The Perseids and Other Stories

These stories by the author of the prizewinning best-seller Darwinia (1998) are mostly urban fantasies set in Wilson's hometown, Toronto. Readers familiar with that other Canadian master of urban fantasy, Charles De Lint, will certainly find echoes of him in them, and they will enjoy a feast. Wilson works variations on a variety of classic fantasy themes, giving a particular, individual twist to each one. "The Fields of Abraham" introduces Finders' bookstore and deals with immortality and alternate worlds. "Divided by Infinity" begins in Toronto but ends in a surpassingly original postholocaust world. "The Observer" features writer Aldous Huxley, the astronomer Edward Hubble, and ufologist George Adamski as its characters. "Pearl Baby" focuses on Deirdre Frank, a character who makes beneficial cameo appearances in several other stories. "Ulysses Sees the Moon in the Bedroom Window" is a cat story (something of an obligation for a fantasy collection) that employs a compelling twist to represent, sans sentimental anthropomorphism, the cat's viewpoint. The other tales have their delights, too.