An exciting and accessible study of the genre of fantasy.
One of the dominant modes of storytelling in the twenty-first century, fantasy can mirror contemporary experiences and convey our anxieties and longings better than any representation of the merely real. It is the lie that speaks truth. This book addresses two central questions about fantastic storytelling: first, how can it be meaningful if it doesn't claim to represent things as they are, and second, what kind of change can it make in the world? How can a form of storytelling that alters physical laws and denies facts about the past be at the same time a source of insight into human nature and the workings of the world? What kind of social, political, cultural, intellectual work does fantasy perform in the world--the world of the reader, that is, not that of the characters?
Focusing on various aspects of fantastic world-building and story creation in classic and contemporary fantasy, from the use of symbolic structures to the way new stories incorporate bits of significance from earlier texts, this book shows how fantasy allows writers such as Michael Cunningham, Hans Christian Anderson, Helene Wecker, C. S. Lewis, Ursula K. Le Guin, Nnedi Okorafor, Nalo Hopkinson, George MacDonald, Aliette deBodard, and Patricia Wrightson to test new modes of understanding and interaction and thus to rethink political institutions, social practices, and models of reality.
Industry Reviews
Readable and authoritative, rich in example without losing us in abstract theory... For many-academics and general readers alike-the value of this volume will be in the way it places the fantasy we have grown up with in the context of a range of other voices. * Andy Sawyer, Strange Horizons *
[Fantasy] proceeds from the deep, sincere, unselfconscious heart of fandom. It follows the zigzagging logic of love... can I recommend this book? The answer is yes. * Sandra Newman, Times Literary Supplement *
Attebery writes personably and with grace... Fantasy: How it Works is the beginning of lots of good discussions. * Gary K. Wolfe , Locus *
Internationally, fans, students, established and new, and academics will all find a great deal of accessibly written and thoroughly researched, useful, entertaining work in this lovely book. * Gina Wisker, Dissections *
a short and friendly book that eschews jargon and is very firmly based on Attebery's phenomenonally wide reading within the genre... If you haven't read much fantasy fiction, this book is a wonderful introduction. If you have, you will still come away with a to-read list as long as your arm, a new appreciation of the novels you love, and plenty of food for thought. * Helen Parry, Shiny New Books *
[a] lively and informative tour of a wonderful genre. * George Kelley *
Fantasy literature is often defined as "literature of the impossible" and dismissed as escapism and sometimes even as irrelevant. In this brief but powerful book, Attebery (Idaho State Univ.) argues against these views. Highly recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty; professionals; general readers. * Choice *
The great strength of Fantasy: How It Works lies in the way it draws on and showcases a lifetime of careful reading of and thinking about the fantastic, marking another invaluable addition to fantasy studies... There is no book quite like it, and it is best approached as just what Attebery intended, a conversation starter about how fantasy means and what it does, the important work it performs in the world. * Timothy S. Miller, Los Angeles Review of Books *
In this dense but thought-provoking volume Attebery builds on his previous scholarship and sets a critical standard for the field going forward in a series of culminating propositions. * Glenn R. Gray, Mythlore 144 *
Fantasy: How It Works can prove a stimulating read for all interested in how fantasy constructs imaginary worlds and how these worlds comment on our experienced reality. * Ana Tejero-Marin, Utopian Studies 35.1 *
