Elves Books

Written for children ages 3 to 9, "Santa's Christmas Train" is a delightful and original story answering the age-old question of why toy and electric trains are to be found under the tree each Christmas morning. Lionel is Santa's smallest helper and in his efforts to help Santa and his reindeer move such a heavy load of toys one Christmas night comes upon a surprising solution -- if only he can convince Santa! "Santa's Christmas Train" is a welcome and highly entertaining addition to any youngster's Christmas morning!

Recommended for ages 3-9, "Santa's Christmas Train",
tells the story of Santa and how Lionel's Christmas train
came to be.
Lionel the elf misunderstood Santa's instruction. He
thought Santa wanted him to build a 100-foot train--so he
built one. But Santa wanted him to build 100, foot-long
trains!
Lionel didn't know what to do. He didn't like disappointing
Santa. And it was too late to do fix the problem; it was
Christmas Eve. But because of the weather, Santa wasn't
going anywhere soon. That's when Lionel had an idea!
Readers will soon find out why Lionel's Christmas train
ends up becoming a favorite toy for children around the
world and how this one little elf ends up saving Christmas!
Author Joseph Caro, feels that "Santa's Christmas Train"
answers the question of why families have continued the
tradition of placing a train under the tree. Caro wrote this
book hoping that it will teach children to not feel
discouraged when things go wrong and to keep trying--it
will lead to success!
This reviewer feels Caro has accomplished his hopes and
highly recommends his delightful book for any age.
"Santa's Christmas Train" would make a wonderful book to
read to your children on the night before Christmas.

(...)

"Santa's Christmas Train" is a delightful story that I wish had been available when my daughters were still children! The story is a new one and unique. The book is brilliantly illustrated by Lin Shih with the charachters and the coloring jumping off each page. The dialogue is easy to follow which will make it easy for young children to enjoy. I like the idea of a page at the front of the book for kids to color and the line where they can put their name in the book. This book will be perfect for the holiday season!

Santa is busy readying for Christmas. However, Santa is having a problem with one of his elves. Lionel, a scattered brained elf, gets confused and builds Santa a hundred foot long train instead of one hundred foot long trains. Maybe this blunder will come in handy when a storm rolls into the North Pole threatening to cancel Christmas.

Santa's Christmas Train is a sweet twist on a traditional story complete with charming full color illustrations. Your young children will laugh at the silliness of Lionel's blunder and cheer when the scatter brained elf saves the day. This book will quickly become part of your holiday traditions. Santa's Christmas Train is also available as a 32 page holiday coloring book so your child can create his or her own colourful images.

There's lots of sketches throughout the book.
The print font is pretty neat in that they used one that looks like handwriting.

Comprehension level is about medium because alot of it is expressed in the tongue of 1600's time period. Sometimes it reads a bit awkward because of the expressions being written in a reversed type manner of thought.

This is written in first person of Kirk's ventures in faerieland and eventual move to there. It's presented as a true account and still today is discussed in the region of it's origin as a factual report of his experiences and/or disappearance.

It's filled with faerie fluff and magic of the faerieland. His descriptions are really visual and sure not to disappoint a believer.

This book would be a fine edition to any fae fancier's collection.
;)

This is a must read for all believers in the lands of Fae, Elves, Mermaids etcetera. Being written by a Reverand of Old in Scotland, it's truly a find for this era. It's the Reverand Kirk's actual Journal of all he experienced by falling into Faeryland! It's contents clearly describe much of what one could hope to find in the Land of Fae, if they had the chance. Reading it made me feel like I was there. It made me feel so good inside to know what it was like there. Every page made me more excited to read on about a land which has unfortunately seemed to have disappeared in this age from the minds of most. It is beautifully put together as well. You won't be disappointed. I recently saw it at Barnes & Noble 1/16/07, in the bargain book section for $7. Good Luck.

This book is a catastrophe in my opinion. It seems the author, John Matthews, who is an excellent scholar in Celtic matters, has decided to paraphrase a bit of what Robert Kirk wrote in his original secret commonwealth of elves, leprochauns, and fairies, while adding a bunch of stuff which he avers he received ""from the Sidhe themselves" in some sort of channeling? Trance? He doesn't really say.

Frankly, being a fan of the original work by Robert Kirk, which he maligns in his pseudo-paraphrased-fictionalized work, John Matthews has besmirched a work of incalculable value. After suggesting in a fictional part of the book that Robert Kirk's manuscript has been largely corrupted by later scholars, he goes on to write of Robert Kirk's experiences which bear very little resemblance to the original account. I wish I had never bought it.

excellent little book. i visit and live close to alot of old stone circles and spend alot of time in what some would calm contemplation.
a little after reading the book in 2005 i happened to be on the north face of scheahallion around the summer solstice. where to my puzzlement there appeared to be rock formations that looked like giant plough marks.
immedietly the the thought crossed my mind, where in the journal the sithe or "kee" as the informant was known mention that signs of their agriculture can still be seen on the high hills.
had the privilege of visiting the faery mound at aberfoyle and had a peek at the good revrends apparent grave, the house that he stayed in is just beautiful.
yet there are plenty of mounds around scotland and the earth for that matter. i would suggest reading it in conjuction with, the lemurian scrolls, srimad bagavatam and dream yoga of chogyal namkhai norbu

Lorwyn is a very good book if you play Magic the Gathering and have started playing the new block of cards (Lorwyn and Morningtide). The book brings the cards to life because the book explains the background for many of the cards. For example, the faerie and flamekin cards. Also, Syyg the merrow boatsman.

For fantasy readers who are not playing the Magic card game, I consider this simply average overall. The plot moves along nicely enough, a couple of the characters are well-developed (especially the flamekin) but the main character (Rhys the elf) falls very flat and there are many places in the plot where the reader just needs to accept what is happening without much (if any) explanation.

I love playing Magic so I'll read the next book (Morningtide) but if you don't play Magic, you probably want to spend your valuable reading time on something else.

I have been reading SF&F for 40 years, and although I have gamed a few times this is the first one in the RPG sub-genre that I have read. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. While not up to the standards of McCaffrey, Norton or other greats, Herndon and McGough show definite promise. The story is different enough from the usual ones about elves to keep my interest and even to invest in the next book in the cycle. I definately want to see where they take this. If the authors can maintain their good start, and get a much better editor and proofreafer, they could easily make it into the "mainstream" of SF&F.

Most MTG book I find on the boring side. This book was not. In fact, it was hard to put down. More so than most MTG novels, this novel really gives us the feel of Lorwyn, including the attitudes of the various races. The elves come across as Nazis, even so far as their desire to commit genocide on boggarts and total control over all others, not liking even the other green-aligned races. Giants come as singular of thought. Faeries reminded me of the old Corax wereravens of Werewolf: the Apocalypse, with their gregarious and inquisitive nature, although with a slight malevolent twist. The nature of flamekin, as depicted by Ashling, really helps to delineate this new race. The kithkin were the least interesting of the races; their groupthink could have been better shown, although the telepathy depicted was a solid plot device.

Definitely a recommended read. 5 for Magic players, and a mild 4 for others.

Book Review- Danger is Sweet.
By: Cornelia Amiri

Motivated by revenge, a Pict Princess has come to kill the Scottish King, Kenneth McAlpin.

Bethoc believes her father and betrothed were murdered in McAlpin's treason, but she's unaware of what really happened that day. None the less, she sets out to avenge their deaths.

She didn't intend to get caught.

Instead of having her executed as was his right, the Scots King gives Bethoc to his cousin Malcolm as a reward for his loyal service.

Bethoc is determined not to marry any Scot, even if Malcolm is ruggedly handsome. She accepts her fate resigning herself to the fact that her only other option is death.

Is marrying a Scot, a fate worth than death?

But Malcolm has other plans. Skilled with a bow and sword, Malcolm deduces that Bethoc would be a help to him when he takes the `Stone of Destiny' to Scone- the home of the Picts.

So they handfast.

Malcolm tells Bethoc not to fret because as soon as the year is over, he will be leaving Scone going back to `the world with no men and no women,' and she will be returned to her own people, free to wed whomever she chooses. But, Malcolm can't help admiring the fiery Princess, and she seems to be accepting him as well.

Their friendship turns to love. But it can never be - a secret- one that could destroy any bonds they may form, looms between them.

Can they overcome this obstacle? Because no Viking Warrior, or a calling to the sea could destroy their love.

Or could it?

You'll have to read to find out!

Ms. Amiri pens a story of true love, and the sacrifices people are willing to make to keep it!

I give this story *** stars!!!!

DANGER IS SWEET is a story of one my favorite times in history; the Celtic era. Cornelia Amiri has obviously done her research into this subject before ever setting pen to paper, or fingers to keyboard, whichever the case may be. Every time I pick up one of Cornelia's books and begin reading, I learn something new about this period in history. Cornelia brings this period to life as we follow our hero and heroine through the beginning of their "forced" hand fasting. I really love the paranormal element woven throughout this story as we discover the secret Malcolm is holding close. This is a wonderful story and I highly recommend it to all lovers of anything Celtic." Reviewed by Chere at Paranormal Romance Reviews

"UOUS" by Tanith Lee. Unable to handle being the stepdaughter and stepsister since her dad died, she turns to a handsome fairy prince for solace; he grants her three wishes, but expects remittance.

"Grace Notes" by Megan Lindholm. Bachelor Jeff enjoys his lifestyle until the anal brownie insists that cleanliness is Godliness. Needing help to rid himself of this cleaning freak, Jeff turns to Maisy to help him evict the nuisance.

"The Gypsies of the Wood" by Kim Newman. In rural late Victorian England, two children disappear in the woods leading to a search for them. They are found, but the boy has aged into an old man while the girl behaves like a young child.

"The Kelpie" by Patricia A. McKillip. The artists' colony contains talented individuals jealous of one another. Ned and Emma seem to desire each other, but both fears the ridicule of failure until the kelpie step in.

"An Embarrassment of Elves" by Craig Shaw Gardner. Wuntvor, wizard sidekick, and his friends attend an elven party whereFritz and the dark riders crash the gala.

"Except the Queen" by Jane Yolen and Midori Snyder. The fairy exiles the two sisters, Meteora and Serana, forcing the siblings to live in the human smog city. Though each swore not to intervene, they get involved with two teens under magical assault.

THE FAIR FOLK is a fun fairy driven fantasy anthology containing six charming stories that sub-genre fans will enjoy, yet feel somewhat unsatisfied as if each entry fell a bit short. The contributions are suburb when the plot dwells on cross species miscommunication, but feels pressing at times to insure the inclusion in a significant way of the supernatural entities. Not the best work of these renowned authors, but readers will enjoy hobnobbing with the FAIR FOLK.

Harriet Klausner

This is a really good collection of short stories that tie together the worlds of fantasy and reality. All the stories focus on a character, or characters, in the modern world, who come in contact with the realm of fairy. The stories also show a differnt side of "The Fair Folk." They are not always kind and benevolent, and can often be cruel and evil. Very well written.

This book is one in Time Life Books' The Enchanted World series. Each of these books covers a different aspect of folklore and mythology, and they are an excellent set. They tell stories in a similar format and complement each other well without repeating the content. Each is about 140 pages.

This is a beautifully illustrated well printed volume. Artists include Mark Hess, Alicia Austin, Winslow Pinney Pels, James C Christensen, Yvonne Gilbert, Wyne Anderson, Lucy Maxym, Kinuko Y Craft and Jozef Sumichrast. Older depictions of fairies and elves are common, including work by John Atkinson Grimshaw, Edmund Dulac, John Anster Fitzgerald, Daniel Maclise, Moritz von Schwind, Joseph Noel Patton and of course John Waterhouse.

Stories are retold in a style that makes for a good read. These stories come from all over the world. Often there will be smaller illustrations and captions in the margins to the main story. These tell variations of the story and related stories from other cultures.

This is a beautifully bound and printed book. The binding is just cloth to collectors, but it is printed to look like a wizard's book. The cover shows a dragon holding a picture of a fairy rising out of a lake. I think it was the cover that got me reading this when I was child (this would be for older children because of the spooky nature).

Chapters include:
Lands behind Enchantment's Veil: A world in miniature
Guardians of Field and Forest: The myrtle tree's tenant
Of Fairy Raids and Mortal Missteps: Tam Lin
The Heart's Far-Carrying Call: Trials of a Charmed Passion

This is a well researched nicely produced series. For me one book in the series (This very book!!) had me hooked. If you are interested in mythology and all things magic then it is definitely worth trying out the series. High school and middle school libraries should consider the series. Some books might cause issues since they are about the occult, but some like The Legend of Camelot book will be completely Kosher.

This book does a nice job of combining illustrations, general facts, short folk tales, and longer tales. Though it provides a great number of examples of fairy and elf tales from around the world (mostly European, of course) it does NOT provide useful tables or lists of names for similar creatures. Also, the book does not give meaningful overviews or summaries comparing and contrasting tales from different cultures.

It's part of a beautiful series from Time-Life books but is not a complete reference source.

I picked up the 1st of this series at a local comic book store, and have not been able to put the series down! The art work is good, and the story line is humorous as well as slightly demented. I do however, recommend starting the series from the beginning so as to understand whats going on. I only wish there was more out of the series!

Since you're checking out the Amazon listing for the 4th volume in the Poison Elves saga, I'll assume you're familiar with the series and the twisted genius that is Drew Hayes. If you're not familiar with Poison Elves, you're probably better off checking out Poison Elves Vol. 1 (Requiem for an Elf) (Poison Elves) or even Poison Elves, Volume Five: Sanctuary (Poison Elves), both of which are good jumping-on points for new readers.

This brief volume collects the final two issues of the original Poison Elves series, and can be seen as a quick "road trip" interlude between the events chronicled in Poison Elves, Vol. 3 (Desert of the Third Sin) (Poison Elves) and the major Sanctuary storyline that starts in Volume 5. In Patrons, Lusiphur and Jace hit the road, only to encounter a Dark Troll. This may not sound like a big deal, but apparently Dark Trolls are freakin' huge and each drop of their blood can grow new Dark Trolls. Oh yes, Dark Trolls are supposed to be extinct, so the fact that the guys run into one means bad things for the entire world.

Ending things on something of a lighter note, the Purple Marauder makes another hilarious and bizarre appearance. The dialogue in this issue is priceless.

While both issues in this volume are quite good, I'm not sure why they couldn't have been added to the Desert of the Third Sin trade paperback. They follow the events in that volume, and wouldn't have added that many pages. Oh well.

NOTE: The issues contained in this book are also available in Poison Elves: The Mulehide Years (Volume 1-4) (Poison Elves), which collects volumes 1-4 into one huge trade paperback. If you don't already own the individual books, that may be your best bet.

NOTE 2: This TP had a cover price of $4.95. Keep that in mind if you see it listed at some ridiculously high price.

Geralt, the title character, is a 'Witcher' - one of a semi-secret society of monster-killing specialists. Already born as mutants (a word bandied around anachronistically throughout the book), Witchers are then trained and chemically altered to become killing machines. All hopped-up on primitive combat drugs and armed with meteoric swords, Witchers travel the world killing nasty beasties. Preferably for money.

Although Witchers are scrupulously neutral in matters of politics, Geralt has broken the code by adopting an orphaned princess, Ciri. The heir to a conquered kingdom, Ciri is one of the most valuable people in the world. The forces of light and darkness are both competing to find her - and that's even before her potent magical powers begin to surface. Geralt and his network of friends (more acquaintances) are drawn reluctantly into the vortex of events surrounding Ciri and soon become irrevocably linked to the fate of the world.

Ciri, to give the author credit, is never just a passive object in her own destiny. In fact, she receives much more 'screen time' than anyone else in the book, including Geralt. Her education, training and rambunctious gallop towards maturity are the core of the book. Geralt, and the more conventional adventuring elements that surround him, only appears in alternate chapters - generally fighting off some sort of insidious plot that would otherwise threaten the young princess.

Geralt also takes a backseat to some of his companions - Yennefer and Triss, the witches, and Dandilion, the entertainer and spy. All are drawn to Ciri and the need to protect her - either from loyalty to Geralt or to the greater scheme of fate. They're all interesting characters (I'm partial to Dandilion), although Sapkowski spends more time than is comfortable having Triss muse about her youthful sexual explorations.

In fact, Geralt mostly appears through the eyes of others. Even Dandilion is less loyal to Geralt-the-person as he is to Geralt-the-excuse-for-an-adventure. The conflicting viewpoints keep Geralt mysterious, but also keep on the right side of the line when it comes to outright veneration. While Ciri worships Geralt, Yennefer sees the Witcher as an outright annoyance - an emotionally-stunted ex-boyfriend with a knack for doing the wrong thing.

The overall plot is pleasantly confusing. There's definitely a big prophecy out there, and the big evil empire is sufficiently big and evil. Our heroes, however, are more interested in saving their own skins. They encounter the creeping arms of evil, but only in tangential ways - local uprisings, the occasional assassin. The author occasionally takes the reader to someplace quite random - for example, the high conclave of Wizards, or a gathering of monarchs - to give the bigger picture. However, we learn very quickly that these important dignitaries know even less than the little guys. Whatever is actually happening, only Sapkowski knows.

The main flaw in the book is the translation. There's a strict avoidance of detail which, although presumably part of the original writing style, becomes irritating. In one scene, for example, various participants are described as having 'a hat' or 'red-haired'. Not much paint for the mental picture.

The occasionally anachronistic word choices - of which 'mutant' is the most annoying - leap out. As if to compensate, the translator also peppers the texts with obscure medieval terminology ('caparison'? 'cachalot'?).

Sapkowski has an unusual voice (when properly interpreted) and a grimly entertaining take on the traditions of fantasy. The Blood of Elves is an exercise in dramatic tension - complicated characters, coming of age stories and a careful unearthing of the overall plot - all building up to a sequel that promises to be a hurricane of action.

-- PORNOKITSCH

In a publishing world full of contemporary styled heroes, heroines, and plots, A Breathless Hush takes you back to the wonderous world of the old masters. Most of the plot and the adventures are written as a classic fairy tale but without any sappiness. The characters are strong and individual. I would classify this as fantasy genre with strong overtones of romance and lesser undertones of the supernatural with a touch of horror.
The overall plot follows the two lead characters, Galen and Annra. Both had love deprived childhoods which influences their decisions throughout the whole book. Fate puts them together and takes them apart several times as they each learn to deal with the world and fate in their own way. A strong secondary cast keeps things lively. A mixture of curses, spells, and conflict keep the plot afloat and moving. There's a bit of everything in it: fairies, elves, leprechauns, vampires, dragons, witches, pirates, ghosts, and giants.
My favorite parts are when one of the girls in the book is captured by a giant who wants to force her to marry him. The way the hero saves her and breaks his own curse is so brilliantly classic and well done! The other deals with more of the supernatural side of the book when another girl falls into a deathly trap and meets her fate in the hands of a vampire! It's riviting! The great antagonist in the book does have a suprising twist (which I won't ruin) which puts the climax of the book where it should be.
You need to be of a romantic frame of mind to really enjoy this book though. The romantic suspense is drawn out clear to the end for the main characters. At times it makes the flow of the plot drag (for those who prefer an adventurous read to a romantic one) but most of the plot is entwined in the love story.
I also enjoyed the illustrations by Nicolle Raty which fit well with the theme of the book. They are what you would expect to find in a well-done, old fashion-styled fairy tale book.

This book is a great book because it is very funny. It is easy to follow because it is in chronological order.