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1 Beaverton Science Fiction and Fantasy- A to Z

The Strange Adventures of Rangergirl (Bantam Spectra Book)

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The Strange Adventures of Rangergirl (Bantam Spectra Book) Cover

ISBN13: 9780553383386
ISBN10: 0553383388
Condition: Standard
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Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

In this debut novel, acclaimed short-story author Tim Pratt delivers an exciting heroine with a hidden talent-and a secret duty. Witty and suspenseful, here is a contemporary love song to the West that was won and the myths that shape us….

As night manager of Santa Cruzs quirkiest coffeehouse, Marzi McCarty makes a mean espresso, but her first love is making comics. Her claim to fame: The Strange Adventures of Rangergirl, a cowpunk neo-western yarn. Striding through an urban frontier peopled by Marzis wild imagination, Rangergirl doles out her own brand of justice. But lately Marzis imagination seems to be altering her reality. Shes seeing the world through Rangergirls eyes-literally--complete with her deadly nemesis, the Outlaw.

It all started when Marzi opened a hidden door in the coffeehouse storage room. There, imprisoned among

the supplies, she saw the face of something unknown…and dangerous. And she unwittingly became its guard. But some primal darkness mustve escaped, because Marzi hasnt been the same since. And neither have her customers, who are acting downright apocalyptic.

Now its up to Marzi to stop this supervillainous superforce thats swaggered its way into her world. For Marzi, its the

showdown of her life. For Rangergirl, its just another day....

Review:

"Pratt (Little Gods), praised for his short fiction, stumbles in his first novel. Marzipan 'Marzi' McCarty, a 20ish California art school dropout, writes quirky comics. Marzi's also the night manager — barista of Genius Loci, a Santa Cruz coffeehouse decorated by vanished muralist Garamond Ray to hold in elemental Evil. The wild adventures that Marzi concocts for her cowpunk character, Rangergirl, start coming true after her artsy friends become obsessed with freeing weird gods. When the Outlaw, a representative of everyone's worst fears, busts loose from its surreal corral, the Desert Lands, it's up to Marzi, the new artist-guardian, to save the whole shootin' match from disaster. Pratt's simplistic message, glimpsed sporadically behind clouds of neo-hippie jargon, self-consciously naughty language, outdoor sex and nasty violence, is pretentious and even a little nave — that art can trap our fears and hold them at bay. Like too much marzipan, it all turns cloying mighty fast, pardners." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

Synopsis:

"Tim Pratt's "The Strange Adventures of Rangergirl" is a two-fisted meta-fiction of old west mythos and modern day--sharp writing, cool characters, fascinating ideas, and the courage to have fun."--Jeffrey Ford, author of "The Portrait of Mrs. Charbuque."
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About the Author

Tim Pratt has been nominated for the Nebula award and for the Campbell Best New Writer award, and his fiction has appeared in Best American Short Stories and The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror. He lives in Oakland, California, where he co-edits a literary 'zine, Flytrap, with his fiancee, Heather Shaw.
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What Our Readers Are Saying

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Average customer rating based on 1 comment:
emmejo, June 7, 2011 (view all comments by emmejo)
Marzi is quite happy working at a Santa Cruz coffeehouse and writing her Weird Western comic in her spare time, but then something happens to severely disrupt her delicately balanced life and mental health: she starts seeing the characters from her comic walking around town. Before long other people can see them too, and her villain, the Outlaw, is making the kind of trouble only a walking earthquake in semi-human form can. It looks like Marzi is going to have to take up her protagonist's part and become Rangergirl.

Marzi is a pretty well-rounded character and I liked how psychologically complex the author chose to make her. Her problems aren't popular or common issues for an author to use and it's nice to see they weren't fixed with a snap of the fingers.

This is a first novel from an author used to writing short stories and the pacing limps a bit. The writing is solid, although sometimes a bit bland or vague about describing things that it would make sense to spend an extra sentence on in a novel.
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Product Details

ISBN:
9780553383386
Author:
Pratt, Tim
Publisher:
Bantam Books
Subject:
Science Fiction - General
Subject:
Science / General
Subject:
Science Fiction and Fantasy-A to Z
Copyright:
2005
Edition Description:
Trade paper
Series:
Bantam Spectra Book
Publication Date:
20051131
Binding:
TRADE PAPER
Grade Level:
General/trade
Language:
English
Illustrations:
LINE ILLUSTRATIONS T/O
Pages:
416
Dimensions:
8.34x5.30x.93 in. .67 lbs.
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Related Subjects

Fiction and Poetry » Science Fiction and Fantasy » A to Z

The Strange Adventures of Rangergirl (Bantam Spectra Book) Used Trade Paper
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$6.50 In Stock
Product details 416 pages Spectra Books - English 9780553383386 Reviews:
"Publishers Weekly Review" by , "Pratt (Little Gods), praised for his short fiction, stumbles in his first novel. Marzipan 'Marzi' McCarty, a 20ish California art school dropout, writes quirky comics. Marzi's also the night manager — barista of Genius Loci, a Santa Cruz coffeehouse decorated by vanished muralist Garamond Ray to hold in elemental Evil. The wild adventures that Marzi concocts for her cowpunk character, Rangergirl, start coming true after her artsy friends become obsessed with freeing weird gods. When the Outlaw, a representative of everyone's worst fears, busts loose from its surreal corral, the Desert Lands, it's up to Marzi, the new artist-guardian, to save the whole shootin' match from disaster. Pratt's simplistic message, glimpsed sporadically behind clouds of neo-hippie jargon, self-consciously naughty language, outdoor sex and nasty violence, is pretentious and even a little nave — that art can trap our fears and hold them at bay. Like too much marzipan, it all turns cloying mighty fast, pardners." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)
"Synopsis" by , "Tim Pratt's "The Strange Adventures of Rangergirl" is a two-fisted meta-fiction of old west mythos and modern day--sharp writing, cool characters, fascinating ideas, and the courage to have fun."--Jeffrey Ford, author of "The Portrait of Mrs. Charbuque."
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