Moon Mirror

Rating:
Summary: some SF, some fantasy, only 1 Witch World
Review: Just so you know: this short story collection is no relation to _Moon Called_, _Moon of Three Rings_, _Mirror of Destiny_, or even the Janus series' Mirror of Thanth.

"Desirable Lakeside Residence" - So says the sign beside the lake: one of the few remaining on the continent, where people need breathers to venture outside on the streets of cities. But something strange has been happening to it, ever since a geologist's rock collection - including lunar samples - was dumped in.

"How Many Miles to Babylon?" - A girl in our world, after suffering an apparent mild concussion in an accident with her boyfriend's motorcycle, might be developing some form of ESP.

"Moon Mirror" - Set in a world not seen before or since. This one isn't quite satisfying, although it's well written; it leads to the attempted opening of a gate, but the finale isn't really an ending. To my knowledge, the missing continuation of this story hasn't been provided in any other story to date.

"One Spell Wizard" - The only Witch World story in this book, and with a much more humorous note to it than many of its companion stories. Saystrap isn't a total failure as a wizard, but he simply can't cast a spell that will last longer than a day or so. But he's fed up with living in a cave, and takes on an apprentice to better his lot. Not for more serious spell casting, but for a sideline in fraudulent horse-trading that requires an accomplice. :) Alas, even apprentices develop minds of their own...

"Outside" - See also the earlier, shorter version "London Bridge" in _The Book of Andre Norton_. This novella-length revision tells the tale from the viewpoint of the little sister rather than the tough older brother, in a world of domed cities, walled off from the pollution and desolation outside, where the adults were lost years before to plague. As I said for "London Bridge", check out _The Girl Who Owned a City_ if the basic storyline interests you.

"Teddi" - The narrator and his little brother Joboy, two of the ever-rarer 'Nats' in a world of Littles, have been trapped, as Joboy dropped Teddi in a field during a scavenging trip out in the fields, and went back at the wrong moment to get him. The 'Nats' (naturals) are the original unaltered human stock, after laws were passed that everyone had to go through genetic alteration to become 'Littles' (a draconian solution that helped ease some of the problems of limited living space and resources). The Littles, it turns out, want slave labour - Nat children being easier to transport and direct than heavy machinery on the new planet they're colonizing. The Littles failed to take all the facts into account, though...

"Through the Needle's Eye" - Also appears in _High Sorcery_ (see my review for details).

"The Toymaker's Snuffbox" - The toymaker in question was content with his lot, and when he found a small elf woman weeping within one of his dollhouses, he insisted that it must be a dream. But he helped her out of kindness (a witch had stripped her of her hair just before a great ball, and the toymaker was quite capable of making a wig to suit). Not satisfied with his reply that he wanted no payment, she left him a gold snuffbox; and when war came and he lost his business, it proved to be more than met the eye. This really ought to be a well-known classic fairy tale, but it hasn't been anthologized much to date.

Rating:
Summary: Moon Mirror
Review: This is a collection of short stories. They each have a different theme but the common thread of the book is that what starts out to be a disaster or problem ends up being the best thing to happen to that person. This is a good book for the young adult but as an older person I found it a bit boring.