The Random House Book of Fantasy Stories

by Mike Ashley, Garry Kilworth, Diana Wynne Jones

This exciting collection takes readers on a journey through the labyrinthine corridors of the imagination. Filled with magical spells, fire-breathing dragons, and intrepid heroes, these classics of children's literature include stories by such authors as C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, George MacDonald, Jane Yolen, E. Nesbit, and more.

vi • Foreword: A World of Wonders • (1996) • essay by Mike Ashley
ix • Introduction: Into Your Dreams • (1996) • essay by Garry Kilworth
1 • The Green Stone • juvenile • (1988) • short story by Diana Wynne Jones
9 • The Hoard of the Gibbelins • (1911) • short story by Lord Dunsany
15 • A Harp of Fishbones • (1960) • short story by Joan Aiken
33 • The Selkie's Cap • (1996) • short story by Samantha Lee
43 • The Back of the North Wind • (1996) • short fiction by George MacDonald
61 • The Pit of Wings • [Ryre] • (1978) • short story by Ramsey Campbell
81 • A Spell for Annalise • (1993) • short story by Parke Godwin
91 • The Secret of Faerie • (1996) • novelette by Paul Lewis
111 • The Invisible Kingdom • (1896) • short story by Richard Leander (trans. of Vom unsichtbaren Königreich 1871)
125 • The Bone Beast • (1996) • short story by Simon Clark
141 • Ice Princess • (1994) • short story by Elisabeth Waters
167 • The Wild Hunt • (1996) • short story by Ian Watson
171 • The Door to Dark Albion • (1996) • novelette by Cherith Baldry
193 • The Fairy Trap • (1996) • short story by Peter Crowther
207 • The Dark Island • [Narnia] • (1952) • short fiction by C. S. Lewis
219 • A Pattern of Pyramids • (1996) • short story by Patricia Fanthorpe and R. L. Fanthorpe [as by Lionel Fanthorpe and Patricia Fanthorpe]
235 • The Closed Window • (1903) • short story by A. C. Benson
249 • The Goatboy and the Giant • (1996) • short story by Garry Kilworth
259 • Mirror, Mirror... • (1996) • short story by Frances Mary Hendry [as by Frances M. Hendry]
271 • The Trolls • (1937) • short fiction by J. R. R. Tolkien
291 • Sun City • (1974) • novelette by Tanith Lee
321 • Brother Kenan's Bell • (1983) • short story by Jane Yolen
327 • The Last Card • (1996) • short story by Steve Lockley
341 • Atlantis • juvenile • (1996) • novelette by E. Nesbit [as by Edith Nesbit]
361 • The White Doe • (1996) • short story by Keith Taylor
371 • Creature of Darkness • (1963) • novelette by Nicholas Stuart Gray
389 • Troll-Bridge • (1993) • short story by Neil Gaiman

Genres: Fantasy, Short Stories, Anthologies

403 pages, Hardcover

First published June 10, 1997

About the author

Michael Raymond Donald Ashley is the author and editor of over sixty books that in total have sold over a million copies worldwide. He lives in Chatham, Kent.

Reviews

[Tabitha H. · Rating 5 out of 5]

The random house book of fantasy stories by Jane Yolen and many other authors, is truly fantastic. It takes you back to stories of old villages, magic, adventure, and determination. My favorite story out of them all would be a harp of fishbones. A Harp of Fishbones by Joan Aiken is a story of bravery, courage, determination, and kindness. In the story, Nerryn (the main character) was left with Timorash, an old miller by her father Heramon the harper when she was an infant. When Nerryn goes to work for an old lady, Saroon, where she slowly learns about her father and his people. She decides one day to make a harp, like her father’s, out of fishbones, and head up to his city. There she learns she is the granddaughter of the king and that Saroon was the god that cursed the city, then helped her revive it. Saying this, I would definitely recommend this to classmates, with the beautiful lightheartedness of the book makes you feel incredibly immersed in the stories. I would have to say some stories are not very good, but most make you feel in the world of fantasy itself. This story is only one of the amazing, mystical stories in the random house book of fairy tales.

[Charles · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm surprised that this had no reviews at all. It is similar to the Space Stories anthology, also edited by Mike Ashley. This book contains 27 short stories in all, and are suitable for teenagers aged 9-15. Entertaining selection, though there are some bad choices unfortunately as well. However, I definitely do recommend this delightful anthology to parents who wish to start engaging their children to these remarkable genres from an early age. Some stories are also original to this collection, as in the case of the Space Stories Collection.

1)The Green Stone
By Diana Wynne Jones(1988)

As the editor said, this story opens the book in more ways than one. Just superb, from start to finish, and is one of the best, especially due to its comic wit. It follows a recording cleric, who has the mundane task to record all the peculiar 'heroes' that have decided to take part in the king's quest to get the elusive 'green stone'. However, the king saved all their would-have-been cumbersome task by announcing all of a sudden that he had gotten the stone himself. It is ironic that the cleric is the one who gets to experience an amazing adventure when she (her sex is revealed only at the end) is embroiled in the daring burglary of the stone by the charming Trouvere. I especially liked the ending of the story, "And so I write"... Worth reading for the comical descriptions of the heroes alone.
~4.75/5

2)The Hoard of the Gibbelins
By Lord Dunsany(1911)

Inspiring, that is what Lord Dunsany is in one word. Written a whopping century ago, it follows the journey of a foolhardy knight, who thinks he can steal the treasure of he feared Gibbelins. Despite a cunning alternative to other attempts, it does not end cheerfully, this tale. In fact, I think this should have been included in the 'Dark Fantasy' collection.
~4.25/5

3)A Harp of Fishbones
By Joan Aiken(1972)

Hmm, I think I gave this a higher mark ,than my usual saintly discretion, considering this is Joan Aiken. Not that I'm implying that this is not imaginative, or that it lacks a sense of adventure, but a harp never makes for the jaw-dropping weapon one would usually wish for when battling with wolves in the middle of the forest. It is impressive in other regards though, an exceptional description of Nerryn and her village that makes even the most discriminating readers remember who we are dealing with... I won't get into the story, but it involves a frozen town, and king, and, of course, a harp of fishbones.
~4/5

4)The Selkie's Cap
By Samantha Lee(1996)

If your relationship with your mom is in the dump, do not worry all that much. Just to make you feel better, at least if she leaves you, it usually takes more than just her cap to bring you back together again. Other considerations would include maternal love etc. Some imagination, it's just that there a lot better.
~3.5/5

5)The Back of the North Wind
By George Macdonald(1870)

Incredible, that is what G.Macdonald is in one word. I cannot dare to try to think how he had such an imaginative sense of fantasy in the austere Victorian period. I think he deserves at least 4/5 for this consideration alone. The other .5 for the charming story, which involves the relationship between the North Wind and Diamond (yes, that's his name). Search for books by this author, try him. Extraordinary.
~4.75/5

6)The Pit of Wings
By Ramsey Campbell(1978)

The beginning of the tale is intriguing enough. A hero named Ryre who took it against a group of bastardy slave-drivers, as he knows what it means to be a slave. The ultimate hero... However, he is captured eventually, and was to be sacrificed to a group of flying monsters (who were only a dark, looming presence before). Nearly invincible, Ryre still manages to escape. It does contain a lot of lurid descriptions, which constitutes its ambience, hence my marking.
~4/5

7)A Spell for Annalise
By Parke Godwin(1993)

A chance encounter with goblin on the beach seems to be a magical enough premise. Not so for this story, which turns a pretty good idea (the plight of the teenager, in this case 16 year old Annalise, and her relationship with a goblin) into a silly moral that love is the real magic in this world after all. OK, it is not that silly, but one feels underwhelmed after reading this.
~3.25/5

8)The Secret of Faerie
By Paul Lewis(1996)

Now this is more like it. Kevin Jackson meets Rowan, a beautiful woman who embroils the protagonist in a nightmarish world of hideous creatures (she put a spell on him so that he could see them). Not all is what it seems though... Pure fantasy.
~4.25/5

9)The Invisible Kingdom
By Richard Leander(1986)

A character named George the Dreamer deserves a happy ending, right? Ostracized by the rest of the village, he often sits on a mill-stone and daydreams all day long, although his dreams have been very particular as of late. They are all the same, involving a princess on a swing who leaves a bunch of roses for him when she vanishes. They are always there when he wakes up. He finds her marvelous kingdom, whose main attractions are castles suspended in mid air and island castles, all of which can be summoned by two, charming verses. George strikes it lucky with the princess, happily ever after, right?
~3.75/5

10)The Bone Beast
By Simon Clarke(1996)

What an incredible beginning, but what a lame ending. Most of the stories that were written in 1996 were probably written for this anthology, but that is no excuse for a poor narrative. What makes it all the more disappointing in this case is that the author is much better than the end result. He can write better, for sure. Maybe he was worried that it would be too complicated, and simplified the second half. I will not bother with the actual story, but kudos to the writer for the 'rhyming kid'.
~3.25/5

11)Ice Princess
By Elisabeth Waters(1994)

I am overall disappointed by 'Ice Princess'. It had some instances of excellence, admittedly, but the concluding impression is, well, disappointing. The interesting element to it is that Waters incorporates her own extensive knowledge of ice skating into the equation. The disappointing features... That a legendary sorceror should turn to dust by one convenient ice blade strike. That Sharon, the protagonist, wanted to leave the fantasy world in question, as in that world she cannot 'procreate' with her boyfriend (I mean who in the helladuva would consider stuff like that?) or because she did not want to spend the rest of eternity with a talking skull and her sister. The last part is understandable, at least. The last paragraph is charming though (for in the real world there is a similar tower to the 'fantasy' one, in which she sees her sister when she goes to the tower with her boyfriend in the middle of the night; yes they probably did 'procreate' afterwards there).
~3.5/5

12)The Wild Hunt
By Ian Watson (1966)

In the tradition of Rip Van Winkle, a king gets tricked into visiting a dwarf kingdom and when he leaves, a peasant informs him that his wife and child (was not even born when he left) were long dead. More interesting is the fact that the dwarf also gave him a hound, which much leap from his hands before he can come down from his horse (otherwise he will turn into dust, as one of his guards unfortunately found out). Incredibly short, but charming.
~3.75/5

13)The Door to Dark Albion
By Cherith Baldry(1996)

Haughty Romaric (a teenage sorcerer) got into a fight with his father, the grand-sorcerer, as he lost his temper with the servants. Romaric was banished from Dark Albion into our world. The story begins with a couple of teenagers trying to stone Romaric after he threatened to burn their peasant houses down. However, the local Baliff's son saved him from what seemed from almost certain death (he lost his magical powers), and, albeit a shaky start to their friendship, promised to help Romaric out (an enigmatic but threatening dark creature has come with him from D.Albion) and find the portal to Romaric's home-world. The portal could be anywhere though, many have spent their leaves searching for it and have never found it and some have never looked for it and found themselves in it... Why did a father abandon, so callously, his own son? Will Romaric be reunited with his father? Read the story to find out.
~4.25/5

14)The Fairy Trap
By Peter Crowther(1996)

An old man befriends two children, who tells them of his plan. He thinks he can capture the fairies of the forest. The irony lies in the fact that they managed to capture him. That's basically it.
~3.25/5

15)The Dark Island
By C.S.Lewis(1952)

This is from the 'Voyage of the Dawn Treader', an exceptional book (one of my favourites) from the Chronicles of Narnia. I have no doubt that you have seen the movie, if you have not read the book as well, so I'll leave it at that. Fantasy as it should be written in my opinion.
~4.75/5

16)A Pattern of Pyramids
By Lionel and Patricia Fanthorpe(1996)

A kid likes rummaging in a trash bin near a museum after school, and one day he finds the mother of all trash bin loot, a mummified cat... Not that realistic even for a fantasy story, I agree, but this story is pretty imaginative (that all sphinxes originated from Antarctica and so on). Too bad the end result is meh.
~3.25/5

17)The Closed Window
By A.C.Benson(1903)

This really ought to have been included in the 'dark fantasy' anthology. Two cousins live all alone is a magnificent tower. The father of one of them, who inherited that tower/castle died there and his spirit still haunts its top room. A nice twist at the end, really macabre, though nothing all that special on the whole.
~3.75/5

18)The Goatboy and the Giant
By Garry Kilworth(1996)

A Turkish boy tricks a goodhearted but naive giant (the last of his kind) into becoming his 'circus freak' (for the boy was in desperate need of money). He takes him to Istanbul (which the giant, before his sleep, had known as Byzantium!) so that he could use him as a tourist destination. The entrepreneurs the boy talked to discouraged him completely, their point being that it would be a gigantic (pun intended on my part) expenditure to house him, nobody would visit him as everybody could see his image on the news etc. So the boy lost heart, and forgot about the giant who died a couple of days later due to the cold and a broken heart. Only in his death did the giant become useful, they used his bones for a variety of construction purposes. Sad, but effective.
~4.25/5

19)Mirror,Mirror...
By Frances M. Hendry(1996)

Interesting, a fantasy story with an exceptional twist and moral. A teenage girl is skeptical of her new stepdad, and branded her mother as a traitor, even though they bought her an expensive new-old bedroom (in the sense that it is an antique). The mirror in front of her bed had some pretty creepy engravings on the frame though, and it seemed to sporadically remove her reflection at will. She manages to check it out and discover that it is a portal to a mirror world, and she enters inside it (after cautiously checking it out). Everything is a distorted mirror of reality, but her parents cannot notice her presence. She hears her parents talking about her, but there was another voice inside her head yelling 'kill kill kill'. You see, the mirror was urging her to kill her parents, and her bad side of human nature was responding to her murderous cries inside her head. She tries to run away after regaining consciousness, but the mirror world had some last tricks up its sleeve, extenuating the distances and closing her portal back!. Realizing the folly and evilness of hate, she smashes the mirror in one desperate strike with the knife in her hand (which she was about to murder her stepdad with). Her mother enters the room concerned about such a crash inside her bedroom, and is extremely angry with her for destroying such a prized antique. The twist lies in the character of her stepdad, who urges her mother to stop arguing with her, and comforts her while promising her that he will buy her a modern bedroom instead (insinuating that it was his own fault in the first place). She supposes that he is not so bad after all...
~4.25/5

20)The Trolls
By J.R.R. Tolkien(1937)

Tolkien, as usual, teaches us how fantasy ought to be written. This is from 'The Hobbit', which I have no doubt many of you have read and enjoyed, so I won't get into much detail. Timeless.
~4.95/5

21)Sun City
By Tanith Lee(1974)

Very difficult to judge a story like this, for it has a good sense of fantasy and adventure but a somewhat unexpectedly ridiculous ending. It follows the brave warrior-king Zakonax, who was destined by prophecy to end the mayhem of the evil witch Haxaretl. Long story short, though I left out that he has a beloved horse named Feena, he ends up marrying her. Not a conventional way of stopping evil, but hey, it works...
~4/5

22)Brother Kenan's Bell
By Jane Yolen(1983)

What a charming, and unique, story this is, though this should never have been included in a fantasy anthology in my opinion. Brother Kenan receives a divine calling from an angel that he must find a bell, and go into the forests, and until the bell rings by its own, he must not stop. He must also build a chapel on that place. After three days, for nobody would believe poor Kenan, he set out on his magnanimous quest with two brothers, David and John (remind you of anyone?). But they were not quite as holy as they seem, trying to ring the bell when Kenan was off guard so they can get it over with (they still did not believe Kenan!). However, they do not prevail.
~4/5

23)The Last Card
By Steve Lockley(1996)

I was pleased that although this story was exclusive to this anthology, it is one of the most unique. I never thought that so much mayhem could arise from one lousy card of the astronaut John Shepard. Almost three children dead, a vengeful dragon locked up forever in a enormous chasm in the hall of mirrors. Not many people can imagine such turn of events over one card and in a couple of pages, trust me.
~4/5

24)Atlantis
By Edith Nesbit(1905)

I can see why Edith Nesbit have inspired so many fantasy authors, including J.K.Rowling. Incredible sense of fantastical adventure, following the universally beloved children, Cyril, Robert, Jane and Anthea, from 'The Story of the Amulet' (a sequel to the amazing 'Five Children and it')
~4.5/5

25)The White Doe
By Keith Taylor(1996)

Two brothers were urged by Harry Silver to stop a hunting party from capturing the white doe, said to be Sir Rauff's (the hunters' leader) wife without him knowing anything about her transformations. Nice twist in the end, when one of the boys saves 'Harry' from drowning, he realizes that he is in fact a she (Harriet). OK story.
~3.75/5

26)Creature of Darkness
By Nicholas Stuart Gray(1963)

Creatures of Darkness are basically cats, who can enter the 'fantasy world' at will (which may explain for their prolonged absences for those with big houses). I honestly really enjoyed this story for its sense of fantasy, and, more importantly, the way it incorporates it with the real world. I also enjoyed the cat chorus at the end.
~4.25/5

27)Troll Bridge
By Neil Gaiman(N/A)

Extraordinary narrative dexterity on Gaiman's part. It's not easy to pull off such a sense of adventure in a couple of pages (but most authors, in this collection, deserve such credit as well). What sets Gaiman apart is his sense of 'darker' fantasy. An adventurous boy comes across a troll under a bridge, in an abandoned railway, by a chance encounter. The troll wants to take said boy's life. The boy manages to escape by promising the troll that he will come back when he is older and have had experienced more in life, reading his unfinished book on aeroplanes for example. His next visit is accidental. He goes with his female best friend, who the troll freezes temporarily so that he can talk to the boy alone. A change of character is immediately noticeable. The boy asks if the troll could take the girl's life instead! When the troll refuses, he uses the same excuse as before, his reason now being that he had never experienced sex. Many years then pass, he is married, the once rural village is completely developed and the boy is now a man. He is eventually divorced, and goes to see the troll so that he can take his life, as was his promise. The troll takes his life, that is the man becomes a troll and viceversa. What is strange is that the 'boy' is now happier than he's ever been... As with all the other stories in this anthology, reading them is much better than a simple summary. There can be a lot of different interpretations to 'Troll Bridge' for example.
~4.25/5

[James S. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Might as well be titled “Random House Book of Fairy Tales.” Silly, didactic, and forgettable stories with lots of info-dumping.

[SBC · Rating 3 out of 5]

An unusual and very large collection of stories (27!) from different eras and a range of writers, some well-known, others not, and snippets from novels. I didn't read stories 2, 5, 15, 20, and 24 as they were excerpts from novels already read or intending to read.

Garry Kilworth - Introduction: Into Your Dreams - 3 stars - good intro.

1. Diana Wynne Jones - The Green Stone - 3 stars

2. Novel excerpt - not read

3. Joan Aiken - A Harp of Fishbones - 3 stars

4. Samantha Lee - The Selkie's Cap - 3 stars (a selkie story).

5. Novel excerpt - not read

6. Ramsey Campbell - The Pit of Wings

7. Parke Godwin - A Spell for Annalise - 3 stars

8. Paul Lewis - The Secret of Faerie

9. Richard Leander - The Invisible Kingdon

10. Simon Clark - The Bone Beast

11. Elisabeth Waters - Ice Princess

12. Ian Watson - The Wild Hunt

13. Cherith Baldry - The Door to Dark Albion - 3 stars

14. Peter Crowther - The Fairy Trap - 2 stars

15. Novel excerpt - not read

16. Lionel and Patricia Fanthorpe - A Pattern of Pyramids

17. A. C. Benson - The Closed Window

18. Garry Kilworth - The Goatboy and the Giant - 2 stars

19. Frances M. Hendry - Mirror, Mirror... - 2 stars

20. Novel excerpt - not read

21. Tanith Lee - Sun City - 3 stars (transformation)

22. Jane Yolen - Brother Kenan's Bell - 3 stars

23. Steve Lockley - The Last Card - 2 stars

24. Novel excerpt - not read

25. Keith Taylor - The White Doe - 3 stars (transformation - deer)

26. Nicholas Stuart Gray - Creature of Darkness

27. Neil Gaiman - Troll Bridge - 3 stars (body swap)

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another book I grew up with. It's yellowed with age and contains some authors I really enjoy- Joan Aiken, Diana Wynne Jones, Tanith Lee, Yolen, Tolkien, Lewis, and my favorite- Gaiman. This is the book that introduced me to most of them and I later went on to read more of their work.

Stories about trolls, magic, fairies, princesses, and reimagining of some classic fairy tales. None stand out in my memory especially though. Fantastic fun and short. Great for younger kids too, the print was bigger and the language fairly simple.

[Kayleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read: Troll Bridge, Neil Gaiman.

Loved the Troll, the boy was a little dick.

[Jonathan Huerta · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think that this book was pretty interesting because it had many diffrent stories.