The Thief of Always: A Fable - Hardcover

Barker, Clive

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0060177241 ISBN 13: 9780060177249

Publisher: HarperCollins, 1992

Synopsis

"Hog" Coolidge, an otherworldly actor, sends Sherwood into the past to investigate the history of his small Montana town, once visited by extraterrestrials and now suffering a strange malaise. By the author of Imajica. 100,000 first printing. $100,000 ad/promo.

About this title

About the Author

Clive Barker was born in Liverpool, England, in 1952 and now makes his home in Los Angeles, where, in addition to his work as a novelist and short-story writer, he is also a painter and filmmaker. He is the author of numerous worldwide bestsellers, including The Books of Blood, The Damnation Game, Weaverworld, Imajica, and most recently, Everville.

The films he has written, produced, or directed include the Hellraiser series, the Candyman pictures, Nightbreed, Lord of Illusions, and the forthcoming The Thief of Always.

Reviews

YA-- What teens could resist an opening line like "The great gray beast February had eaten Harvey Swick alive"? Harvey succumbs to the lure of instant pleasure, and lives to battle his way back to the real world twice , in order to regain all that he has lost. Lots of white space and full-page black-and-white illustrations invite readers to harken back to their younger days and the pleasures of folk and fairy tale collections. A candidate for reading aloud, this new twist on the fable genre may lead to independent writings or a new appreciation of the form. Layered with both supernatural elements and a large dose of horror, this one will entice fantasy fans to broaden their reading interests.
- Barbara Hawkins, Oakton High School, Fairfax, VA
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

In a tale that manages to be both cute and horrifying, bestselling novelist and screenwriter Barker ( Imajica ) puts the dark side back into childhood fantasy, recalling the violent undercurrents of the Grimm Brothers' tales and other classics. When archetypal 10-year-old Harvey Swick desperately wishes to be delivered from a boring February afternoon, he is miraculously rescued by Rictus, a smiling (if somewhat sinister) creature. Rictus takes Harvey to the Holiday House, where every morning is spring, every afternoon is summer and every evening offers Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas in quick succession. Barker masterfully embroiders this fantasy world with a mounting number of grim, even gruesome details. Harvey must heroically battle what is gradually revealed to be the malevolent force behind the Holiday House in order to save not only himself but all its previous young guests. Barker's own illustrations convey the story's deceptively sweet appeal. A welcome modern-day return to a classic form, this fable lives up to the publisher's billing as a tale for all ages. 100,000 first printing; $140,000 ad/promo; Literary Guild, Doubleday and Sci-Fi Book Club alternates; author tour.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Publication date: 1992
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0060177241
• ISBN 13: 9780060177249
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 225