Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
A man in a troubled romantic relationship with an airship and the horror of being suicidally depressed in the presence of a merciful and loving God are just two of the intensely memorable stories in the English-language debut of Swedish fantasist Tidbeck (Vem ar Arvid Pekon?). The title story explores a society of symbiotes living inside a vast, nurturing "mother." An ordinary family with a history of mental illness struggles with the influence of the Vittra, strange elflike beings who may be their ancestors, in "Reindeer Mountain." A woman creates a vegetable child only to lose him to the lure of the earth in "Cloudberry Jam." Not all of Tidbeck's stories have that same quiet, elusive magic-"Herr Cederberg," for example, gradually loses its way-but all are impressively brave literary experiments. By turns brilliant and indecipherably cryptic, this book will capture the imaginations of fans of experimental fantasy and science fiction and is a fine launch for Cheeky Frawg, a new press dedicated to international and translated fiction. (Nov.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
This remarkable small collection of short fantastic fiction represented Swedish author Tidbeck's English-language debut when it was first published in print in 2012. The stories here cover a range from outright surreal fairy tale to magical realism with a twist: an immortal woman tries to investigate how time works in the otherworldly garden she inhabits; a trip to clean out a family home for sale uncovers ancestral secrets centered in a nearby wood; a man falls in love with a sentient airship; and a switchboard operator takes some unexpected calls from the dead. Narrator Kirsten Potter delivers a crisp reading, giving the often bizarre subject matter a matter-of-fact grounding that serves the material well. An afterword by the author discusses the challenging process of translating her work into English. VERDICT Highly recommended for readers who enjoy some surrealism swirled into their fantasy; it might please fans of China Mieville and Jeff and Ann VanderMeer (the latter authors originally published this collection in print).--Jason Puckett, -Georgia State Univ. Lib., Atlanta © Copyright 2018. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
