Hearts of Wood

Collaborators Kotzwinkle and Servello have again brought out the best in each other in this collection of stories, some of which were available in a previous edition. In ""The Fairy King,'' a logger descends into the core of the tree and becomes king of the fairies for thousands of years, and then lives out his life wondering if it was all a dream. Carousel animals enjoy freedom in the title story but return in time to aid their former owner. ``The Dream of Chuang'' expands on the story of the wise man who wonders if he is a man dreaming of being a butterfly or a butterfly dreaming that he is a man. Each of Kotzwinkle's tellings is thought-provoking and entertaining, in a language reminiscent of all fairy tales. Servello's black-and-white pictures have a tenuous quality, conveying the other-worldly aspect of the tales. (All ages)