The Line Between

Peter S. Beagle makes me cry a lot. Normally, I don't read books to cry, but it's okay when he does it... I guess? This collection of short stories made me cry twice, once in Two Hearts (an epilogue to the Last Unicorn) and once during A Dance for Emilia, a story that so perfectly captures the length and depth of the grieving process my heart broke several times. A lot of the stories reference other past Beagle works (Two Hearts, Quarry), potential future Beagle works (el Regalo), and even some Sherlock Holmes fanfiction (Mr. Sigurson). I'm not sure the status on those future works, but I wait ever upon new words from this man. He has such range, poetry, and subtle humor in all his stories. Also, he understands the differences between dogs and cats and can write both equally well. It's a little thing, but it's very important to me.

Within this collection, Two Hearts was definitely my favorite, although I'm extremely biased towards it. I also liked Salt Wine, because dark twists on mer-people tales are always fun. I prefer the more fantastical stories to the more mainstream, but I can't deny the quality of both. Recommended to all who like short trips into amazing worlds.