A review by spoth
A Dreamer's Tales by Lord Dunsany

5.0

This collection was so much fun to read - the author's love of language and invention and atmosphere really shine through. It predates most of fantasy, so not only is it fresh and inventive, but it's very entertaining to see the echoes of Lord Dunsany in the works of authors who followed, such as Tolkien and Le Guin. This is in fact the exact collection that Le Guin had when she was a small girl, and I was interested to find all the little bits and images that showed up in the Earthsea series in particular.

The stories are a bit rough around the edges (I read somewhere that Lord Dunsany never edited his writing), and some are better than others, but it was so much fun. The language is inimitable, High Fantasy meets King James Bible, and he pulls it off. Read the first page of the first story; if that isn't enough to get you hooked, then this book isn't for you.