Xanadu 2

The second volume of Yolen's fantasy anthology series preserves the high quality and range of the first without being repetitive. The 26 stories and poems here run the gamut from Vivian Vande Velde's ``Just Another Dragon-Slaying,'' with its twist on a fantasy cliche, to Tappan King's lighthearted, somewhat autobiographical ``A Most Obedient Cat'' and the excellent feminist ghost story, ``Young Woman in a Garden'' by Delia Sherman. Martha Soukup's ``The Spinner'' weaves echoes of myth and fairy tale into a story of spurned love, while Richard Kearns's ``Raven'' is a fable worthy of Kipling. The occasional poems seem to have been included more for their fantasy imagery than their subjects. Yolen ( Briar Rose ) demonstrates that a wealth of fine reading is embraced by the fantasy category; her series is a prime source of good short fiction in the field. (Jan.)