35. Charles de Lint - Memory and Dream

"The Otherworld tends to lurk just out of sight in DeLint's (Moonheart; Spiritwalk) works, waiting for some chink to appear in the facade of his characters' lives and allow its spirits entry. This latest work is no exception; here fantastic creatures gain access to the bohemian village of Newford through the work of Isabelle, a talented young painter. Apprenticing herself to the troll-like master painter Rushkin, Isabelle learns to paint amazing creatures-creations that subsequently take on a (possibly evil) life of their own. When circumstances cause a friend's message to reach out to her from beyond the grave, Isabelle must confront her own delusional revisionist history and decide if she has the strength to use her art, and the courage to do what she must. While Isabelle's delusions and the book's implication that artists are superior beings become somewhat repetitious, DeLint is otherwise in top form here. His multi-voiced, time-shifting narrative (the story spans 20 years) beautifully evokes a sense of creative community, making it almost possible to believe that the rarified aesthetic atmosphere might well be capable of conjuring up a spirit or two." - Amazon.com

I like de Lint's books and with the recent publication of his latest work, Widdershins, I decided to start reading the Newford series of books. I startied with the earliest and I plan on working my way through the series. This book was a pleasant surprise. After the rather unenjoyable Spiritwalk, it was nice to once again read what I expected a de Lint book to be like: full of wonder, fantasical characters, and a good plot. I'm looking forward to the next book in the series.