Fantasy and horror : a critical and historical guide to literature, illustration, film, TV, radio, and the Internet

More than 2,300 works of fiction and poetry are discussed, each cross-referenced to other works with similar or contrasting themes. Winners and nominees for major awards are identified. Books that are part of a series are flagged, with a complete list of books in series included in a final chapter, along with a comprehensive list of awards, of translations, and of young adult and children's books.

Critiques (4)

Critique de School Library Journal

Two previously separate volumes-Horror Literature and Fantasy Literature (both Garland, 1990)-are extensively revised and combined here. A companion to Barron's Anatomy of Wonder (Bowker, 1995), this selective guide includes articles on horror and fantasy poetry, reference and online resources, author studies, comics, teaching fantasy and horror literature, magazines, and more. All this is in addition to the lengthy annotations of the selected titles that are divided into chronological categories (e.g., "Fantasy in the Nineteenth Century, 1812-1899"; "Early Modern Horror Fiction, 1897-1949"; "From Baum to Tolkien, 1900-1956"; etc.). Few would quibble with the more than 2300 critically selected works that run the gamut from Stephen King to "Winnie the Pooh." The introductions to each section are analytical and knowledgeable, and the thorough indexes of authors, titles, and themes are invaluable. One tiny editing complaint-numerous pages in the "Contemporary Fantasy, 1957-1998" chapter are incorrectly headed "1957-1988."-Bette Ammon, Missoula Public Library, MT (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Critique de Booklist

Fantasy literature is no longer limited to depictions of fairies and unicorns. In today's world, it can include vampire-hunting teenagers, werewolf detectives, time travelers, and romance-seeking ghosts. Likewise, modern horror literature continues to push the envelope of conventional acceptance with splatterpunk and psycho-killer antiheroes. Librarians not familiar with current trends will need resources to guide their collection development decisions. Fantasy and Horror is a selective critical guide to more than 2,300 works of fiction and poetry from 1762 to 1998. Barron states in his preface that Fantasy and Horror "is an extensive revision of two separate guides, Horror Literature and Fantasy Literature, both published by Garland in 1990 and now out of print." Barron also edited What Fantastic Fiction Do I Read Next? [RBB F 15 98], which is a noncritical guide to fantasy novels released between 1989 and 1997. The first half of his new book lists titles in chronological chapters such as "Early and Later Gothic Traditions, 1762^-1896" or "Contemporary Fantasy, 1957^-1998." Chapters were written by experts, who provide lengthy introductory essays. Within each chapter, authors are listed alphabetically. For each title, there is a synopsis of the story and often commentary. All titles included are considered to be recommended. The second half of the book focuses more on secondary material, such as reference and online resources, critical studies, and books dealing with fantasy TV, radio, movies, and art. There are also chapters on teaching the literature, magazines, and library collections. A final chapter provides listings of best books (with essential purchases indicated for libraries on a budget), awards, books for children and young adults, and organizations. The valuable series guide lists titles in internal reading order when that is significant to appreciating the series. In the appendix is a key to finding information about major authors. Indexes are by title, by author/subject, and by theme. This volume is an excellent companion to other titles on the fantasy and horror genres, including The Encyclopedia of Fantasy [RBB S 1 97] and St. James Guide to Horror, Ghost and Gothic Writers [RBB My 1 98]. Herald, like Barron, is a recognized authority on aspects of genre fiction. She is the author of the fourth edition of Genreflecting: A Guide to Reading Interests by Genre (Libraries Unlimited, 1995) and also series editor for the Genreflecting Advisory series. Fluent in Fantasy is a noncritical listing of fantasy books intended to "help readers to find the books they want to read and to help booksellers and librarians help their clients find those books." Titles selected are considered to be the most popular books from the nineteenth century to 1998 and are arranged in chapters such as "Sword and Sorcery" and "Paranormal Powers," with dozens of subcategories. Most citations are extremely brief, with many only listing author and title. Symbols are used to indicate award winners, books popular among young adults, and "new" (books released in 1998). Concluding each chapter are "D's Picks," listing personal recommendations. In addition to the chapters on various subgenres, there are chapters that cover short stories and secondary resources, including organizations and awards. Appendixes provide a short glossary of fantasy terms, the YALSA-BK Best Fantasy for YA list, and a recommended core collection. There is no overall series list, though series are included under each of the subgenres. Barron's book is excellent for supporting horror literature studies and reader's advisory. Herald's book is better suited for those libraries that need a guide to supplement What Fantastic Fiction Do I Read Next? or that prefer the Genreflecting approach to genre fiction. Both Fantasy and Horror and Fluent in Fantasy are recommended for high-school and public libraries; Fantasy and Horror is recommended for academic libraries as well.

Critique de Choice

Scholars, librarians, and general readers will appreciate this expansive and critical review of fantasy and horror literature. Barron has extensively revised his Fantasy Literature: A Reader's Guide and Horror Literature: A Reader's Guide (both CH, Jul'90, both out of print) and follows the format of his Anatomy of Wonder: A Critical Guide to Science Fiction (CH, Oct'95), arranging thousands of fictional works published 1762-1998 chronologically in chapters that focus on periods of historical and literary significance. The contributors preface chapters with essays that discuss themes, personalities, and movements that shaped the fantasy and horror literature of the period. These scholarly narratives construct a historical and literary framework against which the featured works may be considered. Entries include descriptive, evaluative annotations that vary in length, cite other works by the author, provide series information, and list books with similar or contrasting thematic approaches. The compiler provides a guide to use, an extensive index, a bibliography of secondary literature, and research aids that include a "best books" list, a survey of the genres in magazines and electronic media, reference sources, and author studies. Highly recommended for academic and larger public libraries. P. S. Hoffman; University of Nebraska--Lincoln

Critique du Library Journal

Using the same general format as his groundbreaking guide to science fiction, Anatomy of Wonder (Bowerk, 1995. 4th ed.), Barron and his colleagues guide the reader through the best primary and secondary literature in the two broad categories of fantasy and horror, written from 1762 to 1998. They provide extensive annotations and brief (one-paragraph) essays on each subtopic or item. In this enormous enterprise, Barron covers fiction, poetry, authors, media, the web, organizations, etc. Since the individual authors intermix fantasy and horror materials, the reader interested in only one genre is forced to scan through numerous citations in both genres to find relevant items. Separating the two within each chapter, whenever possible, would have made for easier access. Though this easily replaces all earlier broad genre guides, some genre separatists might be uncomfortable with the liberal intermix of fantasy, sf, Gothic, and horror. In fact, this remains two excellent reference books not quite comfortably rolled into one. Nonetheless, it is recommended for all public and academic collections.ÄAnthony J. Adam, Prairie View A&M Univ. Lib., Houston (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

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