The Privilege of the Happy Ending
The Privilege of the Happy Ending is a 2018 metafictional dark fantasy story by Kij Johnson. It was first published in Clarkesworld Magazine.
Synopsis
In medieval England, 6-year-old Ada and her talking chicken Blanche defeat a plague of reptilian wastoures, as the author provides commentary on the backstory and future of minor characters.
Reception
The Privilege of the Happy Ending won the 2019 World Fantasy Award—Novella.[1]
Tangent Online praised it as "darkly delightful" and "beautifully written", with Johnson's frequent authorial interjections initially being "jarring", but eventually "eagerly anticipated".[2]
References
- v
- t
- e
World Fantasy Award—Novella
- The Fire When It Comes by Parke Godwin (1982)
- Confess the Seasons by Charles L. Grant (1983, tie)
- Beyond Any Measure by Karl Edward Wagner (1983, tie)
- Black Air by Kim Stanley Robinson (1984)
- The Unconquered Country by Geoff Ryman (1985)
- Nadelman's God by T. E. D. Klein (1986)
- Hatrack River by Orson Scott Card (1987)
- Buffalo Gals, Won't You Come Out Tonight by Ursula K. Le Guin (1988)
- The Skin Trade by George R. R. Martin (1989)
- "Great Work of Time" by John Crowley (1990)
- Bones by Pat Murphy (1991)
- The Ragthorn by Robert Holdstock and Garry Kilworth (1992)
- The Ghost Village by Peter Straub (1993)
- Under the Crust by Terry Lamsley (1994)
- Last Summer at Mars Hill by Elizabeth Hand (1995)
- Radio Waves by Michael Swanwick (1996)
- A City in Winter by Mark Helprin (1997)
- Streetcar Dreams by Richard Bowes (1998)
- The Summer Isles by Ian R. MacLeod (1999)
- The Transformation of Martin Lake by Jeff VanderMeer (2000, tie)
- Sky Eyes by Laurel Winter (2000, tie)
- The Man on the Ceiling by Steve Rasnic Tem & Melanie Tem (2001)
- The Bird Catcher by S. P. Somtow (2002)
- The Library by Zoran Živković (2003)
- A Crowd of Bone by Greer Gilman (2004)
- The Growlimb by Michael Shea (2005)
- Voluntary Committal by Joe Hill (2006)
- Botch Town by Jeffrey Ford (2007)
- Illyria by Elizabeth Hand (2008)
- If Angels Fight by Richard Bowes (2009)
- Sea-Hearts by Margo Lanagan (2010)
- The Maiden Flight of McCauley's Bellerophon by Elizabeth Hand (2011)
- A Small Price to Pay for Birdsong by Tom Holt (2012)
- Let Maps to Others by Tom Holt (2013)
- Wakulla Springs by Andy Duncan and Ellen Klages (2014)
- We Are All Completely Fine by Daryl Gregory (2015)
- The Unlicensed Magician by Kelly Barnhill (2016)
- The Dream-Quest of Vellitt Boe by Kij Johnson (2017)
- Passing Strange by Ellen Klages (2018)
- "The Privilege of the Happy Ending" by Kij Johnson (2019)
- Silver in the Wood by Emily Tesh (2020)
- Riot Baby by Tochi Onyebuchi (2021)
- And What Can We Offer You Tonight by Premee Mohamed (2022)