The Line Between
by Peter S Beagle
(Tachyon, $14.95, 231 pages; trade paperback, published in August
2006.)
 In
his story collection The Line Between, fantasist Peter S. Beagle
leaves no doubt that he is, first and foremost, a novelist. With a few
exceptions -- most notably, four short fables -- the stories in this
volume yearn for the space and scope of novels. Beagle himself often
mentions that novel versions are in the works.
Nevertheless, although some tales feel somewhat incomplete, they display
a deep sense of empathy, evocative imaginative flourishes, and a wry
wit.
'Two Hearts" -- a poignant meeting between a young girl who is
awakening to the hero within herself and an aged king who must perform
his final heroic deed -- is a return to the world of his classic novel
The Last Unicorn.
"Gordon, the Self-Made Cat" is a clever and hilarious tale
of a mouse who decides to become a cat.
"A Dance for Emilia" -- an explicitly semi-autobiographical
tale -- regrettably also ventures into fantasy. The beginning, told
in realist mode, is quite moving and effective, but after the death
of one of the protagonists the tale degenerates into an embarrassingly
silly and maudlin ghost story in which the dead man possesses the body
of his aged cat.
In the collection's strongest story, "Salt Wine", Beagle
creates a world only slightly askew from our own -- the main difference
being the existence of merfolk. Emotionally intense, rich with world-building
details, and recounted in a stirring voice, this tale of a sailor's
deal-gone-wrong with a merman is as wildly inventive as it is dark and
creepy.
Originally published in
The Montreal Gazette, Saturday, 2 September 2006.
Claude Lalumière's Fantastic Fiction
is a series of
capsule reviews first published in the Saturday Books
section of The Montreal Gazette.
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