Fisher Jr., and the 1963 Japanese horror film Attack
of the Mushroom People,also released under several
other names.
Volsky, Paula(1950– )
Although Paula Volsky’s first fantasy novel, The
Curse of the Witch Queen(1982), was clever and
memorable, four years passed before her next book
appeared. The story is basically a simple quest story,
but Volsky embellished the plot and the characters
considerably through the device of a web of curses,
including one that causes the protagonist to
overeat compulsively and gain weight. In order to
free himself from the curse he agrees to perform a
dangerous mission for his king. Her second novel
was the opening volume in the Sorcerer’s Lady tril-
ogy, The Sorcerer’s Lady(1986), which was followed
by The Sorcerer’s Heir(1988) and The Sorcerer’s
Curse(1989). The trilogy describes the problems a
young woman faces when told her marriage to a
sorcerer has been arranged over her objection and
despite her concern that the sorcerer wants more
than just a wife. She becomes reconciled to him,
but following his murder she and her son become
fugitives, although he eventually regains his
birthright. The familiar plot elements are intermin-
gled with several lively twists and turns.
The Luck of Relian Kru(1987) is a similarly
pleasant but generally unsurprising fantasy adven-
ture enlivened by some inventive humor and a
memorable protagonist but still not able to rise
above the blandness of its subject matter. Volsky
was much more successful with Illusion(1991), the
first book of Vonahr, a fantasy of intrigue and ad-
venture set in an innovatively realized fantasy
world whose aristocratic rulers have recently been
overthrown. At times Vonahr resembles 18th-cen-
tury Europe, but a version filled with magic and
with unusual technological devices that give the
series a very distinct flavor. Volsky later added an
even better sequel, The Grand Illusion(2000), in
which her fabulous land faces destruction at the
hands of barbarian invaders. In an effort to find a
powerful defensive weapon, the protagonist travels
to a distant land to learn the secret of sentient fire.
There is another battle for political power in
The Wolf in Winter(1993), this time with a thor-
oughly unlikable protagonist who commits various
crimes in his effort to seize power. Once again, Vol-
sky develops her background in great detail so that
it feels like a real place. The Gates of Twilight
(1996) and its sequel, The White Tribunal(1997),
are set in the city of Lis Folaze, where magic has
been outlawed and the pogroms against it are used
also to punish political enemies and to expropriate
personal fortunes. The second novel is particularly
intense, involving a man’s decision to make a pact
with a demon in order to strike back at his ene-
mies. Volsky has not had a new book in several
years but still enjoys an enviable reputation. Her
short Lovecraftian story “The Giant Rat of Suma-
tra” (1996) is also excellent.The Voyage of the “Dawn Treader”C. S.
Lewis(1952)
Only two of the four Pevensie children, Lucy and
Edmund, return to Narnia for the third book in the
famous children’s series by C. S. LEWIS, although
they are accompanied by a new recurring character,
Eustace Scrubb, their obnoxious and unimaginative
cousin. The three are drawn in by a magical picture
of an oceangoing galley this time and find them-
selves aboard the Dawn Treader,King Caspian’s most
impressive ship. Caspian is searching the uncharted
regions of the world in an effort to discover the fate
of several lords who took his father’s side when the
throne of the Telmarines was usurped and who went
into voluntary exile. Lewis wrote a much more con-
ventional quest story this time, cast in the form of a
marvelous journey that is reminiscent of the adven-
tures of Sinbad the Sailor.
Eustace is unhappy with everything, of course,
and complains incessantly. He becomes the partic-
ular foil of a talking mouse warrior, who is the most
interesting character in the book, although most
readers will recognize early on that Eustace is fated
to recognize the error of his ways. The Christian
symbolism is more obvious as well. Aslan, the lion-
shaped Christ figure, appears exclusively to young
Lucy for most of the book, and she becomes his
unofficial prophet. Just in case we miss the signifi-
cance, Aslan later appears in the guise of a lamb.
Their adventures are much more exciting
than in the first two volumes. Part of the companyThe Voyage of the “Dawn Treader” 365