Death Chants: Short Stories

An introduction by Salvador Dali is unexpected for a fantasy collection, but these stories are unusual in their subject matter. Drawing on the legends and cultural background of the American Indians, the contents range from creation myths such as ""When Old Man Coyote Sang the World into Being'' to tales of Indian life and death, and rueful stories of Indian/white relations. Sadly, Strete's vague, mystical imagery and his repetition of a small number of themes (loss, white misunderstanding of Native American culture and, above all, death) give the short collection a dull, monotonous quality. The memorable stories aren't better, only different: the Vietnam fantasy ``The Game of Cat and Eagle'' and the Hollywood dialogue ``Another Horse of a Different Technicolor.'' (April)