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A review by nwhyte
Songs of the Dying Earth: Stories in Honour of Jack Vance by George R.R. Martin
4.0
http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/2749746.html
This is a collection of short stories set in the world of Jack Vance's Dying Earth, which I read and enjoyed back in 2004. The lineup of contributors was indeed amazing: Dan Simmons, Robert Silverberg, Elizabeth Moon, Elizabeth Bear, Neil Gaiman. (One sad reflection is that several of them - Kage Baker, Lucius Shepard, Tanith Lee - are no longer with us.) The quality of the stories, as Ian Whates reflected at the time, is a bit variable. This is pastiche rather than originality, and Vance's style in the Dying Earth stories is easy to pastiche. But they are almost all enjoyable enough (as it happens, I didn't particularly care for the John C. Wright one). Several others grabbed me, though: "The Copsy Door", by Terry Dowling, quoted above; "The Green Bird", by Kage Baker; "The Traditions of Karzh", by Paula Volsky; "Evillo the Uncunning", by Tanith Lee.
Basically, if you liked the original Vance stories, most of these will appeal. But if you don't know them, I think it would be a bit confusing.
This is a collection of short stories set in the world of Jack Vance's Dying Earth, which I read and enjoyed back in 2004. The lineup of contributors was indeed amazing: Dan Simmons, Robert Silverberg, Elizabeth Moon, Elizabeth Bear, Neil Gaiman. (One sad reflection is that several of them - Kage Baker, Lucius Shepard, Tanith Lee - are no longer with us.) The quality of the stories, as Ian Whates reflected at the time, is a bit variable. This is pastiche rather than originality, and Vance's style in the Dying Earth stories is easy to pastiche. But they are almost all enjoyable enough (as it happens, I didn't particularly care for the John C. Wright one). Several others grabbed me, though: "The Copsy Door", by Terry Dowling, quoted above; "The Green Bird", by Kage Baker; "The Traditions of Karzh", by Paula Volsky; "Evillo the Uncunning", by Tanith Lee.
Basically, if you liked the original Vance stories, most of these will appeal. But if you don't know them, I think it would be a bit confusing.