Mainly in Moonlight

by Nicholas Stuart Gray

Mainly in Ten Stories of Sorcery and the Supernatural

Genres: Fantasy, Childrens, Fiction, Short Stories

159 pages, Hardcover

First published July 1, 1965

About the author

Nicholas Stuart Gray (23 October 1922, Scotland - 17 March 1981) was a British actor and playwright, perhaps best known for his work in children's theatre in England. He was also an author of children's fantasy; he wrote a number of novels, a dozen plays, and many short stories. Neil Gaiman has written that Gray "is one of those authors I loved as a boy who holds up even better on rereading as an adult". Many other modern fantasy authors, such as Hilari Bell, Cecilia Dart-Thornton, Kate Forsyth, Cassandra Golds, Katherine Langrish, Sophie Masson, and Garth Nix, cite Gray's work as something they enjoyed as children.

Perhaps his best-known books are The Seventh Swan and Grimbold's Other World. Gray often produced adaptations or continuations of traditional fairy tales and fantasy works, as in his Further Adventures of Puss in Boots. His The Stone Cage is a re-telling of Rapunzel from a cat's point of view. Over The Hills to Fabylon is about a city whose king has the ability to make it fly off across the mountains if he feels it is in danger.

Gray maintained a long-term collaborative relationship with set designer and illustrator Joan Jefferson Farjeon (sister of Eleanor Farjeon and Harry Farjeon); she supplied the costume and scenic designs for many of the theatrical productions of his plays, as well as the illustrations of his books.

---from wikipedia

Reviews

[Capn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Free to borrow from OpenLibrary / Archive.org. But totally worth buying, too, for people (such as myself) who hate screens.

Faber Fanfares

'Here are twelve enchanting stories about magic and magicians, starlight and sorcery . . . In Mainly in Moonlight the dialogue of animals, haughty princesses, evil pedlars, befuddled and irate wizards or would-be young sorcerors, with which the tales abound, is deliciously in character . . . ' The Times Educational Supplement
Illustrated by Charles W. Stewart
Cover design by Dave Griffiths

This book had the misfortune to be the one I was reading (and immensely enjoying) when The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom released. Between side quests and other personal upheavals, this lovely little paperback of atypical and refreshing fairytales was routinely set aside and read piecemeal. Consequently, I've forgotten most of it, and am unable to provide a proper review at this time (hopefully I'll come back to it and be able to give summaries for these, but in the meantime, here's the list of contents):

The Sorcerer's Apprentice
The Reluctant Familiar
The Hunting of the Dragon
Mainly in Moonlight
A Letter to my Love
The Star Beast
A Message in a Bottle
According to Tradition
The Silver Ship
The Lady's Quest
The Man Who Sold Magic
The Thunder Cat

Some of these titles bring back clear memories of the stories ("A Letter to my Love" has a very modern female lead and some seriously weird stuff that would get George Lucas running foaming to his props store; "The Man Who Sold Magic" is cautionary and quite amusing even to an old and jaded reader).

But perhaps most usefully of all, I can solemnly say that I will now read *ANYTHING* penned by Nicholas Stuart Gray without hesitation and without looking too closely at the (collectable) price tags associated. This guy... get a hold of him, anyway you can. One of those ways is via OpenLibrary or Archive.org, while it lives.

If you're into vintage children's literature and are looking for recommendations, or if you are simply horrified that books of quality and merit and imagination have fallen out of print (and have been replaced by bollocks..!), why not stop by our group of like-minded readers: Forgotten Vintage Children's Lit We Want Republished!. I have Sem there to thank specifically for getting me acquainted with this one (and many others).

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

After decades of searching, I finally found a copy of one of my favorite books from my childhood. Gray weaves tales with very human and inhuman characters dealing with the fantastic. The female characters are not clichés, one saves the hapless prince. Worth having a reprint.

[Mir · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a collection of fantastical short stories, loosely linked by a motif of personal growth or realization. I would most of the stories a 5, but the last couple were considerably weaker, which ends the book on a down note. Still, Gray's writing is wonderful, at once beautiful, sad, and humorous. I don't know why he isn't more widely known.

[Philo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly recommended! A wonderful collection of stories about magic, quests, curiosity, satisfaction, and love. Gray's humor and skillful wordplay shine throughout the book's several short stories.