The Bestiary: A Modern Bestiary of Untrue Tales

by Ann VanderMeer (Editor), China Miéville (Artist)

A modern bestiary of made-up fantastical creatures organized from A to Z, along with an ampersand and an invisible letter, featuring some of the best and most respected fantasists from around the world, including Karen Lord, Dexter Palmer, Brian Evenson, China Mieville, Felix Gilman, Catherynne M. Valente, Rikki Ducornet, and Karin Lowachee.

Genres: Short Stories, Fantasy, Horror, Anthologies, Fiction, Science Fiction, Weird Fiction

280 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 2015

About the author

Ann VanderMeer is an American publisher and editor, and the second female editor of the horror magazine Weird Tales. She is the founder of Buzzcity Press.

Her work as Fiction Editor of Weird Tales won a Hugo Award. Work from her press and related periodicals has won the British Fantasy Award, the International Rhysling Award, and appeared in several year's best anthologies. Ann was also the founder of The Silver Web magazine, a periodical devoted to experimental and avant-garde fantasy literature.

In 2009 "Weird Tales edited by Ann VanderMeer and Stephen H. Segal" won a Hugo Award for Best Semiprozine. Though some of its individual contributors have been honored with Hugos, Nebula Awards, and even one Pulitzer Prize, the magazine itself had never before even been nominated for a Hugo. It was also nominated for a World Fantasy Award in 2009.

Reviews

[karen]

once upon a time i spent a lot of money on this book. i should probably read it.

&: Ampersand - Karin Lowachee
A: The Auricle - Gio Clairval
B: Bartleby’s Typewriter - Corey Redekop
C: The Counsellor Crow - Karen Lord
D: Daydreamer by Proxy - Dexter Palmer
E: Enkantong-bato - Dean Francis Alfar
F: The Figmon - Michael Cisco
G: The Guest - Brian Conn
H: Hadrian’s Sparrikan - Stephen Graham Jones
I: Ible - Brian Evenson
J: Jason Bug - Joseph Nigg
K: The Karmantid - Karen Heuler
L: The Liwat’ang Yawa and the Litok-litok - Rochita Loenin-Ruiz
M: Mosquito Boy - Felix Gilman
N: Nothus Barathruma - Reza Negarestani
O: Orsinus Liborum - Catherynne M. Valente
P: Pyret - Karin Tidbeck
Q: Quintus - Michal Ajvaz
R: Rapacis X. Loco Signa - Lisa L. Hannett
S: Snafu - Micaela Morrissette
T: Tongues of Moon Toad - Cat Rambo
U: The Ugly-Nest Rat - Eric Schaller
V: The Vanda - Rikki Ducornet
W: Weialalaleia - Amal El-Mohtar
X: The Xaratan - Rhys Hughes
Y: Yakshantariksh - Vandana Singh
Z: Zee - Richard Howard
The . - China Miéville

[Karl]

Contents:

007 - Introduction by Jeff VanderMeer
013 - "&: Ampersand" by Karin Lowachee
024 - "A: The Auricle" by Gio Clairval
033 - "B: Bartleby’s Typewriter" by Corey Redekop
043 - "C: The Counsellor Crow" by Karen Lord
053 - "D: Daydreamer by Proxy" by Dexter Palmer
065 - "E: Enkantong-bato" by Dean Francis Alfar
071 - "F: The Figmon" by Michael Cisco
081 - "G: The Guest" by Brian Conn
089 - "H: Hadrian’s Sparrikan" by Stephen Graham Jones
099 - "I: Ible" by Brian Evenson
107 - "J: Jason Bug" by Joseph Nigg
113 - "K: The Karmantid" by Karen Heuler
119 - "L: The Liwat’ang Yawa and the Litok-litok" by Rochita Loenin-Ruiz
129 - "M: Mosquito Boy" by Felix Gilman
139 - "N: Nothus Barathruma" by Reza Negarestani
147 - "O: Orsinus Liborum" by Catherynne M. Valente
153 - "P: Pyret" by Karin Tidbeck
177 - "Q: Quintus" by Michal Ajvaz
187 - "R: Rapacis X. Loco Signa" by L.L. Hannett
197 - "S: Snafu "by Micaela Morrissette
203 - "T: Tongues of Moon Toad" by Cat Rambo
211 - "U: The Ugly-Nest Rat" by Eric Schaller
219 - "V: The Vanga" by Rikki Ducornet
223 - "W: Weialalaleia" by Amal El-Mohtar
235 - "X: The Xaratan" by Rhys Hughes
247 - "Y: Yakshantariksh" by Vandana Singh
255 - "Z: Zee" by Richard Howard
265 - ":" China Miéville
273 - Contributor Bios

[ECH · Rating 4 out of 5]

It has that rare "one more potato chip" quality that I long for in anthologies.

[Katie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this book primarily because Karin Lowachee contributed to it and her Warchild series are my favorite books in the world. Also, as a ecology major and all around nerd, I thought the idea of a fantasy bestiary sounded awesome. Unfortunately, I feel like it failed to live up to my expectations. The whole book had a strange tone to it-dark for the sole purpose of being dark (excluding Lowachee's story, which read more like an actual naturalist observation-well written, but not all that exciting, unfortunately).

Excluding a handful of stories, all the stories seemed to be rather dark and fatalistic, as if the authors thought beasts are only interesting if they have tragic stories associated with them, or are a menace to society or themselves. Some of the stories were creative, but honestly, I'm not a fan of darkness for the sake of darkness, and I wish there were a few lighthearted entries to break up the monotony.

On the whole, I don't want to say that the book was bad, because I think it just ended up not being my cup of tea, and I'm still not entirely sure why. I love short stories, I love fantasy and I love animals, so I don't know why putting them together inexplicably did not work for me. I'm beginning to think that when it comes to imaginary creatures, perhaps less is more. I think that a lot of these creatures would have packed more of a punch as a mysterious, semi-explained feature in an actual story. I think what didn't work for me was the abundance of explanation and the fact that, although some of the entries contained stories, these entries were not really short stories, but rather part story, part scientific observation, part diary, and entirely confusing.

I know this sounds negative, but I don't want to discourage people from reading it. If this is your thing, you'll really really like it, but a combination of my own personal preferences and my mood when I read it just made it not work for me personally.

[Jenny (Reading Envy)]

Stealing Karl's contents list so I can comment on the stories:

007 - Introduction by Jeff VanderMeer
013 - "&: Ampersand" by Karin Lowachee
024 - "A: The Auricle" by Gio Clairval
033 - "B: Bartleby’s Typewriter" by Corey Redekop
043 - "C: The Counsellor Crow" by Karen Lord
053 - "D: Daydreamer by Proxy" by Dexter Palmer
065 - "E: Enkantong-bato" by Dean Francis Alfar
071 - "F: The Figmon" by Michael Cisco
081 - "G: The Guest" by Brian Conn
089 - "H: Hadrian’s Sparrikan" by Stephen Graham Jones
099 - "I: Ible" by Brian Evenson
107 - "J: Jason Bug" by Joseph Nigg
113 - "K: The Karmantid" by Karen Heuler
119 - "L: The Liwat’ang Yawa and the Litok-litok" by Rochita Loenin-Ruiz
129 - "M: Mosquito Boy" by Felix Gilman
139 - "N: Nothus Barathruma" by Reza Negarestani
147 - "O: Orsinus Liborum" by Catherynne M. Valente
153 - "P: Pyret" by Karin Tidbeck
177 - "Q: Quintus" by Michal Ajvaz
187 - "R: Rapacis X. Loco Signa" by L.L. Hannett
197 - "S: Snafu "by Micaela Morrissette
203 - "T: Tongues of Moon Toad" by Cat Rambo
211 - "U: The Ugly-Nest Rat" by Eric Schaller
219 - "V: The Vanga" by Rikki Ducornet
223 - "W: Weialalaleia" by Amal El-Mohtar
235 - "X: The Xaratan" by Rhys Hughes
247 - "Y: Yakshantariksh" by Vandana Singh
255 - "Z: Zee" by Richard Howard
265 - ":" China Miéville
273 - Contributor Bios

[Drew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Conceptually brilliant, Ann VanderMeer has curated a top-notch collection of some of the strangest creatures you've never heard of, described and codified by some of the best of the best in this weird world. Some entries are more successful than others - the ones that veer too far into the structurally-weird lose the playfulness of the prompt and are ultimately forgettable, while the ones that hew closest to the expected form tend to be the most memorable - but the whole thing is a delight for lovers of cryptozoology, the Weird, and short stories that aren't quite like any other shorts you've read. A must-have for any explorer, even the most ordinary ones.

More at RB: http://ragingbiblioholism.com/2015/12...

(and get The Bestiary along with zounds of other awesome Weird stuff in this month's Storybundle, thru 12/31: www.storybundle.com/fiction)

[Dayna Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bestiary is a collection of descriptions of animals, usually fantastical ones. Bestiaries trace their origins to Ancient Greece, but rose to popularity in the Middle Ages. VanderMeer has drawn together quite a collection of authors to create entries for this little volume. The beasts are indeed fantastical, some hilariously so, and the illustrations are beautifully drawn. A wonderful way to fill a couple of hours of your time.

[Dan'l Danehy-Oakes · Rating 3 out of 5]

What a peculiar little book.

It is a series of 28 descriptions of various imaginary beasts, ranging from the silly to the chilling to the just plain out-there.

Yes, 28. One for each letter of the alphabet, plus one for "&" and one for " ".

Plus, bonus! brief beasts after each main beast, most of which are riffs on the name of the writer of the main beast.

As one would expect, a few specific not-exactly-stories stand out for me. "Bartleby's Typewriter", by Corey Redekop, is a parable on the negative side of camouflage. "Orsinus Liborum", by Catherine M. Valente, is about, well, a type of bear that eats books. And " " by China Miéville, is about absence and presence in a rather postmodern mode.

A few stories - I'll not name names, as others would undoubtedly enjoy them more than I did - were a bit of a slog for me. But most were enjoyable, in the same way one enjoyed the old Analog column (or whatever it was) "Probability Zero:" realistic speculations on ideas that are, on the face of it, ridiculous.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'd like to preface this review by saying that if you're thinking of getting the book, spring for the hardcover/physical edition; the ebook doesn't include the pictures. Plus, as I type this, it's massively discounted on Amazon.

I was only interested in this book for the Valente short story, but ultimately I'm glad I picked it up. Not every story was a winner, very few were actually memorable to me, but I had enough fun to justify the read. I had no quarrel with the entries that just detailed the titular creatures, but I really enjoyed the entries that turned the creatures into stories, however some entries began that way and then sort of veered off to explain the reality the creature inhabited instead of the titular creature.

Of course I loved the Valente story, and I also really liked the Weialalaleia and The Daydreamer By Proxy. While I enjoyed it enough to give it three stars, I think I need to revisit it, with illustrations, to really be able to appreciate it.

[David Macpherson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a slow read. It took me a yaer of off and on reading to get through this, but it was worth it for the most part. IT had nearly 30 short stories about fantastical creatures. Some of the pieces didn't work, but the ones that did were wonderful. The Library Bear story written by Valente was amazing. And there were a few others, like the one about the carrion birds that can force people to go to war so there can be more dead bodies to feast upon, was almost as good. IT was a nice book to slowly wade through. It was a way to be acquainted with a few great writers I never heard of before.

[Eleanore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating concept for a collection, and a fun read for any fan of exercises with stretching bizarre ideas as far as the imagination might allow. With the episodic nature of the entries, coupled with the fantastic illustrations, I was reminded of the classic (original edition of) "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark" trilogy. Dexter Palmer's entry for "D" is worth the price of admission alone, but I found myself smiling often throughout.

[Pádraic · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not every story in this is flawless, of course, but there are really only one or two stumbles, and them only minor ones. Even then, the whole conceit of the collection is something I find so fascinating--how much of my childhood was spent making my own bestiaries?--that I couldn't help but devour this with utter delight.

Really wish I had the hardcopy edition, as it's apparently got illustrations--by China Miéville!--but it's unfortunately too rich for my blood.

[Daisy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A collection of wonderful beasts for the modern fears.

[Aaron · Rating 5 out of 5]

The quality of these stories varies, but the best are amazing -- I loved the ones by Dexter Palmer and Karin Tidbeck, for example. This book is also a beautiful artifact.

[Dan Schuna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wildly varying quality but the vast majority of entries are well worth the time. Dexter Palmer's Daydreamer By Proxy is now one of my all time favorite pieces of fiction.

[Molly Ison · Rating 2 out of 5]

It seemed like a great idea by an editor whose other anthologies I've enjoyed and with stories by authors whose other works I've enjoyed, but it's no coincidence that it took me so long to read. Perhaps the format was too constrained, for almost every story began to take on a mindnumbing sameness, regardless of how different in detail.

[Brannigan · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was alright not the best I’ve seen. The binding and book production is amazing.