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From: ellen@reed.UUCP (Ellen Eades)
Newsgroups: net.sf-lovers
Subject: Re: Review: Moonheart by Chas. de Lint
Message-ID: <973@reed.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 22-Feb-85 22:40:02 EST
Article-I.D.: reed.973
Posted: Fri Feb 22 22:40:02 1985
Date-Received: Wed, 27-Feb-85 09:28:07 EST
References: <679@topaz.ARPA>
Organization: Reed College, Portland, Oregon
Lines: 27

> A Review by Brett Slocum
> 
> MOONHEART is one of the best books I've read for several years.  Charles
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I really have to differ with Brett here.  I was very
uncomfortable with Moonheart, and to a lesser degree with
Riddle of the Wren.  De Lint comes across to me as a
very _serious_ writer, one who can't take himself lightly
and give the reader a break.  He somehow manages to combine
in Moonheart a series of obviously personal obsessions:
Celtic music, Celtic art, folklore and mythology of North
American *and* the British Isles, science fantasy (by that
I mean S&S), and on and on.  Now don't get me wrong, I
like Celtic art and Silly Wizard and all that stuff too, I
just don't like seeing it *all* stuffed headlong into one book.
He doesn't do any of these valuable cultural gems justice,
and his attitude seems to be, "Boy, this stuff is really neat
and I just have to put it in, too!  And this!  And this, too!"
I felt that de Lint really needed to develop a bit of
self-control.  It would also help if he took himself less
seriously, and tried not to be sf's avatar of Celtic culture.
There are a lot of other writers out there trying to do the
same thing.  De Lint succeeds rather better than some, but
decidedly worse than others.  Well written, yes, but with
more enthusiasm than talent.  I'm looking forward to more
mature works from him, though.