Customer Reviews

Wizards: Magical Tales From the Masters of Modern Fantasy

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Since this is a collection of short stories, it's very hard to rate the book as a whole. There are about 19 or so short stories included in this book that deal loosely with Wizards. I say loosely, since some of these really don't strike me as dealing with what most people would think is a wizard. The first story - "The Witch's Headstone" certainly doesn't fit into my idea of what a wizard is.

And since it's a collection of stories, some are good and some are not. My personal favorites are "Stonefather", "The Magic Animal", "Color Vision", and "Stone Man". I didn't think much of "The Witch's Headstone", "The Rudy Incomparable", "A Diorama of the Infernal Regions, or the Devil's Ninth Question", or "The Magikkers".

Since the stories covered the gamut from rather boring to really pretty good I just have to give the book and overall 3 stars. I'm sure that if you enjoy fantasy, some of these stories will appeal, some will not.

My star ratings:

One star - couldn't finish the book.

Two stars - read the book, but did a lot of skipping or scanning. Wouldn't add the book to my permanent collection or search out other books by the author.

Three stars - enjoyable read. Wouldn't add the book to my permanent collection. Would judge other books by the author individually.

Four stars - Liked the book. Would keep the book or would look for others by the same author.

Five stars - One of my all time favorites. Will get a copy in hardback to keep and will actively search out others by the same author.

After finishing the first story, the well-told "The Witch's Headstone" by Neil Gaiman, I had a strong feeling I would like this collection. Then, the second story, "Holly and Iron" (Garth Nix), which skillfully mixes British history with fantasy, confirmed my feeling. According to the editors (Jack Dann and Gardner Dozois), they "asked some of the very best modern fantasists ... to write stories about that most potent of fantasy archetypes, The Wizard." Eighteen talented authors complied with eighteen unique and creative interpretations of the word. How awesome. That said, two (only two) stories didn't thrill me. One had great fantasy elements but a slim story, and I couldn't get past the first few pages of the other. However, that still left me with sixteen stories I savored. For me, one of the good points of this collection was it brought to mind authors I've known and loved (Jane Yolen and Patricia A. McKillip) while introducing me to authors I'll now seek out. My favorite tales were "Color Vision" (Mary Rosenblum), "Winter's Wife" (Elizabeth Hand), "Stone Man" (Nancy Kress), "Zinder" (Tanith Lee), "The Magikkers" (Terry Dowling), and "Stonefather" (Orson Scott Card). Other readers will come up with their own most and least favorites. Overall, I found this book well worth its price and the time spent reading it. If you like reading fantasy, I highly recommend these "Magical Tales From the Masters of Modern Fantasy."

Reviewed by Jeannine R. Burkholder
on 07/13/2008

Fantasy stories ignite the imagination in ways that realistic fiction can not. Characters are larger than life. Conflicts mean life and death - often for an entire race or culture.

In this collection, editors Dann and Dozois, have collected unpublished short stories from a variety of well-known fantasy authors. Each story is about a wizard, but rarely do they appear in the pointed hat and starry cape (like the one on the cover of the book):

* Orson Scott Card introduces us to the mages of the elements, who draw their power and their forms from nature.
* Mary Rosenblum creates a magical world of colorful auras and a mysterious villain, threatened with oblivion by the real mask they wear.
* Terry Dowling takes us to a special school, where students make choices that affect not only their own magical power and abilities, but those around them as well.
* Journey through Hell and talk to the devil with stories from Andy Duncan and from Terry Bisson.

There is no way to give proper accolades to every story and author represented in this book. Pick up the book and choose one of the excellently crafted stories to embark on a magical mini-vacation today! There are 18 destinations to choose from; a little something to suit every fantasy reader.

You may think you know wizards. You may think you know magic. But the wizards in these stories just might have a few surprising tricks up their sleeves.

"The Witch's Headstone" contains a dead sorceress who's more kind than creepy, despite the warnings to the contrary. "Holly and Iron" centers around an ancient magical battle where one unprepared woman could unite or destroy two races. In "The Ruby Incomparable" the only daughter of Good and Evil has mastered most of the secrets of the universe, but she can't understand her own mother. In "Winter's Wife" money is no match for the power of magic. The list goes on, and each story will make you rethink what you thought you knew. Or maybe confirm it.

Some of the authors you'll recognize. Some may be completely new. All of them have found a fan in me.

I'll be the first to admit I usually dislike collections of short stories. I feel like I'm being cheated if they're good, and fooled if they're not. Another thing I had to rethink after reading this book. I fell back in love with the authors that I knew, learned more about ones that I'd only heard of, and discovered brand new obsessions. This is a must for fantasy fans, and a great introduction for newcomers.

Reviewed by: Carrie Spellman

"Wizards" is an outstanding collection of fantasy stories featuring some of the best known authors working in the genre. Some of the authors (Card, Kress, Gaiman), I was pretty familiar with. Some I knew only by reputation and a few were completely new to me. I found these stories were a great way to get at least a small feel for an author's style, although obviously it would be folly to judge an author on the basis of one story.
This collection is a nice mix of contemporary stories and more traditional fantasy. They range from the fairytale-like "Zinder" by Tanith Lee to the ultra-modern "Stone Man" by Nancy Kress. I personally enjoyed almost every story in "Wizards." I believe any reader of fantasy fiction would find several stories to appreciate.

What can I say, I love stories about wizards. When I play D&D, I play a wizard. So, when I saw this book, I jumped at it. Perhaps my favorite book is my library is Wizards (Isaac Asimov's Magical World of Fantasy, Book 1), a series of short stories about wizards and I hoped that this book would be on a par with that one.

Sadly, I must say that I was disappointed. Don't get me wrong, many of these short stories are quite interesting and entertaining. Naming Day by Patricia A. McKillip was an entertaining young adult story, as was Sliding Sideways Through Eternity by Jane Yolen. And Winter's Wife by Elizabeth Hand was somewhat scary. For the most part, though, the stories were pretty light-weight, and rather forgettable. The only real gem in the book is Stonefather by Orson Scott Card - a story of a young man who is surprised to find that he has great powers and great responsibilities.

So, overall I found it to be an OK book, but not much more than that. I give this book a very guarded recommendation.

A great short story is a gem, a perfectly shaped, intriguing work of art, crafted by a master. You may think writing a full length book is harder, but the short story form is the rock that's sunk many a lesser author's creative ship. And then, there's this collection. Each story is written by a master at his peak; Neil Gaiman, Kage Baker, Jane Yolen, etcetera. I couldn't tell you each one is better than the last, as it would imply somehow there was a lesser tale in the bunch. Instead, I'll say that this is a lovely necklace of wonderful tales about wizards written by people who are wizards in their own right. Prepare yourself to be amused, charmed, delighted and transported.

Many stories in this book were insultingly sexist. There are a couple of great stories, notably Kage Baker's, but there are many mediocre ones and many that simply cannot imagine women as anything but staging for men's lives. Gene Wolfe's story is notable for its ineptitude in this vein. The anthology would have benefited from better editing and a wider understanding of "wizard" than "white male main character."

I am only halfway through the book but I already love every stories so far. I loan it from the library but will have to buy one now for my "reference" Sci-Fi/Fantasy shelf. Absolutely the best I've read, are there more like these colletions out there? If you know please let me know!!!

Gandalf the Grey fans will want to read this nineteenth story fantasy collection that star wizards in fresh tales not printed before. The authors are a who's who of the genre with no pretenders and none providing a clinker though the better tales seem to involve coming of age. Especially enthralling is Neil Gaiman's "The Witch's Headstone" starring Bod, a lad being raised by a dead witch amongst other deceased adult supervision. Even the biblical prophet Elijah shows up as a wizard in Jane Yolen's contribution. Notables like Garth Nix, Mary Rosenblum, Kage Baker, Eoin Coffer, Tad Williams, Patricia McKillip, Elizabeth Hand, Andy Duncan, Peter Beagle, Nancy Kress, Jeffrey Ford, Tanith Lee, Terry Bisson, Terry Dowling, Gene Wolf and Orson Scott Card contribute tales that will prove to the targeted young adult audience that a wizard by any other name is still a wizard.

Harriet Klausner