The Coyote Road: Trickster Tales, edited by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling

The Coyote Road is Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling’s third mythic fiction anthology and, once again, they’ve assembled a strong collection of stories by an equally strong stable of genre writers. Though the anthology is aimed at the YA market, these are not children’s stories. And though Coyote and all the other tricksters explored in this volume are the province of myth and folklore and tales, that doesn’t mean the reader shouldn’t take them seriously (but not too seriously).

Pat Murphy’s “One Odd Shoe” leads off. It’s the perfect story to open with, because it clues the reader into some important truths.

Coyote with a capital C, the trickster god who gets into everybody’s business. It was Coyote who brought fire to the First People—but it was also Coyote who brought death into the world. […] Coyote is a force for entropy. But Coyote is also a force for good (though whose good is always open to question).

The professor…told the students about what he called a Navajo folk belief: if a coyote crosses your path, you’d best turn back. That’s true enough, but I wouldn’t call it a folk belief. I’d call it just plain common sense.

And it is. Though I can’t say that all of the characters in the stories show this common sense.

As I said, “One Odd Shoe” is an excellent start to the anthology. It uses a standard teen drama template to introduce some non-standard folklore elements and leaves the reader in no doubt that the Navajos knew what they were talking about when they advised generations to turn back while they still could.

Another story that illustrates a truth about tricksters (and, consequently, the world) is Carol Emshwiller’s “God Clown.” In this one, the main character discovers the necessity of the trials and troubles the God Clown brings. It’s a beautifully told tale, infused with Emshwiller’s enchanting voice and signature style.

I also liked that Emshwiller didn’t choose an existing trickster but still created something true to type. A few other authors did the same. Of them, my favorites are definitely from Delia Sherman (”The Fiddler of Bayou Teche”), Caroline Stevermer (”Uncle Bob Visits”), and Kij Johnson (”The Evolution of Trickster Stories Among the Dogs of North Park After the Change”).

“Uncle Bob Visits” blends elements from poltergeist/ghost stories with the trickster vibe, resulting in a story that stands on the edge between funny and disquieting. The eponymous Uncle Bob makes his presence known to a small schoolroom and disrupts lessons he doesn’t like (such as sentence diagramming, which I can’t blame him for). Stevermer’s choice of narrator is great—one of the students, but without the precious little kid voice that often goes along with young POV characters.

Sherman’s “The Fiddler of Bayou Teche” is another treat. Cadence is raised in a Louisiana swamp, protected by her adopted mother, Tante Eulalie, and the loup-garous (werewolves) that Eulalie looks after. But when her adopted mother is gone, a devilish trickster out of Eulalie’s stories forces her into a folktale of her own. The voice in Fiddler is particularly strong and swept me up immediately. Though it took me through a few changes before getting to the meat of the story, I didn’t really notice or care. It’s all in service of the world of the tale, and you can’t tell a true trickster story without telling a few others in preparation. I also liked that the story exists in a fuzzy area between the supernatural and realism. The thing that sends it firmly into the arms of fantasy is the werewolves.

Kij Johnson’s story explores how the trickster type evolves in a community of dogs who, after gaining the ability to speak to their human masters, are abandoned and left to create a new society for themselves. The stories of One Dog are more than just a way to explore the archetype. They illuminate the truths that the entire anthology seeks to make the reader understand. We all strive to outwit our antagonists, no matter how mundane; we don’t always win, and necessity sometimes overrides desire.

Rounding out my list of favorites in this volume are stories by Kim Antieau, Nina Kiriki Hoffman, Ellen Klages, and Ellen Kushner.

Antieau’s “The Señorita and the Cactus Thorn” is a well-realized Princess and the Pea-like story. The author doesn’t just transfer the tale into a modern setting and call it a day. She adds depth to the old tale and illuminates the culture she transplanted the story into.

I love the ancient Greek setting and the characters in “The Listeners” by Nina Kiriki Hoffman. The author created realistic, sympathetic women I identified with even though they didn’t have 21st century sensibilities. Hermes was a lot of fun and very much in keeping with his character as it comes down to us today. My only complaint is that the story just kind of petered out in the end instead of finishing on a strong, solid note.

The premise of Klages’s “Friday Night” is very cute, though it sometimes dances a bit close to the border of too cute. A girl unwittingly gets drawn into a series of board games brought to life and has to win them or face being trapped forever. The story is a lot of fun with a touch of danger, like most good trickster stories. My favorite element is the relationship between the main character and her best friend which runs deeper than I usually find in YA.

Though the trickster in Kushner’s “Honored Guest” isn’t supernatural, she isn’t any less clever or interesting. This Fantasy of Manners piece stands out due to the voice and energy of the prose, plus the descriptions of culture and music.

The other thirteen stories in the anthology didn’t impact me as much, though many of them are solid and enjoyable.

“The Constable of Abal” by Kelly Link is an excellent meditation on the power of denial and what happens when you forget what it is you’re meant to be doing in life.

“Wagers of Gold Mountain” by Steve Berman is fun, and I liked the incorporation of tricksters from two different cultures. Unfortunately, the ending fell flat, as if the story went on a page or two too long.

“The Other Labyrinth” by Jedediah Berry was less a trickster tale than a love story, though it could be said that the labyrinth itself is a trickster by nature.

I like that the same trickster returns again and again to the same family in different generations in “A Tale for the Short Days” by Richard Bowes. The first section was my favorite, but the second two never quite live up to the promise of the beginning.

“Realer than You” by Christopher Barzak has a strong voice and a great setting, but it doesn’t put either to particularly good use. It meanders a bit, which can work if done really well, but doesn’t quite here.

“Crow Roads” by Charles de Lint is, at its heart, a typical Mysterious Stranger Comes to Town and Shakes Up Local Girl story. The execution isn’t typical, though, and it’s pretty compelling once you get past the frontloaded exposition. I was particularly pleased with the female protagonist. Her narrative voice is strong and carried me though the story.

A few of the tricksters trace their roots back to the Br’er Rabbit-type. “Black Rock Blues” by Will Shetterly wasn’t particularly memorable, but it isn’t a bad story. It has a touch of noir, a touch of gangland, and a touch of fantasy. Sadly, Elizabeth E. Wein’s “Always the Same Story” is a bit too obvious for me. Early in the story, the protagonist references trickster stories, therefore projecting that he’ll be using those tactics later on. This device might have worked better had the story not been included in a whole anthology full of trickster tales. In this context, it makes it seem like the author is being way too obvious.

The last few stories I liked the least. I found both “The Dreaming Wind” by Jeffrey Ford and “The Chamber Music of Animals” by Katherine Vaz unmemorable. “The Fortune Teller” by Patricia A. McKillip didn’t work for me as a trickster tale or as a story. “A Reversal of Fortune” by Holly Black employs a trickster that isn’t particularly interesting: the Devil. Though the eating contest aspect is fun, and the gross-out factor is there, the story didn’t move me. “Cat of the World” by Michael Cadnum was too precious and cheeky for my tastes. The premise of a tricksy cat getting into limitedly interesting scrapes fell flat.

Publisher: Viking Juvenile (July 2007)
Price: $13.59
Hardcover: 384 pages
ISBN: 0670061948