Book of Ballads by Charles Vess

From Barnes & Noble

Two-time World Fantasy Award-winning artist Charles Vess and an all-star cast of contemporary fantasists join forces in this unique reworking of ballads, folktales, and magical sagas. The selections offer a new slant on old favorites: Neil Gaiman retells "The False Knight on the Road"; Jane Yolen offers her version of "King Henry" and "The Great Selchie of Sule Skerrie"; Charles de Lint reworks "Twa Corbies"; Jeff Smith updates "The Galtee Farmer"; and mystery author Sharyn McCrumb reimagines "Thomas the Rhymer." As a special feature, The Book of Ballad contains the full lyrics and discographies of the classic versions of these songs and tales.

From the Publisher

Illustrated and presented by one of the leading artists in modern fantasy, here are the great songs and folktales of the English, Irish, and Scottish traditions, re-imagined in sequential-art form, in collaboration with some of today's strongest fantasy writers.

Here are New York Times bestseller Neil Gaiman with "The False Knight on the Road"; popular mystery author Sharyn McCrumb's version of "Thomas the Rhymer"; acclaimed children's writer Jane Yolen with "King Henry" and "The Great Selchie of Sule Skerrie"; popular novelist Charles de Lint's contemporary reworking of "Twa Corbies"; Bone creator Jeff Smith with "The Galtee Farmer"; Emma Bull's version of "The Black Fox," and much, much more.

Introduced by award-winning editor and writer Terri Windling, and finished with full lyrics and discographies of the classic versions of these songs and tales, The Book of Ballads is an event in the worlds of fantasy and graphic storytelling alike.

Publishers Weekly

Ballads were little known to the literate world until the 18th century, when scholars began writing them down. Since then, they've received attention from folklorists, folksingers and, now, cartoonist Vess (Stardust; Rose). Vess and his collaborators put a little meat on the ballads' often bare-bones stories, adding fantastic elements not in the originals ("Barbara Allen"), giving them modern settings ("Twa Corbies"), sexing them up ("Savoy") and otherwise putting their own mark on them. Vess approaches them with an appropriately elegant style. His exquisitely detailed art delightfully recalls the Pre-Raphaelites here, Aubrey Beardsley there and elsewhere Winsor McCay or Gustave Dor . The best stories involve passion, whether celebrated ("King Henry" and "Savoy") or cautioned against ("The Demon Lover" and "The Three Lovers"), though even the least effective stories are still beautiful. "The Three Lovers" is especially noteworthy; in it, Vess makes clever, subversive use of comics language, presenting a story that pretends to be a play (complete with proscenium arch). "Tam Lin" may be the collection's consummate piece. In it, Vess goes for straight illustration, with each illustrated page facing a page of verse. Here Vess reaches the peak of his art, standing proudly with the 19th- and early 20th-century illustrators who influence him. (Dec.) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Jennifer Feigelman - KLIATT

Compiled and illustrated by Charles Vess, this volume employs the writing talents of such authors as Neil Gaiman, Jane Yolen and Charles de Lint. Each entry in this work is an interpretation of either a Scottish, Irish or English ballad; some stay true to the linguistic structure, while some of the pieces are more interpretive. Gaiman's adaptation of "The False Knight on the Road" simplifies the heavily accented original form of the ballad, though it remains faithful to the basic storyline. Emma Bull's "The Black Fox" utilizes a more contemporary vernacular in its form, though like Gaiman's piece it stays true to the themes of the ballad, capturing its essence. With a different author of every ballad, Vess's line-driven art acts as a cohesive element for the volume. The art is consistent throughout the work, but the format of the stories is not; some are in a traditional comic panel format, and some are akin to picture-book conventions. While compelling, this volume may not have a wide appeal to teens due to the complexity of the subject matter, and some heavily sensual scenes may keep it out of some collections. Recommend this to more mature fans of Eureka's Graphic Classics series or those specifically interested in songs of the United Kingdom. KLIATT Codes: SA—Recommended for senior high school students, advanced students, and adults. 2006, Tor, 192p. illus., Ages 15 to adult.

Product Details

• ISBN: 0765312158
  
• ISBN-13: 9780765312150
• Format: Paperback, 192pp
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press
• Pub. Date: February 2006
• Edition Description: Reprint
• Sales Rank: 618,618

• Table of Contents

Table of Contents