Waifs and Strays (Turtleback)

~ (Author) "IN THE HEART OF THE HOUSE LAY A GARDEN..." (more)
Key Phrases: brass egg, revel night, old squat, Farrel Din, Aunt Hilary, Horn Dance (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Urban teens take center stage in a pair of edgy short story collections. Waifs and Strays presents 15 previously published works by Canadian fantasy writer Charles de Lint, including "May This Be Your Last Sorrow" from The Essential Bordertown and "There's No Such Thing," which appeared in Yolen and Greenburg's anthology Vampires. In its first appearance, "Sisters," tells of precocious 16-year-old Appoline, a vampire ("Yeah, I drink blood. But it's not as gross as it sounds. And it's not as messy as it is in some of the movies") who plans to wait until her sister, Cassandra, turns 16 before turning her into one, too. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From School Library Journal

Grade 8 Up-Mythic fiction is at its best in this anthology of stories of memorable heroines, rooted not in a secondary world but in an urban environment. The author introduces each selection, providing insight and interesting biographical information. The subject of two stories is a 16-year-old vampire named Apples who receives "the Gift" from a stranger during a Bryan Adams concert. She hopes to "turn" her sister Cassie when she is older, if she agrees, so they can live together forever. Poking fun at the television version of a teenage vampire, the heroine offers a more pragmatic view of her lot in life as she avenges evil doings in her neighborhood. In the section "Bordertown," where magic and reality coexist, an elf named Manda saves the life of a Harley-riding black man who is the neighborhood peacekeeper in a city rife with prejudice and violence. Elements of Robin Hood, Merlin, Native American mythology, and Celtic music weave through each story. Some of the heroines are humans who briefly tiptoe into a magical realm or are skeptical about its existence. De Lint's characters are often lonely and intelligent misfits whose self-discovery triumphs over plot. Described as "urban fantasy," these stories represent a hybrid genre for readers who only want one arm through the door into another world.
Vicki Reutter, Cazenovia High School, NY
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Turtleback: 391 pages
• Publisher: Turtleback Books Distributed by Demco Media (August 30, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0606308083
• ISBN-13: 978-0606308083
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #6,532,247 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another great collection from de Lint, November 5, 2002

By	Craig Clarke (New England) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Waifs and Strays (Hardcover)

During my time working for Green Man Review, one name has constantly been tossed about as the guy to read--Charles de Lint. Apparently, when it came to fantasy, this was the guy to top. I don't generally like fantasy (I don't think Terry Pratchett counts), so I avoided him, especially since I noticed his novels are generally in the 500+ page arena--not the size for experimentation.

Then I saw this collection at the library. Short stories, I thought, a perfect chance to try this guy out. Plus, the title is the same as an O. Henry collection, and with that kind of pedigree, I couldn't resist.

The title comes not only from the penultimate story but also from the theme of the main characters being teens or children. My favorite is one written expressly for the collection, "Sisters," a sequel of sorts to "There's No Such Thing" (originally published in Vampires). It's about two sisters, Apples and Cassie; Apples is a vampire and she has to decide whether or not to "turn" Cassie (i.e., to lose her, or to make her to be like herself).

On the other hand, my least favorite was the centerpiece, a Bordertown piece called "Stick" (from Borderland) about a half-elf girl and her troubles with the Bloods (pure elfs)--fifty pages long and dead boring. In general, I didn't like the longer pieces but really enjoyed "Somewhere in My Mind There is a Painting Box" (from The Green Man), the closer.

But altogether, this is a fine collection spanning several years of de Lint's writing. It is also fascinating to watch his style and ability grow over the years. Recommended for fans of de Lint or other "mythic fiction," as it has come to be known.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Almost perfect..., August 7, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Waifs and Strays (Hardcover)

As a fan of Charles De Lint's other novels and short story collections (the ones meant for adults), I was very excited to get a hold of this one. As usual, his stories are wonderfully written and the book was several hours worth of bliss.

I have just one complaint. Two of the stories were Newford stories. Not a problem, I love Newford. But both of these stories are in other Newford story collections (ie, which I already owned.) This bugged me. I have no problem with the stories themselves, but I did feel a bit gypped, especially as these are two of the longer stories, and brought the book from 300ish pages to 400ish pages. The repetition is what earned it 4 stars, not 5.

Still a good read, but you should know what you're buying. I suppose if I'd bothered to look at the table of contents, I would have known, but some days I'm smarter than others.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A remarkably superb collection of short stories. , June 3, 2006

By	Sadi (Ceres, Milky Way) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Waifs and Strays (Paperback)

Wonderfully enjoyable entertainment, and extremely well-written, this book's short stories delve into a world each of their own. Magic, deception, and good versus evil all collide to form a well blended book of short stories. Each story has its own individuality and strength, with its own set of unique characters.
Two sample stories:
---- The first story is called Merlin Dreams in the Mondream Wood. It is about a girl who, when she has terrible nightmares, goes into her uncle's garden (whom she lives with) and upon dropping off to sleep on the garden's bench under a large tree, encounters a tree boy. He makes the dreams go away. Soon after the dreams ended, she stopped going to the garden at night. And so, years later when she is looking out of her bedroom window, sees the tree, and decides that night to go and search for the tree boy. A story of trust of memories.
---- The second story is about two sisters. Appoline and Cassandra. This story is written in chapters, alternating with each sisters point of view. Appoline is tweleve, and has a congentital birth defect. One leg is shorter then the other. She doesn't care so much about that, she really wants to find out what her sister is hiding from her.
Her sister, Cassandra is sixteen or seventeen, and has...a secret. She is a vampire. And plans to turn her sister, whom she has watched suffer too long, on HER sixteenth birthday.
Also a story of trust and magic.

Great book. Hope this review helped you learn more about the book.
Enjoy!