{"id":5928,"date":"2016-06-26T10:52:58","date_gmt":"2016-06-26T14:52:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/?p=5928"},"modified":"2021-05-30T20:29:04","modified_gmt":"2021-05-31T00:29:04","slug":"muse-and-reverie-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/5928","title":{"rendered":"Muse and Reverie"},"content":{"rendered":"

Muse and Reverie<\/a><\/em> (2009) Charles de Lint<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>I love Charles de Lint’s writing. <\/p>\n

Adore it.<\/p>\n

He writes of the magic that is hidden just beyond the perception of most of us, and of the power to heal, and he writes some of the strongest female characters of almost any author I know.<\/p>\n

But don’t make the mistake of thinking these are Disney fairies and magic beings. The magic in Newford is dark and complex, but heals as much as it harms.<\/p>\n

Somewhere in My Mind There Is a Painting Box<\/em> (2002)
\nRefinerytown<\/em> (2001)
\nA Crow Girls\u2019 Christmas<\/em> (2001)
\nDark Eyes, Faith, and Devotion<\/em> (2005)
\nRiding Shotgun<\/em> (2003)
\nSweet Forget-Me-Not<\/em> (2002)
\nThat Was Radio Clash <\/em> (2004)
\nThe Butter Spirit\u2019s Tithe<\/em> (2004)
\nDa Slockit Light<\/em> (2003)
\nThe Hour Before Dawn<\/em> (2005)
\nNewford Spook Squad<\/em> (2004)
\nIn Sight<\/em> (2005)
\nThe World in a Box<\/em> (2004)<\/p>\n

Somewhere in My Mind There Is a Painting Box<\/em> from Green Man: Tales from the Mythic Forest<\/em>. I won’t say this is one of my favorite stories, because I’m not sure how I would even be able to narrow that list down to something that wasn’t almost all of his stories, but I do like this one. Lily lives with her Aunt who took her in when she was orphaned. When the chores of the farm are done, she wanders into the woods, “walking in these woods of hers was a sure cure for any ailment, especially when it was in your heart or head,” drawing and sketching on scraps of paper she salvages (this seems to be set around the time of the Great Depression). <\/p>\n

This story has some marvelous bits, from the importance of being out in the woods to the importance of living in the present.<\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes people need fairies and fancies to wake them up to what they already have. They look so hard for the little face in the thistle, the wrinkled man who lives in a tree. But then they start to focus on the thistle itself, the feathery purples of its bloom, the sharp points of its thorns. They reach out and touch the rough bark of the tree, drink in the green of its leaves, taste of its fruit. And they\u2019re transformed. They\u2019re in their own world, fully and completely, sometimes for the first time since they were a child, and they\u2019re finally appreciating what it has to offer them.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Refinerytown<\/em> is a Mona story that has appearances by Jilly and Sophie. Mona is a comic strip artist who is collaborating on a different kind of strip–a non-autobiographical one. So she thinks. This story amuses me because it is absolutely full of name dropping, from Nina Hoffman to Charles Vess. It’s delightful.<\/p>\n

This story takes place after Jilly’s accident.<\/p>\n

A Crow Girls\u2019 Christmas<\/em>. The Crow Girls are a delight. I’m not sure I could take them long term, but in small doses they are lovely.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo they have lots of candy canes in stock?\u201d Jilly asked. <\/p>\n

\u201cMountains,\u201d Zia assured her. <\/p>\n

\u201cBesides,\u201d Maida added. \u201cIt\u2019s all magic, isn\u2019t it? Santa never runs out of candy or toys.\u201d <\/p>\n

That was before you were put in charge of the candy canes, Jilly thought, but she kept her worry to herself.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Dark Eyes, Faith, and Devotion<\/em> from Magic Tails<\/em> is a darker tale, but it’s also one I quite like. A Gypsy cab driver picks up a young woman who requests his help getting back her cat.<\/p>\n

“Sometimes we don\u2019t fulfill our potential only because there is no one in our life to believe in us.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Riding Shotgun<\/em> from Flights<\/em>. This is another dark story, but it’s also one of redemption and second chances and how those don’t always turn out to be as you expect.<\/p>\n

The old man didn\u2019t get it\u2014 because it was different for his generation, I guess. You figured out what you wanted to be, what you could be given your situation in life, and that\u2019s what you aimed for. He couldn\u2019t understand that not only did I not know, I didn\u2019t care.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Sweet Forget-Me-Not<\/em> is a Gemmin story. It’s also a story that makes note of changing times.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s your name?\u201d he asked. <\/p>\n

\u201cAhmad Nasrallah.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cWell, what are they ragging you about? You look like a nice, normal kid.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cNo, I look like a terrorist.\u201d <\/p>\n

He studied me for a long moment, then gave me another nod, a slow one this time. \u201cBecause of the colour of your skin,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah. And my name.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

That Was Radio Clash <\/em> from Taverns of the Dead<\/em>. This is a time travel-ish story, and I generally dislike time-travel stories, but this one I like. It’s an ode to Joe Strummer, and another story about second chances.<\/p>\n

The Butter Spirit\u2019s Tithe<\/em> from Emerald Magic: Great Takes of Irish Fantasy<\/em>. I’d forgotten this one entirely, so reading it was very enjoyable, pretty much like reading it again for the first time. This is a story where Faerie are anything but benign.<\/p>\n

Da Slockit Light<\/em> has Meran & Cerin and the Crow Girls and Goon and Jilly, but mostly it’s about a young boy living on the streets and what kids like that may or may not need.<\/p>\n

He heard the crowd wailing. Froome screeching. <\/p>\n

And then he heard the sound of a harp and he figured he\u2019d died and somehow managed to luck his way into Heaven, because where else did you hear harps? <\/p>\n

\u201cI am not happy,\u201d a deep, resonating voice said.<\/p>\n

Uh-oh, Louie thought. They figured out that I\u2019m not supposed to be here in Heaven.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

This is another story where Faerie are not so benign, but also how conflicts look different depending upon what side you’re standing on.<\/p>\n

The Hour Before Dawn<\/em> is a story about ghosts.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know, I never much cared for you when you were alive, and dead\u2019s not turning out to be much of an improvement.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

And a man who came back from the Korean war with literal ghosts.<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t think anybody who goes to war can ever really let it go. Those first few weeks you\u2019re home, they treat you like a hero. But eventually you have to live with the memories you\u2019ve got sitting in your head.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Newford Spook Squad<\/em> from Hellboy: Odder Jobs<\/em>. I have the three Hellboy collections, but for some reason haven’t gotten around to reading them. I should remedy that, because with three volumes, some are bound to be as good as this one.<\/p>\n

In Sight<\/em> from Maiden, Matron, Crone<\/em>. This one is actually not one of my favorites, although it’s not bad. It just feels like it’s missing something.<\/p>\n

The World in a Box<\/em> is a very interesting story about the power and the ability to wisely use power. Except, not that highfalutin.<\/p>\n

Mostly, we just seem to muddle through our lives, and maybe that\u2019s what we\u2019re supposed to do. Learn what we can as we live our lives and make sure that we bring what goodness we can into the world at our individual level as we try to win back the darkness one little bit at a time.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I love these collections.
\nRating: 10\/10<\/strong><\/p>\n

Published by Tor<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Muse and Reverie (2009) Charles de Lint I love Charles de Lint’s writing. Adore it. He writes of the magic that is hidden just beyond the perception of most of us, and of the power to heal, and he writes some of the strongest female characters of almost any author I know. But don’t make […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":true,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[10,18,2,34],"tags":[71,161],"class_list":["post-5928","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-10-10","category-anthology","category-fantasy","category-urban-fantasy","tag-charles-de-lint","tag-newford"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/piQkW-1xC","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2310,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/2310","url_meta":{"origin":5928,"position":0},"title":"Muse and Reverie","author":"Michelle","date":"March 17, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Muse and Reverie (2009) Charles de Lint The last Newford short story collection was in 2002, so it was quite a wait for this fifth collection. In the interim of course, he has had stories in a variety of anthologies, many of which I have, some of which I picked\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "9\/10"","block_context":{"text":"9\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/9-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/muse-and-reverie.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3283,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/3283","url_meta":{"origin":5928,"position":1},"title":"The Very Best of Charles de Lint","author":"Michelle","date":"November 15, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"The Very Best of Charles de Lint (2010) Charles de Lint I love Charles de Lint. I believe I have all of his mass published story anthologies, and several of the smaller press novellas, so I'd read most of the stories in this collection. Doesn't matter. I can read his\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "9\/10"","block_context":{"text":"9\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/9-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Very-Best-of-Charles-de-Lint.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":203,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/203","url_meta":{"origin":5928,"position":2},"title":"Memory & Dream","author":"Michelle","date":"March 4, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Memory & Dream (1995) Charles de Lint Memory & Dream is not my favorite Charles de Lint book. Partially, because I keep forgetting that it's a novel and not a short story collection, so I pick up the book, start reading, and then think, \"boy, this is a really long\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Fantasy"","block_context":{"text":"Fantasy","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/fantasy"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2006\/03\/memory-and-dream.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":106,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/106","url_meta":{"origin":5928,"position":3},"title":"The Blue Girl","author":"Michelle","date":"August 7, 2005","format":false,"excerpt":"The Blue Girl (2004) Charles de Lint I love Charles de Lint. There is nothing he has written that I have read that I have not liked, and most of what he writes I absolutely love. Yet for some reason I was hesitant to read this book. Probably because the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2005\/08\/Blue-Girl.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":35,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/35","url_meta":{"origin":5928,"position":4},"title":"Waifs and Strays","author":"Michelle","date":"July 21, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"Waifs and Strays (2002) Charles de Lint Charles de Lint's latest short story collection is not as much for young adults as it is about young adults. As I recognized several titles in this collection from other collections, I hadn't been in a hurry to get this collection. That was\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Anthology"","block_context":{"text":"Anthology","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/anthology"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2004\/07\/Waifs-and-Strays.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5316,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/5316","url_meta":{"origin":5928,"position":5},"title":"The Very Best of Charles de Lint","author":"Michelle","date":"July 1, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"The Very Best of Charles de Lint (2010) Charles de Lint In Which We Meet Jilly Coppercorn Coyote Stories Laughter in the Leaves The Badger in the Bag And the Rafters Were Ringing Merlin Dreams in the Mondream Wood The Stone Drum Timeskip Freewheeling A Wish Named Arnold Into the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "9.5\/10"","block_context":{"text":"9.5\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/9-5-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Very-Best-of-Charles-de-Lint.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5928","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5928"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5928\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5928"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5928"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5928"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}