From Stephen King's vibrantly macabre tale of a woman who knew that a straight line was not the shortest distance between two points ("Mrs. Todd's Shortcut") to Kij Johnson's somber narrative on the life and death of a circus trick ("26 Monkeys, Also the Abyss"), the 19 selections in this volume demonstrate that "fantasy" does not confine itself to certain writers and belongs as much in the mainstream as in a separate category. Informative essays by Ursula K. Le Guin and David G. Hartwell illuminating the origins of the fantasy genre add an additional dimension to this already strong anthology. VERDICT Including such classics as Terry Bisson's "Bears Discover Fire" and Robert Holdstock's "Mythago Wood" (the story that served as the starting point for his similarly titled novel), as well as stories by Francesca Lia Block and Neil Gaiman, this collection serves as a touchstone for fantasy lovers and short story aficionados alike.