Four For Fantasy

by Brian W. Aldiss, Joanne Harris, Joe Hill

A quartet of fantastical stories collected for World FantasyCon 2013 Brian Aldiss - The Worm That Flies Joanne Harris - Waiting for Gandalf Joe Hill - Pop Art Richard Christian Matheson - City of Dreams

Genres: Fantasy, Anthologies

76 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 2013

About the author

Pseudonyms: Jael Cracken, Peter Pica, John Runciman, C.C. Shackleton, Arch Mendicant, & "Doc" Peristyle.

Brian Wilson Aldiss was one of the most important voices in science fiction writing today. He wrote his first novel while working as a bookseller in Oxford. Shortly afterwards he wrote his first work of science fiction and soon gained international recognition. Adored for his innovative literary techniques, evocative plots and irresistible characters, he became a Grand Master of Science Fiction in 1999.
Brian Aldiss died on August 19, 2017, just after celebrating his 92nd birthday with his family and closest friends.

Brian W. Aldiss Group on Good Reads

Reviews

[Paul Barnes · Rating 1 out of 5]

[PS Publishing Ltd] (October 2013). 1/1. HB. 76 Pages. Purchased from Cold Tonnage Books.

Brian Aldiss - “The Worm that Flies” (1968). [3/10]
Somewhat overwrought. Challenging to fathom out. Not sure it’s worth the effort, but…

Joanne Harris - “Waiting for Gandalf” (2004) [0/10]
Failed humour. The ‘twist’ can be seen a mile off. The author’s clearly smitten with “catharsis” (+variants) - favourite word, perhaps. Rubbish.

Joe Hill - “Pop Art” (2001) [2/10]
Poor. I didn’t see it coming. Ace writer. Perhaps he bet Harris a chip supper that he could produce the worst short story? He lost by a mile but had a good crack at it.


Richard Christian Matheson - “City of Dreams” (2000) [2/10]
Oooof…

A terrible collection.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of four stories by for authors. With Brian Aldiss and Richard Christian Matheson on the cover I was pleasantly surprised that Joe Hill delivered the best story, with a story that was as funny as the title was punny. From Aldiss we get a more meditative piece, that I wasn't able to reach epiphany with. Matheson delivers a creepy and entertaining set piece about a mysterious neighbor. The remaining story is by Joanne Harris that is a bit of kvetching by a seasoned LARPer. Not a topic I was predisposed to. To Harris's credit, she provides some depth to the characters and a wrinkle or two...but just no.

[Cate Gardner · Rating 2 out of 5]

Four for Fantasy, a PS Publishing anthology featuring stories by Brian Aldiss, Joanne Harris, Joe Hill and Richard Christian Matheson, was released at the World Fantasy Convention in 2013. I might have picked the book up there but I suspect it came in a goodie bag at another convention a few years later.

This collection didn't quite work for me, despite containing one of my favourite Joe Hill stories, Pop Art. I'm sure your mileage will vary.

[Angela Maher · Rating 5 out of 5]

These four stories have been well-chosen in that they help demonstrate the range fantasy stories can cover, as well as being intriguing, interesting stories in their own right.

[Wren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Purchased mostly for the Joe Hill story, which did not disappoint.
Overall collection is three stars for me but I do like how each story shows a different side of fantasy and the range within is well curated.