Returning My Sister's Face and Other Far Eastern Tales of Whimsy and Malice

Noted short story author Foster offers a dozen enchanting and sometimes chilling tales alive with elegantly sketched characters and sensibilities drawn from Asian folklore. Revenge and family loyalty drive the title story as well as “The Tears of My Mother, the Shell of My Father” and the historical fantasy “A Thread of Silk.” In “Shim Chung the Lotus Queen,” good deeds and sacrifice are rewarded, but “The Raven's Brocade” shows how easily those rewards can be lost. The most memorable stories follow shape-changers: the fox spirits of “Year of the Fox,” the lively rabbits-turned-human of “Daughter of Bótà” and a most unusual tea kettle in “The Tanuki-Kettle.” Readers who long for a break from European medieval fantasy will be charmed and entertained by Foster's tales. (Mar.)