I am actually a dyed-in-the-wool science fiction literature fan.  But I do dabble in fantasy from time to time.  And McKillip was always on my TBR list but I just never got around to her.  And then this book hit my desk.  It seemed a perfect way to get my feet wet; a curated short story collection.  And it is perfect.

I cannot even list every single story with a summary; some of them just defy that expectation.  There’s a quote on the front of the dustjacket that says: “Reading McKillip is the closest you will come to entering a waking dream.”  I thought a lot about that quote while I was reading and I decided it was very accurate.  Some of them seemed like a snippet of a story while others left me craving more and more.  Some were fanciful and really did seem like a bit of a dream.  Some were more solid.  Some made me wistful and some made me thoughtful.  There was more than one that caused me to question my understanding; maybe what I thought I read wasn’t what she intended.  Twice I reread a passage to see if I could see what she saw.

This sort of fantasy isn’t going to change my basic nature but I’m glad for the opportunity to have met her.  It was some of the most beautiful and gentle fantasies I’ve ever read.

The book has a couple very nice rewards at the end.  McKillip’s Guest-of-Honor speech at the WisCon28 convention in 2004, and her explanation of how she approaches writing high fantasy but with twists.  It is truly a lovely collection and should be on any reader’s shelf who enjoys either McKillip herself or some really fascinating short stories.   ~~  Catherine Book

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