Permeable Borders

Permeable Borders (2012) Nina Kiriki Hoffman

I love reading Nina Kiriki Hoffman. I love both her long and short stories, though the fact she writes so many short stories makes me love her a teeny bit more.

Thus, I was delighted to find this collection of her short stories.

I’d read several of these stories in other anthologies, but even those I enjoyed re-reading.

Several stories revisit the same characters, others stand by themselves, following the theme of the anthology in which they were originally published, yet fitting well into this anthology.

In the later category is the story, “How I Came to Marry a Herpetologist” which, like several other stories, turns the usual fairy tale on upside down. It takes the story “The Fairies” by Charles Perrault and looks at what happened to other girl, after the story ended.

The story “Switched” was another twist on an old fairy tale–initially I stopped reading the story, fearing the turn it was taking, but it ended up being one I quite enjoyed.

The stories in the section “Finding Each Other” focus on two characters: Matt and Edmund. Each tale can be read by itself, but together, the follow the progression of the characters.

The section “Finding Home” may have been my favorite. I very much liked both “Key Signatures” and “The Weight of Wishes.”

One odd thing happened while I was reading these stories–several times I had to stop and remember who I was reading, because some of these stories felt very much like they could be Charles de Lint stories–which as far as I am concerned is a huge compliment, since he is one of my favorite writers.

If you have not read Nina Kiriki Hoffman, this would be a good place to be introduced to her writing.
Rating: 8.5/10

Published by Fairwood Press

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