Today we have a special Christmas Eve review. Granted, it might be a little late for this
particular book, but there were circumstances.
Anyway, the good folks at World Weaver Press, who seem to
like me very much despite the fact that I tend to turn in late reviews like this,
sent me a digital copy of their newest anthology. That anthology is He Sees You When He’s Creepin’: Tales of Krampus edited by Kate
Walford who some of you might know from Enchanted Conversation.
Ah, Krampus. He’s
gone from a relatively obscure traditional figure from alpine regions of Europe
to a bit of an alternative yuletide star via the internet. Sort of Santa Claus for the heavy metal
crowd. For those who don’t know, Krampus
is a punitive holiday figure from parts of Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic
and some other countries. He’s a demon
that travels with Saint Nicholas and punishes naughty children either by
beating them with birch switches or just stuffs them in a bag or basket to
drown them, burn them or take them to Hell. He's become rather popular lately. Grimm even did an episode about him.
Seems like a nice guy, huh?
Anyway, there are twelve stories in the anthology by a
variety of authors. Though they’re all
based around the same traditional figure, almost all of the authors do something
different. For example, despite the
demonic main character, only two of the stories seem to be straight-up horror
stories. These would be “Family
Tradition” by S.E. Foley and “The Outfit” by Ross Baxter. In addition to those, we get a subverted
fairy tale “Villainess Ascending” by Steven Grimm, an origin story “Krampus:
The Summoning” by Brad P. Christy, an police action piece “A Winter Scourge” by
Tasmin Showbrook and even a tale of corporate machinations with Anya J. Davis’s
“The Business of Christmas”. One of the
tales that really stood out to me was “Family Night” by Nancy Brewka-Clark
which is a comedy piece that depicts Krampus as a beleaguered family man.
One thing that the authors in this anthology seem to have
embraced is the ability to subvert certain conventions. I’m not always one for subversion, being a
great admirer of certain traditions. And
we can all admit that subversion done badly can be a bit irritating. However, a lot of what’s done here
works. “Villainess Ascending” subverts
the tales of both “Cinderella” and “Mother Holle”. “Santa’s Little Helper” by Beth Mann subverts
the relationship between St. Nicholas and Krampus by making St. Nick a very
less-than-likable guy. “A Winter Scourge”
subverts St. Nick again by making the Saint female and even something of a
mother figure (I’m not explaining how, you’ll just have to read it). Both “Bad Parents” by E.M. Eastick and “Family
Night” by Nancy Brewka-Clark subvert Krampus himself, making him less cruel or
evil and more annoyed.
I actually really like this anthology.
I’ve read one anthology by World Weaver Press before and it
was Frozen Fairy Tales, which was
also edited by Kate Walford. In
comparing the two, despite the many authors’ different takes, I feel this
anthology was a lot more focused. That’s
probably due to the subject matter. In
this case, the authors were focusing on a character. In Frozen
Fairy Tales, the idea was to focus more on a season or weather condition.
I’d give this anthology a recommendation. It’s a fun little alternative yuletide
treat. If it’s too late to add it to
your library for this year, then definitely consider picking it up in advance
for next year.
This is Adam the Fairy Tale Geek signing off and wishing all
those celebrating a Merry Christmas.
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