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Sorcerers!
• Preface (Sorcerers!) (1986) - by Jack Dann and Gardner Dozois (essay)
• The Bleak Shore (Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser) (1940) by Fritz Leiber
• O Ugly Bird! (John the Balladeer) (1951) by Manly Wade Wellman
• The Power of the Press (1983) by Richard Kearns (novelette)
• The Finger (1980) by Naomi Mitchison
• The Word of Unbinding (Earthsea Cycle) (1964) by Ursula K. Le Guin
• His Coat So Gay (Brigadier Ffellowes) (1970) by Sterling E. Lanier (novelette)
• Narrow Valley (1966) by R. A. Lafferty
• Sleep Well of Nights (Jack Limekiller) (1978) by Avram Davidson [AKA A Good Night's Sleep] (novella)
• Armaja Das (1976) by Joe Haldeman
• My Boat (Cthulhu Mythos) (1976) by Joanna Russ
• The Hag Séleen (1942) - by Theodore Sturgeon and James H. Beard [AKA The Hag Sèleen] (novelette)
• The Last Wizard (1972) by Avram Davidson
• The Overworld (Dying Earth) (1965) by Jack Vance (novelette)
• Recommended Reading (Sorcerers!) (1986) by Jack Dann and Gardner Dozois (essay)
• The Bleak Shore (Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser) (1940) by Fritz Leiber
• O Ugly Bird! (John the Balladeer) (1951) by Manly Wade Wellman
• The Power of the Press (1983) by Richard Kearns (novelette)
• The Finger (1980) by Naomi Mitchison
• The Word of Unbinding (Earthsea Cycle) (1964) by Ursula K. Le Guin
• His Coat So Gay (Brigadier Ffellowes) (1970) by Sterling E. Lanier (novelette)
• Narrow Valley (1966) by R. A. Lafferty
• Sleep Well of Nights (Jack Limekiller) (1978) by Avram Davidson [AKA A Good Night's Sleep] (novella)
• Armaja Das (1976) by Joe Haldeman
• My Boat (Cthulhu Mythos) (1976) by Joanna Russ
• The Hag Séleen (1942) - by Theodore Sturgeon and James H. Beard [AKA The Hag Sèleen] (novelette)
• The Last Wizard (1972) by Avram Davidson
• The Overworld (Dying Earth) (1965) by Jack Vance (novelette)
• Recommended Reading (Sorcerers!) (1986) by Jack Dann and Gardner Dozois (essay)
244 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published October 1, 1986
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
April 7, 2009
Honestly, I don't know how you can expect to do much better than this with an anthology. There are maybe three weak stories in it (though two of those are also from some of the most famous contributors, Fritz Lieber and Jack Vance). But for an anthology with no particular binding theme beyond a very loose genre--no "award-winning stories" requirement or anything--they hit a whole pile of wonderful finds in one funny-looking little paperback volume. I have hung on to my copy for years and I go back to it again and again.
Definitely a case study for not judging the book by the cover. I doubt this obscure little collection is in print any more, but if you get your mitts on a copy, sit down with it and read it right through.
Definitely a case study for not judging the book by the cover. I doubt this obscure little collection is in print any more, but if you get your mitts on a copy, sit down with it and read it right through.
October 30, 2015
This is a scan of an anthology from 1986, and not all of the character recognition errors have been caught (so we get "1" for "I" a couple of times, "modem" for "modern" and the like). One or two of them should have been caught by spellcheck.
Setting that aside, like most anthologies, this is a mixed bag, but mainly successful.
"The Bleak Shore", a Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser story from Fritz Lieber, opens the collection well, with an atmospheric and suspenseful tale of a struggle against what, at first, seems to be Death himself.
"O Ugly Bird!" by Manly Wade Wellman makes the most of its Appalachian setting, and translates the "powerful man dominates small community" reality into a magical mode.
"The Power of the Press" by Richard Kearns is a lovely piece of fantastica, using the old trope of the wizards' duel in a fresh way.
"The Finger" by Naomi Mitchison takes us to Africa, where sorcery is still practiced and children are still sacrificed to create "magical" ingredients. It has a happier ending than many real-life cases.
"The Word of Unbinding" by Ursula K. Le Guin has all of the lyricism and gravitas that I associate with that author, and a brave wizard at the centre of it.
"His Coat So Gay" by Sterling E. Lanier is another "small community dominated by the powerful" story, though this time it's a powerful family. Although it's set in the US, it has the feel of urban fantasy set in England by the likes of Charles de Lint, partly because of the desperate struggle by the outsider to bring down ancient evil.
"Narrow Valley" by R. A. Lafferty I'd read before, like the Lieber and the Le Guin, but I enjoyed reading it again. Lafferty's mad style and odd characters are amusing, if lacking in much depth.
"Sleep Well of Nights" by Avram Davidson I disliked. The main character is an antihero, and the female characters are more furniture than people, and exist only in relation to the men.
"Armaja Das" by Joe Haldeman is a dark story of a Romany curse that brings down the whole of civilization.
"My Boat" by Joanna Russ is theoretically Cthulhu Mythos, but it lacks the overwrought prose that I associate with that subgenre. It's a rather lovely story of outsiders and the boy who didn't quite dare to join them and still regrets it years later.
"The Hag Séleen" by Theodore Sturgeon I wasn't expecting to enjoy--I'm not generally a Sturgeon fan--but I did. The courage of a father and the cleverness of his daughter defeat a witch. It could be seen as racially problematic, these days, though.
"The Last Wizard" by Avram Davidson is a short gag story that works well for what it is.
We close with "The Overworld" by Jack Vance. I dislike Vance's overelaborate style, and find it distances me from caring about the stiff, formal characters, who generally aren't particularly admirable either. Unfortunately, this story is no exception to any of that.
In general, a good collection, and not all of the best stories were ones I'd read before.
Setting that aside, like most anthologies, this is a mixed bag, but mainly successful.
"The Bleak Shore", a Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser story from Fritz Lieber, opens the collection well, with an atmospheric and suspenseful tale of a struggle against what, at first, seems to be Death himself.
"O Ugly Bird!" by Manly Wade Wellman makes the most of its Appalachian setting, and translates the "powerful man dominates small community" reality into a magical mode.
"The Power of the Press" by Richard Kearns is a lovely piece of fantastica, using the old trope of the wizards' duel in a fresh way.
"The Finger" by Naomi Mitchison takes us to Africa, where sorcery is still practiced and children are still sacrificed to create "magical" ingredients. It has a happier ending than many real-life cases.
"The Word of Unbinding" by Ursula K. Le Guin has all of the lyricism and gravitas that I associate with that author, and a brave wizard at the centre of it.
"His Coat So Gay" by Sterling E. Lanier is another "small community dominated by the powerful" story, though this time it's a powerful family. Although it's set in the US, it has the feel of urban fantasy set in England by the likes of Charles de Lint, partly because of the desperate struggle by the outsider to bring down ancient evil.
"Narrow Valley" by R. A. Lafferty I'd read before, like the Lieber and the Le Guin, but I enjoyed reading it again. Lafferty's mad style and odd characters are amusing, if lacking in much depth.
"Sleep Well of Nights" by Avram Davidson I disliked. The main character is an antihero, and the female characters are more furniture than people, and exist only in relation to the men.
"Armaja Das" by Joe Haldeman is a dark story of a Romany curse that brings down the whole of civilization.
"My Boat" by Joanna Russ is theoretically Cthulhu Mythos, but it lacks the overwrought prose that I associate with that subgenre. It's a rather lovely story of outsiders and the boy who didn't quite dare to join them and still regrets it years later.
"The Hag Séleen" by Theodore Sturgeon I wasn't expecting to enjoy--I'm not generally a Sturgeon fan--but I did. The courage of a father and the cleverness of his daughter defeat a witch. It could be seen as racially problematic, these days, though.
"The Last Wizard" by Avram Davidson is a short gag story that works well for what it is.
We close with "The Overworld" by Jack Vance. I dislike Vance's overelaborate style, and find it distances me from caring about the stiff, formal characters, who generally aren't particularly admirable either. Unfortunately, this story is no exception to any of that.
In general, a good collection, and not all of the best stories were ones I'd read before.
June 30, 2022
An interesting and eclectic collection of fantasy-based stories. As usual with older works of literature, some stories have aged more gracefully than others. The term “sorcerer” can also be applied a bit loosely at times, though magic does certainly play a part in all of the stories contained within. This isn’t essential reading by any means. It’s mostly something peculiar and different to while away the hours with.
Favourite story by far - “The Power of the Press” by Richard Kearns. A whimsical and delightful little adventure worth reading if you can get your hands on it.
Runners Up - “The Word of Unbinding” by Ursula K. Le Guin, “Armaja Das” by Joe Haldeman
Least Favourites - “Sleep Well of Nights” and “The Last Wizard” by Avram Davidson, “The Overworld” by Jack Vance
Favourite story by far - “The Power of the Press” by Richard Kearns. A whimsical and delightful little adventure worth reading if you can get your hands on it.
Runners Up - “The Word of Unbinding” by Ursula K. Le Guin, “Armaja Das” by Joe Haldeman
Least Favourites - “Sleep Well of Nights” and “The Last Wizard” by Avram Davidson, “The Overworld” by Jack Vance
February 6, 2019
A really solid short story collection without a single misfire, even though some are always more to your liking than others. There's one called "The Hag Seleen" that's stuck in my head for 20 years in a spine-crawly kind of way, and another called "The Power of the Press" that's stuck because it delighted me at the time, and still does.
There's a list of suggested authors, books and short stories in the back as well, which argues an actual love of the subject, which I really appreciate as going above and beyond. So easy to call it in where a compilation is concerned.
There's a list of suggested authors, books and short stories in the back as well, which argues an actual love of the subject, which I really appreciate as going above and beyond. So easy to call it in where a compilation is concerned.
December 19, 2023
This is one of the best short story collections I've read in YEARS. There was only two stories I didn't like, and they were both by the same person. I'm going to add every single book on the "recommended reading" list to my Goodread to-read list today, and I'm going to search out books by all the authors from this book too. Don't let this kind of low-quality and poorly designed cover trick you--this is a collection of the highest order!
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September 13, 2019Gardner dozois writes one good introduction and reuses it every few years hoping nobody will remember
February 16, 2015
Good with a lot of diffirent stories reguards the theme.
April 9, 2014
Ma asteptam la ceva mai sofisticat si mai intens.
Sunt vreo 4,5 povestiri mai rasarite, dar nu mai mult.
Sunt vreo 4,5 povestiri mai rasarite, dar nu mai mult.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews