The Orphan's Tales

The Orphan's Tales: In the Night Garden by Catherynne M. Valente

"There was once a child whose face was like the new moon shining on cypress trees and the feathers of waterbirds." Thus begins this book of weird tales. The child, a girl, was cursed by a spirit shortly after her birth. She has dark, tattoo-like marks around her eyes. These marks, although they look like lines of kohl, actually contain endless strings of words. The girl can read them when she tries hard enough. And try she must, for the spirit promised to return and judge her once all of the tales are read out.

These strange marks brand the girl as a demon in the Sultan's palace where she lives. Even her parents avoid her. She is left to roam the gardens, living off the fruits that grow there and refuse of the Court. One day, a boy ventures near and declares that he is not afraid of her. Of course, he really is, but his boldness pleases the girl, who is lonely, so she tells him the secret of her marks. She offers to tell him one of her tales as well. With this offer, their relationship begins. He sneaks into the gardens whenever he can, bringing food in exchange for a tale. When his eldest sister discovers them and forbid him to visit the "demon-girl", she sneaks inside to find him. All the while, the tales unfold in patchwork pieces.

Valente's language-rich writing sews these pieces together. The tales are enigmatic and ephemeral, blurring from one viewpoint to another and back again. The settings are strange and exotic. Many of the narrators aren't human at all, but creatures from myth and legend. As each snippet ends, the reader is often left with more questions than answers, but these loose threads work in a Scheherazade-like fashion. You flip the page just to see where the story wanders next. While this chaotic style might not appeal to everyone, readers looking for unique, lyrical fantasy tales will find this book and its sequel, In the Cities of Coin and Spice, fascinating.