Status
Available
Call number
Genres
Publication
Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company (1980), Paperback, 171 pages
Description
George MacDonald (1824-1905), the great nineteenth-century innovator of modern fantasy, influenced not only C. S. Lewis but also such literary masters as Charles Williams and J. R. R. Tolkien. Though his longer fairy tales Lilith and Phantastes are particularly famous, much of MacDonald?s best fantasy writing is found in his shorter stories. In this volume editor Glenn Sadler has compiled some of MacDonald?s finest short works?marvelous fairy tales and stories certain to delight readers familiar with MacDonald and those about to meet him for the first time.
User reviews
LibraryThing member StephenBarkley
This is the third of four volumes Eerdmans put together in 1980 to collect all the short fantasy works of George MacDonald. I have been pleasantly surprised to discover that MacDonald, whose Victorian novels span six to eight hundred pages, is able to develop a compelling story in such a short
This volume contains five stories:
- "The Light Princess" (1864 from Adela Cathcart)
- "The Giant's Heart" (1863 from Illustrated London News)
- "The Carasoyn" (1866, 1871 from Argosy, then expanded in Works)
- "Port in a Storm" (1866 from Argosy)
- "Papa's Story" (1865 from Illustrated London News)
The collection is very strong. The title story manages to use quite a bit of humour to tell what turns out to be an intense story. "The Giant's Heart" is a children's story about two kids who stumble into giant country, but you don't have to be a child to enjoy it. In it, MacDonald makes some brilliant sarcastic jabs against Sunday Morning legalism. "The Carasoyn" is another of MacDonald's fairy stories that use traditional motifs to spin a compelling tale.
The last two stories are not fantasy stories at all. "Port in a Storm" is the story of how a husband and wife got together. (Who knew you could buy a wife with a case of Port?) This is probably the weakest story of the lot. The final story is deeply moving, especially if you've spent any time reflecting on the parable of the Prodigal Son.
Like the first two collections I've read in this series, MacDonald's stories are always worth the time to track down and read.
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number of words.This volume contains five stories:
- "The Light Princess" (1864 from Adela Cathcart)
- "The Giant's Heart" (1863 from Illustrated London News)
- "The Carasoyn" (1866, 1871 from Argosy, then expanded in Works)
- "Port in a Storm" (1866 from Argosy)
- "Papa's Story" (1865 from Illustrated London News)
The collection is very strong. The title story manages to use quite a bit of humour to tell what turns out to be an intense story. "The Giant's Heart" is a children's story about two kids who stumble into giant country, but you don't have to be a child to enjoy it. In it, MacDonald makes some brilliant sarcastic jabs against Sunday Morning legalism. "The Carasoyn" is another of MacDonald's fairy stories that use traditional motifs to spin a compelling tale.
The last two stories are not fantasy stories at all. "Port in a Storm" is the story of how a husband and wife got together. (Who knew you could buy a wife with a case of Port?) This is probably the weakest story of the lot. The final story is deeply moving, especially if you've spent any time reflecting on the parable of the Prodigal Son.
Like the first two collections I've read in this series, MacDonald's stories are always worth the time to track down and read.
Show Less
Subjects
Original publication date
1867
Physical description
184 p.; 8.7 inches
ISBN
0802818617 / 9780802818614
Local notes
Seven beguiling tales — including the title story of a bewitched princess, cursed by a lightness of body and spirit.
In George Macdonald boxed set.
In George Macdonald boxed set.