Summerland by Michael Chabon

Summerland
Michael Chabon
2002, HarperCollins, London
000712712X
500p.

American fairytale of Ethan Feld, an 11-year-old baseball player, who is recruited by a group of mythical creatures to complete a quest to save the multiverse.  He meets werefolk, giants, faeries, sasquatch, and goblins along the way.

This is an enjoyable fantasy for young people and adults.  It has a few dark themes, but is still appropriate for children.  It feels like the author has added every mythical creature he could think of!  There are a lot of baseball references in the book, which I didn't understand; it does not distract from the story.  As well as being a work of fantasy, there are sci-fi elements to the story, such as multiple universes, physics, and a rather cute Saab-Zeppelin.

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Garden of the Purple Dragon by Carole Wilkinson

Garden of the Purple Dragon

Carole Wilkinson

2005, Black Dog Books, Fitzroy

187632656

350p.

This is the second book in the series. Ping is a young imperial dragon keeper who has charge of a baby dragon named Kai. They fight off evil and have adventures.

Aside from a couple of continuity errors, this was excellent! The characters are so well written and the scenery evocative. It was a little slow to start (recapping what had happened in the first book), however, once it got going, I found it hard to put down.

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Ironside by Holly Black

Ironside
Holly Black
2007, Simon and Schuster, London
9781847380630
323p.

Third in the Modern Faerie Tale series. This brings characters from the first two together into one story. Kaye is sent on a quest in order to become Roiben's consort, an impossible quest to find a faerie who can tell a lie.

I enjoyed this more than the last book - the characters are a lot more mature. And the story is interesting. I like these faeries, the darkness of the story is offset by the humanness and emotionality of the characters.

Mage Heart by Jane Routley

Mage Heart
Jane Routley
1996, Avon Books, New York
0380781271
470p.

Dion is a young female mage in a world where magic is dominated by males. After her foster father dies, she becomes the magical protector of the Duke's favourite mistress.

I spent about a month reading this book, which is a very long time for me to spend on one book and yet I did enjoy it quite a bit. It had a simple writing style (almost for teenagers) and the story was interesting with good solid plot twists. I liked how the character of Dion was so unsure of herself all the time and felt no qualms with talking about her fears and naiveties.

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Valiant by Holly Black

Valiant
Holly Black
2005, Simon & Schuster, New York
0689868227
313p.

Val runs away to New York City where she encounters a group of homeless youths who are in contact with faeries. She gets dragged into a world of drugs and monsters as she fights to free herself from the binds that have tangled her.

This certainly is an angsty book, but it's a good yarn. I liked it better than Tithe. I loved the setting of New York City - it's great to have faeries in the middle of a modern city.

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The Dragon of Mith by Kate Walker

The Dragon of Mith
Kate Walker
1989, Allen and Unwin, Sydney
0049280643
128p.

One morning the residents of the village of Mith discover a great dragon in the middle of their town! Only Krissy, an eleven year old turkey-herder, is brave enough to confront the dragon.

A funny, cute book. I liked how it had little lessons in it that weren't too obvious - like not jumping to conclusions and not letting others rule your life. This edition had quite a few spelling errors which is not too good for a children's book.

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Balyet by Patricia Wrightson

Balyet
Patricia Wrightson
1989, 1990, Red Fox, London
0099660407
102p.

Jo is a fourteen year old girl who goes camping with her neighbour Mrs Willet - an old aboriginal woman. While in the bush, Jo is called by the spirit of a girl who has lived in the mountains for a thousand years.

What a scary story! This kept me up all night. Balyet is an interesting character, and her story really resonated with me. It reminded me of Picnic at Hanging Rock ... the same supernatural beckoning of the bush that takes people.

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The Ghatti's Tale: Finders-Seekers by Gayle Greeno

The Ghatti's Tale: Finders-Seekers
Gayle Greeno
1993, DAW, New York
0886775507
504p.

A colonising expedition from Earth becomes stranded on a planet when their technology goes awry. Their society evolves to incorporate ghatts - mind-melding giant cats native to the planet - who bond with a human mate and together read the truth behind disagreements in court.

I haven't given the plot justice with that description, this truly is a brilliant story.

Finders-seekers is a beautifully written book. The author has a real way with words - a way of drawing a picture with her evocative prose. I was entranced by the story of the ghatti and their bondmates - it was a long book, but so finely honed unlike a lot of other longish fantasy. Every part of this book added to the story as a whole

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Replay by Ken Grimwood

Replay
Ken Grimwood
1987, 1992, Ace, New York
0441715923
313p.

Jeff Winston dies of a heart attack in October 1988, then awakens again in his old college dorm room, as his younger self. He goes on to 'replay' his life again and again.

This book made me smile. The prose is really beautiful and it's so full of hope. I loved being drawn into the story, and also to consider what I would do given these circumstances.

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The Farseekers by Isobelle Carmody

The Farseekers
Isobelle Carmody
1990, Starscape, New York
0765342715
316p.

This is book two of The Obernewtyn Chronicles set in a post-Apocalyptic world where some humans have developed new mental powers. Elspeth is a farseeker - she has the ability to look into the minds of others. When her home is threatened, she begins a quest to find an old library, and a new powerful ally.

The first chapters of the book are a bit of recount of what has happened in the first book - which was good for me seeing as I hadn't read the first book, but chapters like that can be a little boring. I enjoyed the story, although I felt it was let down by a lack of focus. Most quest stories have one really strong quest, which isn't resolved until then end, but this one had a series of connected quests and they gave the novel a stop-start feel. The premise of the story was interesting, but hardly unique; the well-developed characters are what really drove the story.

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Jog Rummage by Grahame Wright

Jog Rummage
Grahame Wright
1974, Pan Books, London
0330251821
205p.

This is a fantasy story about the Jogs and the Rats - sworn enemies until a common threat unites them. Jog Rummage is the brave Jog with the vision and courage to face this new foe.

I absolutely adored this book. The prose is so beautiful, though a little vague at the start. But as the reader continues through the story, it becomes clear that the vagueness is a device designed to keep us from knowing what it truly going on until the author wants us to know. It is superbly crafted.

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Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman

Neverwhere
Neil Gaiman
1996, 2003, Perennial, New York
0060557818
370p.

Richard Mayhew has a normal life in London until he stops to help a young girl bleeding on the streets. She is Door, an opener from London Underground, a fantastical and terrifying place hidden beneath our own world.

This is a very well written fantasy novel. It is set in a place not too far removed from reality which is a clever devise not seen much in the fantasy genre. The characters are all memorable, I especially like Mr. Vandermar and Mr. Croup (reminded me of Mr. Kit and Mr. Wind from James Bond). The prose is image-laden, and the action horrific. It had a tendency to be a bit uneven, but that did not detract too much.

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Tithe by Holly Black

Tithe
Holly Black
2002, Simon & Schuster, London
0689860420
310p.

Kaye is a sixteen year old travelling around with her singer mother until they go to live with her grandmother. There she rediscovers her childhood faerie friends and gets drawn into their world.

I am not too familiar with the faerie tale genre, but enjoy teen fiction, and I felt that the two genres clash, they don't mesh in this story. Perhaps people who are into lore would enjoy it more. However, it was a well constructed story and the characters were well presented.

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Midnight for Charlie Bone by Jenny Nimmo

Midnight for Charlie Bone
Jenny Nimmo
2002, Egmont, London
0749748885
345p.

Charlie Bone discovers he can hear people talking in photographs. This special gift means that he is sent to a school for 'endowed' children - children who are descendants of the 'Red King', an ancient magician. There he has to fight to reunite a young girl with her family.

I enjoyed this book - it has a wonderful premise. The characters are well-rounded, although they jump to conclusions too quickly, and the overall pace of the book is a bit fast. Still, that means that there's a lot of neat characters and magical plotlines crammed in.

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Brilliance of the Moon by Lian Hearn

Brilliance of the Moon
Lian Hearn
2004, Riverhead Books, New York.
1594480869
344p.

The third 'Tale of the Otori'. Takeo, a young warrior with special powers, and his wife Kaede fight to retain the land which rightfully belongs to Kaede in this the third novel of the series. The first two books are Across the Nightingale Floor and Grass for his Pillow.

I enjoyed the story. The beauty of the country really comes through in these books, and they evoke a real sense of medieval Japan. Again, like in the other books, the reader is not fully drawn into the story as the narrator writes with too much detachment, even though it is supposed to be emotional.

I like that the fantasy side is a minor part of the story, and that it is set in an identifiable period. I think it would make these books more accessible to a wider audience, like those (such as myself) normally put off a bit by the fantasy genre.

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