Essays on Music, Memory, Fantasy, and Borders
Starred review from May 6, 2024
The fresh perspective and distinctive voice of poet Villarreal (Beast Meridian) drive this smart collection. The power of fantasy stories looms large in these essays, as in “After the World-Breaking, World-Building,” where Villarreal argues that the genre acts as a conduit for conceiving of more equitable ways to organize society. Picking up this theme in “The Fantasy of Healing,” Villareal contends that in the video game Witcher 3, the option to use “feminized folk practices to heal victims, homes, and communities” in lieu of enacting violent retribution on wrongdoers raises the possibility of alternative forms of justice rooted in healing rather than punishment. “In the Shadow of the Wolf” suggests that Nordic mythology’s ascendant popularity during the Obama era can be attributed to a “cultural desire” for “the return of white male dominance, free from colonial baggage or accountability.” Other selections are more personal, as when Villarreal recounts how in high school her white boyfriend’s mother sought to drive a wedge in their relationship by hiring her as a maid. The sharp commentary on Assassin’s Creed, Horizon Zero Dawn, and other video games prove the under-analyzed medium is ripe for rigorous intellectual engagement, and the meditations on fantasy narratives incisively probe how fictional worlds reflect and intersect with the real one. Readers will be spellbound. Agent: Amanda Orozco, Transatlantic Agency.