The Faery Flag: Stories and Poems of Fantasy and the Supernatural

NO DUST JACKET Grade 4-10-- Yolen's collection begins with a poem which celebrates storytelling in a series of evocative images, concluding "If you ask me,/ I would have to say/ all the world's magic/ comes directly from the mouth." The nine stories and five poems which follow are fresh and original, yet firmly rooted in folklore and legend. The title story is based on the old Scottish belief in the faery folk, while "The Foxwife" has Japanese origins. "The Face in the Cloth" has echoes of European fairy tales. There is a rich diversity of tone, plot, and setting. "Words of Power" is a strong fantasy about a young woman's coming of age. "The Singer of Seeds" and "Wolf/Child" are both frightening in very different ways. "The Boy Who Drew Unicorns" takes place on a present - day school field trip. "The Tower Bird" has a surreal quality. The remarkable thing is that Yolen seems equally at home in all these varied voices and settings. Her characters come vividly to life. Only "Happy Dens," which strains toward humor with a retelling of favorite tales from the wolf's point of view, doesn't quite ring true. The stories resonate with deeply felt emotions of love, hatred, wonder, terror, and a particular haunting quality which is Yolen's own. They are interspersed with strong, direct poetry just as intriguing as the stories and equally fine for reading aloud. --Ruth S. Vose, San Francisco Public Library