There’s a nice review of Alix E Harrow’s Slantwise Histories in the latest Locus by Gary K Wolfe
It might seem a bit pretentious to describe Alix E. Harrow’s work as “critical fictions” – stories that comment on their own traditions, and sometimes on specific source texts – but there’s nothing pretentious at all about the fun she seems to be having with it. The Ten Thousand Doors of January is, among other things, a shrewd investigation of the whole tradition of portal fantasies, while The Once and Future Witches explores both the possibilities of historical fantasy and the now-familiar trope of witchcraft as empowerment. Starling House revisits the haunted house tale, and the “fractured fables” (A Mirror Mended and A Spindle Splintered) are witty reconstructions (or deconstructions) of classic fairy tales. The Slantwise Histories brings together most of Harrow’s shorter work, along with five stories original to the collection, and as the title suggests (intentionally or not), it reflects Harrow’s Emily Dickinson-like approach to telling the truth, but telling it slant. Again, there are sidewise looks at fairy tales, history, witches, and ghosts, along with a couple of cool librarians and even a wry nod to O. Henry.
