'where once his wife had been the moment before, was a small fox of a very bright red'
By sally tarbox on 16 Jan. 2012
Format: Paperback
Lady into Fox, winner of the 1922 James Tait Black Prize, is an absolutely beautiful tale. Although the theme of a young newly wed woman metamorphosing into a fox sounds improbable, Garnett writes in a calm and factual manner without a trace of whimsy. From their first days together when Silvia still retains most of her human characteristics, to the first signs of her becoming a real vixen (watching her pet dove with a 'strange eagerness' when her husband is trying to read to her)...How will their relationship develop?

A Man at the Zoo is an interesting concept but lacks the magic of the other. When a young couple have a blazing row at London Zoo, the man decides to go and volunteer himself as an exhibit for the ape house where he becomes a great attraction... Perhaps the somewhat unlikeable young couple spoil the story (I felt John would do better in his cage than back with Josephine) also the silliness of some situations (notably Josephine offering to go and live in a cage with him). But certainly a story to make you think. ( )

"Lady Into Fox" was pretty good. It makes you think a lot about being a fox in England when people did fox hunting with dogs. Both these novellas are really about love. If your person was turned into a fox, would you still love them? If your person was in a zoo, would you marry them anyway and go and live in the zoo with them? Entertaining, but a bit fluffy. ( )

Two novellas. In the first a man's wife suddenly turns into a fox. He's quite upset about it. Apparently David Garnett was with his wife, Ray, in a woodland one day trying to see some fox cubs, and he said that it was no use, that the only way they would see any foxes was if she turned into a fox suddenly, and that this wouldn't surprise him. So she said he should write it. She was an illustrator, and made excellent woodcuts to go with the book, included in this edition. Nonetheless he dedicated it to his lover Duncan Grant -- oh those Bloomsburyites. The second story is about a man who moves into a zoo after an argument with his fiancee. It's very good stuff. ( )