Ingathering: The Complete People Stories of Zenna Henderson

When a friend at work loaned this book to me, I asked her what kind it was. She thought for a moment and told me, it was a little bit of everything. At that point, I was reading fantasy and science fiction, so I eagerly started reading it. And it changed the way I look at things. Zenna Henderson touches a lot of core issues that affect the society in general. It also defines with clarity what an outside ring side view of our culture and the way we behave towards things we do not understand. It has pathos and surprisingly, there were some stories that kept me on the edge of my seat, biting my nails - which I never do consiously - praying for things to turn out ok for the people. A lovely work, one of its kind.

Be warned that in reading Zenna Henderson's fantasy stories about "The People", they are so naturalistic and convincing that you may find yourself believing you have the gifts: that you can levitate, send telepathic messages, heal with psychic force. When you realize that it's just a dream inspired by the stories, you may wander around in a half-daze, wishing your life were like those stories: that you really did have the gifts, that you endured hardships in the same stoic way, and that you would find safe haven and welcoming arms somewhere in the American Southwest. I know because for weeks after reading one of her collections, I kept thinking that I could levitate -- and I was already an adult!

I am thrilled that the People stories are back in print. I read them years ago. I own all four of the books, including the hardcover edition of Pilgrimage. I love to share these wonderful stories with others. Now they can buy their own copies. For anyone who hasn't read the stories yet I have one caution. This hardcover edition has an introductory story preceding the first titled story "Ararat." "Ararat" is the true first story of the People and originally was published in a science fiction magazine first. I read it in the magazine and almost 40 years later I can still remember the shocking thrill that went through me as I read a certain line that told me that something strange and wonderful was about to unfold. Of course I won't reveal the line and spoil it for others, but all Zenna Henderson readers will know to what I refer. New readers READ ARARAT FIRST!!A long time science fiction reader

Henderson is less well-known than many of the Golden Age masters of sci fi, but her work stands alongside the best of them. Her 'People' stories are the gentlest of her work (If you can find any of her other short stories, anthologized in the out-of-print 'Holding Wonder' and 'The Anything Box,' you'll see her weirder side), but they have superior power to make you see the universe in a new way. Like several other reviewers, I found them during a grim teenage time, and they helped more than I can say.The 'Booklist' reviewer accuses them of being too 'mawkish' but in fact, the sweetness and enlightenment of 'The People' is well-tempered by very 'human' flaws. Their racial memories include horrendous persecution, and prompt them to try and quelch their childrens' telepathic and other gifts in a way that seems repressive and cruel to an outsider...until she learns the reason. The stories show a people evolving, making mistakes and learning from them, even as they help various physically and emotionally crippled humans toward a new vision. It's WONDERFUL to have these stories back in print! Now all we need is for the publisher to gather Henderson's other (non-People) stories, and get them back out there, too!