daniy's review against another edition
3.0
Book 15 / 30 days challenge
Some of these stories were charming, but most of them were boring or just meh.
It's ok, it's old fantasy, but I kinda wanted more of that old times whimsy :(
Some of these stories were charming, but most of them were boring or just meh.
It's ok, it's old fantasy, but I kinda wanted more of that old times whimsy :(
leelulah's review against another edition
3.0
12. A book inspired by mythology, legend or folklore
A bit hard to follow because of language, nevertheless a good classic where fantasy and horror merge. Read for the Popsugar Challenge 2019 and out of interest of how influential he was on Tolkien and Le Guin
A bit hard to follow because of language, nevertheless a good classic where fantasy and horror merge. Read for the Popsugar Challenge 2019 and out of interest of how influential he was on Tolkien and Le Guin
gslife's review against another edition
5.0
Incredible prose will win me over any time. See: The Lord of the Rings, Infinite Jest.
First read: Aug 29, 2014-Sept 18, 2014.
Second read: ended Aug 28, 2016
First read: Aug 29, 2014-Sept 18, 2014.
Second read: ended Aug 28, 2016
arthurbdd's review against another edition
5.0
Contains the first clutch of Machen's Edge of the World stories, where fantastic regions reminiscent of his early stories share a cosmos with realms closer to home. Full review: https://fakegeekboy.wordpress.com/2022/01/08/the-ornate-brevity-of-lord-dunsany/
glenn_blake's review against another edition
3.0
As a fan of The Silmarillion, I also very much liked the lyrical and poetic style of Dunsany's "Gods of Pegana". I approached The Book of Wonder expecting more of the same. I was a little disappointed to find that this wasn't quite the case.
I would have been hard on this review and only given the book a 2.5, however "Distressing Tale of Thangobrind the Jeweller", "How Nuth would have practised his art upon the Gnoles", "The Coronation of Mr Thomas Shap" and "The Wonderful Window" were the four tales out of seventeen that I thought were particularly imaginative, with satisfying endings. For the remaining other thirteen tales my main complaint was that the endings seemed abrupt, even for short stories of these very short lengths.
I would have been hard on this review and only given the book a 2.5, however "Distressing Tale of Thangobrind the Jeweller", "How Nuth would have practised his art upon the Gnoles", "The Coronation of Mr Thomas Shap" and "The Wonderful Window" were the four tales out of seventeen that I thought were particularly imaginative, with satisfying endings. For the remaining other thirteen tales my main complaint was that the endings seemed abrupt, even for short stories of these very short lengths.
akemi_666's review against another edition
5.0
When that dude tried to pray to his god and instead fell off the tip of an infinite staircase into the void, I felt that.
thebeastini's review against another edition
4.0
Listened to the Audiobook.
Particularly enjoyed the story of Chu-bu and Sheemish
Particularly enjoyed the story of Chu-bu and Sheemish
noonjinx's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
A collection of beautifully written short fantasy stories. Full of thieves, little gods, creepy creatures and the occasional dragon. They are a joy to read but really just mood pieces. My one criticism is that they all stop abruptly without satisfying endings. Still highly recommended for the poetic language