- The Good: Fairies and magic through an academic lens
- The Bad: n/a, loved it!
- The Literary: Diverse set of styles showcased throughout
Set in the 19th century England of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, this collection of ten short stories focuses on magic and fairies.
There’s something about how Clarke manages to combine historical literature and specificity in setting, from embroidery to diction, that lends gravity to stories that are ultimately about mischievous fairies. The collection opens with an introduction by a professor and Director on Sidhe Studies at the University of Aberdeen, who seriously discourses on the development of magic in the British isles and the impact of Faerie on our own world. A few stories are littered with footnotes which in themselves provide historical and academic context. In this way of viewing magic through Victorian order and logic and study, this book feels like an extension of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, in all the right ways.
Unlike JS&MN, many of the stories focus on the magic and power of women, leading to comparisons to Jane Austen. I agree that the writing style can be witty and satirical, particularly about the expected roles of women. “The governess was not much liked in the village. She was too tall, too fond of books, too grave, and, a curious thing, never smiled unless there was something to smile at.” But there are also parallels drawn between hysteria and intuition, always laced with the macabre.
Stories include such famous characters, fictional or otherwise, as Jonathan Strange, Rumpelstiltskin, The Duke of Wellington, Queen Maab, Mary Queen of Scots, and John Uskglass, and are set in places, fictional and otherwise, including Gloucestershire and the village of Wall from Neil Gaiman’s novel Stardust. I also particularly enjoy the stories that are episolary in nature, from unreliable narrators to archaic dialectal spellings.
Don’t miss the illustrations by Charles Vess, blank and white line drawings reminiscent of Arthur Rackham. Vess’s work can also be seen in works by Neil Gaiman and Ursula K. LeGuin. Recommended for anyone who love alternative history and sophisticated fairy tales!