Monday, March 15, 2010

Firebirds Soaring: An Anthology of Original Speculative Fiction

November, Sharyn, Ed. 2009. FIREBIRDS SOARING: AN ANTHOLOGY OF ORIGINAL SPECULATIVE FICTION. Ill. by Mike Dringenberg. New York: Penguin. ISBN 0142405523 [Suggested Grade Levels 9- 12]

REVIEW
This is the third anthology in the Firebird series, the first being FIREBIRDS, the second FIREBIRDS RISING, and now FIREBIRDS SOARING. It contains 19 original stories, ranging from fantasy to science fiction. From “Kingmaker” by Nancy Springer which starts out “Destiny, I discovered upon a fateful day in my fifteenth year, can manifest in small matters,” to “Something Worth Doing” by Elizabeth Wein about a girl who tries to make her brother’s life mean something, the reader is kept enthralled. This collection of speculative fiction includes a wide variety of themes.

Readers who enjoy this genre will find plenty of stories in this collection to excite their reading fancies. This is a very enjoyable and compelling collection.

CONNECTIONS
This would be a great choice for a book discussion, looking at similarities in themes among the different stories. Different stories could also be compared with similar speculative fiction novels. Specifically, comparisons could be made between the stories and fairy tales or folk tales.

RELATED BOOKS
Other FIREBIRD anthologies:
November, Sharyn, Ed. FIREBIRDS: AN ANTHOLOGY OF ORIGINAL FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION. ISBN 0142403202
November, Sharyn, Ed. FIREBIRDS RISING: AN ANTHOLOGY OF ORIGINAL SCIENCE FICTION AND FANTASY. ISBN 0142409367

By Kaye E. Bray

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