Giant Bones (Paperback)

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Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Beagle is the class act of fantasy writing, the only contemporary to remind one of Tolkien and, in his darker moments, Dinesen. The title story here concerns a modest man who sets off on a perilous journey across high mountains and is rescued from fearsome rock-targs by a race of gentle giants. He lives among them, novel as Gulliver, for 18 years, learning of their curious funeral rite: eating their dead. In the long romance "The Last Song of Sirit Byar," a traveling bard works magic with his songs, saving his last and greatest song to bring an old love back from madness, dying as he sings it. In "The Magician of Karakosk," a country-bumpkin wizard foils an evil queen by leaving out just one step in the incantation he teaches her, so that she turns herself into nothing more than wind. One of these six stories, "Lal and Soukyan," uses characters from The Innkeeper's Song (1993), and all are set in its milieu. Gentle yet biting, far-fetched and altogether common, Beagle's fairy tales invoke comparison with those associated with yet another great name, the Brothers Grimm. John Mort

From Kirkus Reviews

Beagle writes in his foreword that he doesn't do sequels; nevertheless, the world he created in The Innkeeper's Song (1993) continues to tickle his storytelling instincts: hence, the setting for this collection of six substantial tales, though only one, ``Lal and Soukyan,'' features characters from the novel. Elsewhere, the legendary bard and musician Sirit Byar sings his last song to the gods; the evil Queen of Fors na'Shachim compels Lanak of Karakosk to teach her magic; the Jiril of Derridow's troupe of actors takes to the road; Choushi-Wai relates the tale of Tai-Sharm and the Singing Fish; and the title piece reveals how Grandfather Selsim's descendants became giants. A treat for browsers and Beagle aficionados alike. -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Roc Trade (August 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451456513
• ISBN-13: 978-0451456519
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #236,843 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Six Unique Voices - Six Lovely Stories, January 9, 2001

By	Emily Snyder (Massachusetts) - See all my reviews

Set in the world of his previous book, "The Innkeeper's Song," Beagle presents six stand-alone fairy tales in this charming collection. All but one from first person perspective (Lal and Soukyan's last hurrah), Beagle continues to weave strange twists on old forms: the girl who would rather marry a thief, the powerful magician who had no love for power, two old mercenary partners who find a need for reconciliation, and - my favourite - the actors who are privy to a most unusual theatrical performance! As delightful and lyrical as these tales are, however, Beagle's world is bleak, leaving all his characters to live in a catch-as-catch can world. Beagle also feels no need to shrink from or tidy-up the language of his characters, as the first story eminently proves. While this excellent ear for the "voices" of the five story-tellers in this wonderful collection is more than appropriate but necessary to each story, young children who loved "The Last Unicorn" would be advised to wait a few years before delving into this enjoyable anthology.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Like an evening of the very best storytelling..., March 27, 2000

By A Customer

Since all the stories in "Giant Bones" are either framed by some kind of first-person narrative or directly recounted by a participant-with the exception of "Lal and Soukyan," thus giving that story a particular distinction-reading the book is like nothing so much as spending an evening with a rich and peculiar cast of characters. The narrators are as varied as the tales they tell: an old woman paying a scribe to set down the truth, an old man in an inn telling stories with his friends, a traveling player commiserating with a fellow actor, the professional storyteller Choushi-wai regaling an audience with her favorite tale, and an impatient father recounting the family legend to his son. Each story has its own particular scope, from a disaster of a theatrical production to the clash of a power-hungry queen and a back-country magician, told in vivid, sympathetic prose to which is added the particular pungency of each narrator. Nor does the third-person style of "Lal and Soukyan" do anything to diminish its power. It's not exactly a sequel to "The Innkeeper's Song," as it answers almost none of the questions that the book's ending leaves for the readers to ponder, but it is a welcome reappearance for two beloved characters. By its very ending it seems to preclude any further "sequels" but regardless of its place in any kind of story cycle it's a very good short story and stands quite well on its own. More, it and the other the other five stories flesh out the world which was sketched so vividly, if not explored in depth, in "The Innkeeper's Song." Either as a sequel-of-sorts or as a stand-alone collection, "Giant Bones" is very good. And what more do you want out a book, anyway?

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very special work, August 25, 1997

By A Customer

Anyone whoever read THE INNKEEPER'S SONG by Peter S. Beagle will be delighted to hear about this new anthology of stories. With six new stories from the same fantasy world, each one unique and entertaining, Beagle practically reinvents modern fantasy. The tales are about bards, magicians, and aged mercenaries Lal and Soukyan, first seen in the THE INNKEEPER'S SONG.

GIANT BONES is a must for any any Peter S. Beagle fan. Even if you've never read his work before, this will be $12 well spent.

Casey Thomaston