Modern Classics of Fantasy [Paperback]

Gardner R. Dozois (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 15, 1997

This wonderful collection celebrates fantasy's heydey with 33 masterpieces of short fiction, ranging from 1940s stories by L. Sprague de Camp, H. L. Gold, Fritz Leiber, and Manly Wade Wellman to more recent tales by such towering modern talents as Peter S. Beagle, Terry Bisson, James P. Blaylock, Suzy McKee Charnas, John Crowley, Tanith Lee, Ursula K. Le Guin, Lucius Shepard, Michael Swanwick, JaneYolen, and Roger Zelazny.<P>Just as Gardner Dozois's anthology Modern Classics of Science Fiction (SMP, 1992) has helped new generations of readers and old fans discover the genre's finest short stories, so too shall this volume allow readers to find in one volume more than two dozen masterworks of fantasy.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

This is the kind of assortment that can hook a reader on short fantasy. Thirty-two good stories--some previously anthologized, some hot off the press ("Beauty and the Opera" by Suzy McKee Charnas appeared in July 1996), and a few once considered classic, but now nearly forgotten (Thomas Burnett Swann is rapidly falling out of sight)--offer entertainment for every taste. Many of the stories ("The Overworld" by Jack Vance, and "The Changeling" by Michael Swanwick) also offer continuation elsewhere as part of a longer work.

Gardner Dozois's emphasis is on magazine fiction. As such, it's an interesting view of the evolution and increasing sophistication of the "pulps"--and their readers. For this reason this would be an excellent text for a course on modern fantasy writing. Stories from Asimov Science Fiction Magazine, which Dozois edits, are prominent among the recent pieces. Providing a brief history of 20th-century fantasy, the introduction seems written with the new reader in mind. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

Looking back on 50 years of American fantasy writing, veteran SF editor Dozois has chosen to collect 32 splendid short stories according to one irrefutable criterion: "I liked them." In his retrospective preface, Dozois adds that he has selected only stories leading toward modern fantasy, which he feels differs from SF only in its attitude, its "emotional weather." Opening with H.L. Gold's 1939 "Trouble with Water," a quirky rendition of the Midas myth, and passing through two of Fritz Lieber's best 1950s precursors to the sub-subgenre of sword and sorcery, Dozois's choices soon exhibit his fascination with sensually charged, emotionally elegiac subcreations and with humanity facing doom unbowed. Keith Roberts's 1966 "The Signaller" delineates a church militant gone mad with power, and Poul Anderson's brilliant 1977 "Tale of Hauk" brings icy Norse sagas with volcanoes at their hearts to burning life again. Sadly, women fantasists receive scant attention from Dozois, although he does include Ursula le Guin's crystalline grief over environmental depredation in "Buffalo Gals. Won't You Come Out Tonight?" (1987), Jane Yolen's superb hymn to the huntress Diana, "The Sleep of Trees" (1980), and Judith Tarr's moving medieval otherworld of "Death and the Lady" (1992). With the best stories here, especially John Crowley's haunting 1990 "Missolonghi 1824," Dozois spreads out a tapestry of dreams, a banquet of "pain dipped in honey." (Jan.) FYI: Dozois has won seven Hugo Awards for Best Editor.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 672 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press (October 15, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312169310
• ISBN-13: 978-0312169312
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #906,797 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Pick and Choose, October 25, 1998

By 

A. Ross (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Modern Classics of Fantasy (Paperback)

This rather large book kicks off with a relatively brief essay which gives a simple history of the fantasy genre and places in context with other genres without attempting to nail down a hard and fast defintion of what a fantasy story is. Most of the stories in the anthology didn't do much for me, which I more or less expected. Those I considered time well spent were: "Two Sadnesses" by George Effinger, "The Signaller" by Keith Roberts, "The Tale of Hauk" by Poul Anderson, "Into Gold" by Tanith Lee, "Flowers of Edo" by Bruce Sterling, and "The Man Who Painted the Dragon Griaule" by Lucius Shepard. This doesn't include the Fritz Leiber stories, which I've read before, and are--of course--outstanding.

3 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting to say the least, June 19, 2000

By 

Angel of Doom - See all my reviews

This review is from: Modern Classics of Fantasy (Paperback)

In the begining I got this book only to read "Beauty and the Opera" by Suzy Charnas. Now, this was an um, interesting look at what might have happened if Erik had made Christine go through with the marrige she had promised him. Now, to do this Christine did not seem to stay in character, which I suppose was fine. She was not the meek little mouse that she usually is. And to live with Erik I suppose one would have to grow up. There is a lot of mention of Erik's face and what Christine really thought it. Also in this version Erik and Christine are well.. I suppose one can say, closer then they ever were. A good read for the very avid "phreak". Just another perspective of Erik and Christine.

3 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars The darker side of human nature, August 11, 2001

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"lady_of_clouds" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Modern Classics of Fantasy (Paperback)

If your a fan of the musical 'The Phantom of the Opera' and wish to read a book about a cynical and fiercly passionate Erik with an equally determined Christine by his side this is for you. In this new version of the tragic love story Christine agrees to stay with Erik for five years and wins with the kiss she exchanges with Erik the power to govern the violent side to his nature. Unfortunately the only thing that tends to let this book down is 'Erik's image'. With Christine narrating it is very difficult to find out what Erik is feeling inside. Christine is more determined what is good for her character but slightly demanding and bossy. Erik is also prone to cruelty and temper fits. The first few pages of the book are very good but it starts to fumble towards the end. Fans of Erik will not be pleased by the way he is described ie. his face and eating habits, although on a brighter side some of his comments are incredibly funny and will make you laugh. In this book it appears that Christine doesn't really love Erik more likely that she is doing him a good turn in exchange for Raoul's life. If you want read about Erik's darker and more crudely passionate side, it is well worth the read!