The Faery Handbag really cleaned up in 2005. It won both the Nebula and Hugo for novelette, and had a Best Short Story nomination for the World Fantasy Award. And it is a nice story, very complete and well told. I just don't quite see what the fuss is about over her. Link has a very nice way with characters, which this entry shows. Our protagonist is the granddaughter of Zofia Swinks, a decidedly odd person from a convincing but make-believe country. Nothing of what she says is believable, but there is definitely something going on with her handbag.
The appeal here is Zofia herself--library book stealing, tall, wonderful at Scrabble if she can use her native language. Genevive, the protagonist, is an appropriately angst-ridden teenager. They have a fine old time with her boyfriend Jake. It's nice and feels good to read. Did I learn something new about literature, or fantasy, or anything like that? Doesn't feel like it. But if you are a fantasy aficionado (fantasy fan just doesn't scan) you probably already know about Kelly Link, and like her. Good on you. 3 stars for me.
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