(3) YA Each of these stories gives its readers a taste of a dark future in which teens must struggle against government and environment in order to survive. Written by prominent YA speculative fiction authors and featuring an excellent bibliography of historical and contemporary dystopian novels, this enjoyable anthology is a helpful reader's advisory resource for novice "dys-lit" fans.

Reviewer: Barratt Miller

(3) YA This well-organized anthology offers nineteen short vampire stories by authors both established (e.g., Ellen Kushner, Neil Gaiman, Melissa Marr, Holly Black) and up-and-coming. The tales, consistently strong and creative, make a refreshing contrast to the current surfeit of one-note YA vampire romance pieces. An introduction by the editors gives a brief history of vampire fiction.

Reviewer: Katie Bircher

(3) YA Illustrated by Charles Vess. This anthology of imaginative short fiction and lyrical poetry about human-to-animal shape-shifters features original stories, re-imagined fairy tales, and retold myths by authors including Jane Yolen, Peter S. Beagle, and Tanith Lee. Familiar shape-changers (such as selkies, swan maidens, and mermen) cavort with more unusual animal-people (e.g., salamanders and bear brides) through settings spanning ancient Greece, frontier United States, and modern-day India.

Reviewer: Katie Bircher

(3) 4-6 Sixteen stories by well-known authors (Garth Nix, Holly Black, Neil Gaiman, Kelly Link, etc.) provide fairy-tale villains' viewpoints, deepening these traditionally two-dimensional characters and giving them distinct voices. From the giantess who tells of Jack's visit to the woman made of candy who uses the same material on her house, these protagonists show that everyone has a story. Reading list.

Reviewer: Shoshana Flax

(3) YA Illustrated by Charles Vess. Twenty-six authors contribute original trickster tales, including Holly Black's humorous contemporary-set "A Reversal of Fortune" about a competitive eating contest with the devil, Carolyn Dunn's sensory-rich poem "Coyote Woman," and the atmospheric wonder fantasy of Jedediah Berry's "The Other Labyrinth." Consistently strong, the volume includes an introduction about tricksters from different literary and cultural traditions. Reading list.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam

(3) YA Illustrated by Charles Vess. Fantasy lovers will dive into this thick volume of short stories. Most of the authors will be more familiar to readers of adult speculative fiction, but with young-adult characters and a wide range of fantastic scenarios--from Tinkerbell tinkering with Captain Hook, to a changeling doing research in a magical version of the New York Public Library--the stories have teen appeal.

Reviewer: Anne St. John

(4) 4-6 Writers including Jane Yolen and Neil Gaiman here recast fairy tales with varying success. Nina Kiriki Hoffman retells "Bluebeard" as a thought-provoking loss-of-innocence story; Will Shetterly's street-talk version of "Little Red Riding Hood" falls flat in the end. Katherine Vaz's "My Swan Sister," about a girl knitting her dying baby sister a sweater, stands out from the others for its depth and emotion.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam

(4) 4-6 Jane Yolen, Patricia A. McKillip, Gregory Maguire, and ten other authors are represented in this collection of stories based on fairy tales both familiar and less so. A few of the stories are heavy-handed and some are only obliquely related to their source material, but in general the imaginative retellings will provide literature and writing classes with food for thought and discussion.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn