Review originally published March 26, 2021 There is a well-known (in certain circles) quote from Eduardo Galeano's Soccer in Sun and Shadow: "Years have gone by and I've finally learned to accept myself for who I am: a beggar for good soccer. I go about the world, hand outstretched, and in the stadiums I plead: 'A pretty move, for the love of God.' And when good soccer happens, I give thanks for the miracle and I don't give a damn which team or country performs it." It is with a similar mindset that I tend to approach reading, particularly when it comes to a collection of short stories/novellas.Terry Brooks claims to hate writing short fiction, which is why it has taken more than four decades into his writing career, with dozens of bestselling novels, to release Small Magic, a collection of shorter works. I've been reading Brooks for several of those decades and seen mention of some of the previously released (in anthologies or only available electronically) stories collected here, but never before had a chance to read any of them. This collection is fairly representative of Brooks' writing thus far--more than half of the eleven stories are set in his "Shannara" world, a couple each in "Magic Kingdom" and "Word & Void," and one 'other.' Each story is accompanied by a brief introduction--in most cases probably too brief to illuminate very much about the story. It is also representative in terms of the unevenness of the quality of the writing. Brooks, at his best, is capable of creating characters of unexpected depth who reveal something about the human condition. This is exemplified here in the stories "Indomitable" and "Last Ride." Other times though, his writing feels flat, almost reading more like mediocre fan fiction.As a long-time fan of the fantasy worlds Brooks has created, I enjoyed enough of the stories to a sufficient degree that I feel comfortable saying "I liked it," while a handful of Galeano's moments elevate my overall rating to four stars, even though "really liked it" feels like a bit of a stretch. I would not, however, recommend it as an entry point for anybody who has not read Brooks at all. For Shannara, I think Elfstones or Wishsong would serve that purpose nicely (I've no doubt some will have comments regarding the relative value of beginning with Sword); while Magic Kingdom for Sale...Sold and Running With the Demon are each excellent kick-off points to their respective series. Find this book and other titles within our catalog.