Review: The Unicorn Anthology edited by Peter S. Beagle

The Unicorn Anthology by Peter S. Beagle
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

As a lifetime fan of Peter Beagle, I jumped at the chance to read this (even though only one of the stories was his, and I had read it before). It turned out that I had actually read the last few - My Son Heydari and the Unicorn, The Unicorn Triangle, and The Transfigured Hart. Admittedly I'm not much of a fan of these three, they were good when I first read them but I don't love them as much as some of the other unicorn stories and books I've read.

But there were a few gems in here. I liked Ghost Town, The Highest Justice, and A Thousand Flowers. The rest were kind of meh. I especially disliked the one about the unicorn horn dildo (gross - that one was up there for me with the story in another collection about a woman who sculpts dicks and has sex with the devil), and the one where the guy who buys his bait as a child then ends up with her, "taking her" against the side of a dead and bleeding unicorn (also gross). And I agree with most other reviewers who say that the stories all adhere to the tropes (virgins, etc.), nothing new is done here, and most of them barely feature unicorns at all.

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this collection. Overall it's a meh dud for me. I'd much rather read actual books about unicorns, or at least something new and interesting done with the idea of unicorns.

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Review: The Overneath by Peter S. Beagle

The Overneath by Peter S. Beagle
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

[Disclaimer: I received a free e-copy of this book from NetGalley for review purposes.]

Peter Beagle has been a favorite of mine since childhood. Admittedly, I didn't know much about him outside of The Last Unicorn until I was in my late teens. Which is a very sad sad thing. I know I had several of his books hanging around my house, but can't remember if I read them or when. (Remind me to go find them and read them, just to be safe!)

The Overneath is a collection of short stories, some of which were published elsewhere, and some of which are new. I believe both Schmendrick (!!!) stories are new, and they both made my heart skip a few beats. Reading about his life before he met the unicorn was magical! It was like a completely new depth brought to a character I've loved for years. (Peter, please write more Schmendrick! And Molly Grue! And Lir, oh bring Lir back...Yes I know he's gone...but I always want more. The Last Unicorn is one of my absolute favorite books.)

The other stories were very different from the others of his that I've read (although I can't say I've read his other short stories, I am really just talking about his books). I enjoyed the title story very much, and the very last one based on the dedication to The Last Unicorn. Both were intriguing. I still want to know what happened to the narrator's friend in The Overneath, and more more more.

Peter Beagle has always had a way of making me just want more. Can you tell?

I highly recommend this collection. His short stories are just as magical as his novels and novellas. There is so much atmosphere, such great character development in such short spaces. The stories are interesting (except that troll one - that one kind of left a bad taste in my mouth). And the unicorns! Okay, I think there was only one unicorn. But that's all right. The fantasy was there, the mood, the magic and the wonder of it all. Read this if you are a fan. Even if you're not a fan, give it a shot. You never know what you might find...

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Now as an aside - I did notice at least one review on Goodreads where the reviewer had received an e-mail from Tachyon Publications claiming that Connor Cochran, Beagle's manager, actually co-wrote many of Beagle's books and short stories, and requesting that he be credited in all reviews going forward (and previous reviews be edited as well).  Included on that list was In Calabria, which I have read.  I don't remember most of the titles from The Overneath, but there may have been one or two in there that Cochran claims he helped to write.  I have also read just about everything I could find on the internet about the dueling lawsuits between Cochran and Beagle, and frankly, what I've read has broken my heart.  Until a decision is made by an actual judge on whether Cochran is committing elder abuse, or Beagle is not the sole "author" of these works, I will not edit any reviews, nor will I acknowledge Cochran's contribution.

Review: The Emerald Circus by Jane Yolen

The Emerald Circus by Jane Yolen
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

[Disclaimer: I was provided a free e-copy of this book from NetGalley for review purposes.]

Jane Yolen has been a longtime favorite of mine. I guess you could say, a lifelong favorite of mine. I started reading her in middle school, I think (at least, that's the point at which I became aware of the authors of the books I enjoyed). Her Sister Light, Sister Dark trilogy, and the Jackaroo books are probably the ones I enjoyed the most. But in all my years of being a Yolenite, I've never actually read any of her short stories or poetry.

Jane Yolen has published over 300 books. And I have yet to find one that I don't enjoy. This collection of short stories, mostly published elsewhere before, were almost entirely "twists" on the traditional. The opening story about Hans Christian Andersen started the book off with a punch to the gut. I loved almost every story that followed. The one with the take on Red Riding Hood wasn't very interesting to me, and I wasn't sure exactly what to think of the one with all the frogs and witches (although I did enjoy it). I think my favorite of the bunch was the story about the island of women, where Guinevere gets her start. The story about the monk's confession did not immediately strike me as being about Merlin's birth because I'm not wholly versed in his mythology, but once that was explained (in the notes at the end - make sure you read those!), I liked it a whole heck of a lot more.

This was a quick read, as I find most short story collections to be. It is definitely one worth reading. I loved it! It's a little funny that this is being released this year, as I just re-read Sister Light, Sister Dark a few months ago. Up until then I hadn't read a Yolen book in years. It was sitting on the shelf in my bedroom staring at me, and so I picked it up and loved it all over again. Seeing this on the NetGalley roster brought back a flood of emotions. I was excited to read The Emerald Circus, and was not disappointed in the least.

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Review: Thunderstruck

Thunderstruck & Other Stories by Elizabeth McCracken
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

[Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book in the Goodreads First Reads giveaways.]

The back and inside jacket of this book has adjectives like "magnificent" and "exquisite" and "marvelously quirky," but I didn't really see much of that in the actual stories. I wasn't, I suppose you could say, impressed with the stories themselves, and the writing style was generic in that I felt I had read several other authors who write the same way. Nothing really stuck out to me as being "magnificent" or "marvelously quirky," just a bit plain.

I managed to make it through to the end, feeling a bit more satisfied with the title story than with the rest of them, although I enjoyed "Peter Elroy: A Documentary by Ian Casey" and "The Lost and Found Department of Greater Boston" almost as much. It felt a bit like trudging through mud to get there, though, which is unfortunate because I did have high hopes for this collection. Maybe that's what did me in.

So rather unfortunately, this book is just "okay" for me, and therefore gets 2 stars. Obviously others enjoyed it more than I did, but it was not my cup of tea.

(Also, as an aside, every time I look at the cover of this book I start to hear this in my head.)

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