma Bull
2 stars The idea behind this story was brilliant (faeries as illegal immigrants in modern Los Angeles). But the writing was - I can’t put my finger on it, I just couldn’t engage with it at all. It felt opaque.
How to Find Faery by Nan Fry
4 stars A sweet and simple poem that would adapt beautifully into a lullaby.
5 stars. This introduction was so detailed and so wonderful that it deserves its own rating. An overview of faeries through time and countries, literature and art.
The Boys of Goose Hill by Charles de Lint (poem)
5 stars. Felt like something I heard in childhood long ago.
CATNYP by Delia Sherman
4 stars. A fun, different take on faeries in modern day NYC. Focuses on humans who have been stolen into Faerie and who want to return to the human world. Bonus points for setting much of it in the NYC library.
Elvenbrood by Tanith Lee
3 stars. Well-written but nothing particularly new here. A modern-day tale of a family who moves to a small country town. The daughter is nearly stolen away by fairies, until her brother sets out to save her.
Your Garnet Eyes by Katherine Vaz
3 stars. Set in Brazil. Interesting culture-specific details. But I felt like I was stumbling through the story as I read.
Tengu Mountain by Gregory Frost
5 stars. Possibly my favorite in the book. Inspired by classic fairy tales and set in ancient Japan, rich with visual detail. Beautifully crafted. A young artist sets out to visit his aunt high on a mountainside, despite warnings from a mysterious monk who gifts him an iron ring.
The Faery Handbag by Kelly Link
5 stars. Strange and wonderful, about the not-so-imaginary land of Baldeziwurlekistan kept safe inside a grandmother’s handbag.
The Price of Glamour by Steve Berman
2 stars. It just didn’t grab me. It felt like an exercise in creating a world where fairies lived in Victorian England, not a story first and foremost.
The Night Market by Holly Black
3 stars A dreamlike meandering through a fairy-related story set in modern-day Philippines.
Never Never by Bruce Glassco
4 stars. For the first part I would have rated it as 3 stars, but I ended up at 4, since I became more emotionally invested than I expected to be. What seems like just a one-trick story vehicle actually is a clever way to address larger philosophical questions of being. Essentially, what happens when villains must exist for a hero to live out their story? Captain Hook is the villain here, but Tinker Bell is an eerily omnipotent figure with sympathy for his situation.
Screaming for Faeries by Ellen Steiber
Rounding up to 4 stars. I really liked the modern-day setting and seeing how fairies might impact someone’s “everyday” life. The overall theme felt like it was laid on a little heavy but I understand what the author was going for. A girl babysitting for her niece gets more than she bargained for when fairies end up visiting her own home and trashing her bedroom in the process (but also teaching her about love).
Immersed in Matter by Nina Kiriki Hoffman
5 stars. A surprisingly sweet yet deep story, that feels like you heard it long ago, being told to you as you fell asleep. Slow beginning but the world-building is relevant and the story is worth the wait. A young fairy learns how to transform into different animals. He longs to connect with horses, and takes the risk of transforming temporarily into a human to do so.
Undine by Patricia McKillip
Rounded up to 5 stars. I liked a few other stories more, but this was still one of the best in the book. And in terms of what the editors were looking to do with this book - tell stories that cast classic faeries in new or interesting lights - this story is probably the best example in the whole book. Told from the POV of an undine who is out to snag her first love from above the waters, and what happens when he ends up snagging her.
The Oakthing by Gregory Maguire
5 stars Another standout in this collection. The one-sided dialogue of the old woman with the oakthing is wonderful, as is the character of the old woman herself, and her gumption and attitude toward the world. When the eldest member of a household is left behind as the family flees the farm during WWII, how does she react (and how does she treat the wood fairy who’s moved into the house in the few hours she was gone)?
Foxwife by Hiromi Goto
4 stars I love all things kitsune. I did get a little lost in some places. But I loved the writing style and the small details that took a classic world and made it feel like a new world I hadn’t read about before. Maybe I should round this up to 5 stars. A young woman is pulled into a strange world where she interrupts a kitsune wedding and is taken hostage. The bride-to-be longs to escape as well and entreats her for help.
The Dream Eaters by AM Dellamonica
2 stars I really tried to get into it, but ultimately I found it a bit boring (which to me is the worst thing in writing).
The Faery Reel by Neil Gaiman
5 stars (poem) It’s Neil Gaiman and it’s a poem about fairies. Not surprising that it was great. What’s more surprising is the level of emotional resonance he was able to create in such a short piece.
The Shooter at the Heartrock Waterhole by Bill Congreve
4 to 5 stars. Modern Australia. This story made me feel strange and uneasy, like a fever dream, which is probably a good compliment for this sort of story. When a young man assigned to take down invasive bird species at a watering hole accidentally shoots a fairy and believes he’s killed her, it sets him on a toad trip that comes full-circle.
The Annals of Eelin-Ok by Jeffrey Ford
5 stars. As soon as I read the setup, I was all set for it to just be another not-so-original story. By the end of it, I was honestly choked up. The story of one of the Twilmish, faeries who live in sand castles and live their whole lives in the space of just one day (or night, depending upon the tides).
De la Tierra by Emma Bull
2 stars The idea behind this story was brilliant (faeries as illegal immigrants in modern Los Angeles). But the writing was - I can’t put my finger on it, I just couldn’t engage with it at all. It felt opaque.
How to Find Faery by Nan Fry
4 stars A sweet and simple poem that would adapt beautifully into a lullaby.
lsparrow's review against another edition
3.0
a number of writers that I like in this anthology and i loved some of the different faery mythologies as well as more modern twists brought into this collection.
annaptobias's review against another edition
3.0
Was really only interested in the Holly Black short story, "Night Market," which I thought was really well-crafted, as to be expected from the author.
_haggis_'s review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
djparsley's review against another edition
4.0
Most of the short stories were good in this book. A few of them kind of tainted the overall quality of the book. Having read the folklore of faeries, all of these stories have the touch of the original fairy tales and not the watered-down pathetic ones that Disney has today. I particularly liked:
Catnyp by Delia Sherman
Elvenbrood by Tanith Lee
Tengu Mountains by Gregory Frost
The Faery Handbag by Kelly Link
The Price of Glamour by Steve Berman
The Night Market by Holly Black*
Never Never by Bruce Glassco
Screaming for Faeries by Ellen Steiber
Foxwife by Hiromi Goto
The Faery Reel by Neil Gaiman
So overall I really enjoyed 10/20
Catnyp by Delia Sherman
Elvenbrood by Tanith Lee
Tengu Mountains by Gregory Frost
The Faery Handbag by Kelly Link
The Price of Glamour by Steve Berman
The Night Market by Holly Black*
Never Never by Bruce Glassco
Screaming for Faeries by Ellen Steiber
Foxwife by Hiromi Goto
The Faery Reel by Neil Gaiman
So overall I really enjoyed 10/20
lamusadelils's review against another edition
3.0
Uno de los primeros audiolibros que puedo escuchar de principio a fin. Confieso que llegué a él por ciertos autores, pero me llevé una grata sorpresa con el resto.
Lo mejorcito para mi fueron las historias de [a:Gregory Maguire|7025|Gregory Maguire|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1319068553p2/7025.jpg], [a:Charles de Lint|8456|Charles de Lint|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1269735259p2/8456.jpg], [a:Patricia A. McKillip|25|Patricia A. McKillip|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1220752490p2/25.jpg], [a:Jeffrey Ford|19305|Jeffrey Ford|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1271689548p2/19305.jpg] y [a:Tanith Lee|8694|Tanith Lee|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1218895130p2/8694.jpg], pero lo demás no tiene desperdicio.
Lo mejorcito para mi fueron las historias de [a:Gregory Maguire|7025|Gregory Maguire|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1319068553p2/7025.jpg], [a:Charles de Lint|8456|Charles de Lint|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1269735259p2/8456.jpg], [a:Patricia A. McKillip|25|Patricia A. McKillip|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1220752490p2/25.jpg], [a:Jeffrey Ford|19305|Jeffrey Ford|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1271689548p2/19305.jpg] y [a:Tanith Lee|8694|Tanith Lee|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1218895130p2/8694.jpg], pero lo demás no tiene desperdicio.
cjbeaupa's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
leanna_wisener's review against another edition
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0