Hi,
I just discovered a book on the "new-release" bookshelves that should
be of interest to folks in this group who enjoy contemporary fantasy,
though I doubt that it will be marketed on the F&SF shelves: _Mistress of
Spices_ by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni (hardback). The author is East
Indian-American.
It concerns an Indian woman from the past who was trained in the magical
arts of healing human ills with spices and transported to modern
California to keep a spice shop and practice magic. There are rules to her
practice of magic: she must not set foot outside of the shop, she must
take on the guise of an old woman though she is not old, and she must not
fall in love. The prose is poetic and powerful. The style reminds me a bit
of _Little Big_ though I can't say exactly why. If you can't afford the
hardback, ask your library to order it!
Stephanie
Stephanie A. Hall - [log in to unmask]
American Folklife Center
Library of Congress, Washington, DC 20540-4610
Opinions mine
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