''Kender, Gully Dwarves, and Gnomes'' is an

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs, or related fiction/non-fiction excerpts by different authors. There are also thematic and g ...

of fantasy stories published by

TSR, Inc. TSR, Inc. was an American game publishing company, best known as the original publisher of '' Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D''). Its earliest incarnation, Tactical Studies Rules, was founded in October 1973 by Gary Gygax and Don Kaye. Gygax had bee ...

in 1987. It was published under the

Dragonlance ''Dragonlance'' is a shared universe created by Laura and Tracy Hickman, and expanded by Tracy Hickman and Margaret Weis under the direction of TSR, Inc. into a series of fantasy novels. The Hickmans conceived ''Dragonlance'' while driving i ...

brand name and is set in that brand's fictional world of

Krynn ''Dragonlance'' is a shared universe created by Laura Hickman, Laura and Tracy Hickman, and expanded by Tracy Hickman and Margaret Weis under the direction of TSR, Inc. into a series of fantasy novels. The Hickmans conceived ''Dragonlance'' whi ...

. It is the eighth Dragonlance novel to be published, and the second book in the "Dragonlance Tales" series, all three books of which are anthologies of stories set in the Dragonlance milieu. The other two books in this series are '' The Magic of Krynn'' and '' Love and War''. Unlike the Dragonlance novels published up until that point, the Tales books do not exclusively follow one group of characters, but instead range across the entire scope of the setting.

Plot introduction

The book is a compilation of 10 short stories from various authors taking place in the fictional world of

: # "Snowsong" by Nancy Varian Berberick. This tale tells the story of an early adventure of the Companions.

Tanis Half-Elven Tanis Half-Elven is a fictional half-elven character in the ''Dragonlance'' series of books, which were published by TSR, and are now published by Wizards of the Coast. He is first introduced in the book ''Dragons of Autumn Twilight'' by Margare ...

and

Sturm Brightblade Sturm Brightblade is a fictional character from the ''Dragonlance'' series of role playing games and novels, based on the ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons'' franchise. The character was created by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman and is published by ...

are caught in a blizzard and their only hope of being rescued lies in the kender,

Tasslehoff Burrfoot Tasslehoff Burrfoot (often called Tas) is a fictional character of the Kender (fantasy), kender race from the Dragonlance series of novels, written by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. He was born in Kendermore (Krynn), Kendermore. His parents ar ...

. # "The Wizard's Spectacles" by Morris Simon. # "The Storyteller" by Barbara Siegel and

Scott Siegel Scott Warren Siegel (born 1951) is an American writer of mostly young adult shared universe science-fiction and fantasy, generally with his wife Barbara Siegel. Many of their novels were published in the 1980s and 1990s. In later years, he and his ...

. # "A Shaggy Dog's Tail" by Danny Peary. This story tells the tale of an abusive soldier's hunt for escaped prisoners, and his encounter along the way with a solicitous witch. # "Lord Toede's Disastrous Hunt" by Harold Bakst. This is the story of the (first) demise and death of the Dragon Highlord, Fewmaster Toede. # "Definitions of Honor" by Richard A. Knaak. This is a tale of a young Knight of Solamnia, Torbin, who rides to the rescue of a village against a

minotaur In Greek mythology, the Minotaur (, ''Mīnṓtauros''), also known as Asterion, is a mythical creature portrayed during classical antiquity with the head and tail of a bull and the body of a man or, as described by Roman poet Ovid, a being "par ...

. # "Hearth Cat and Winter Wren" by Nancy Varian Berberick. This is another tale of an early adventure of the Companions. A young

Raistlin Majere Raistlin Majere is a fictional character from the ''Dragonlance'' series of books created by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. Raistlin played an extensive role in the two main series of books, particularly in ''Dragonlance Legends'' in which he ...

uses his magic to help his friends against an evil wizard. # "'Wanna Bet?'" by

Margaret Weis Margaret Edith Weis (; born March 16, 1948) is an American fantasy and science fiction author of dozens of novels and short stories. At TSR, Inc., she teamed with Tracy Hickman to create the ''Dragonlance'' role-playing game (RPG) world. She is f ...

and

Tracy Hickman Tracy Raye Hickman (born November 26, 1955) is an American fantasy author and designer of games and virtual reality (VR) experiences. He co-authored the original ''Dragonlance'' novels with Margaret Weis as well as numerous other books. He also ...

. This is the tale of

Caramon Majere Caramon Majere (326 AC - 38 SC) is a fictional character from the Dragonlance books. He is depicted as a fighter and is one of the main characters in Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman's first Dragonlance trilogy, the ''Dragonlance Chronicles''. Ca ...

's three sons: Palin, Tanin, and Sturm Majere who accidentally find themselves in an adventure to recover the Graygem of Gargath after losing a bet with a mysterious dwarf named Dougan Redhammer. This tale is also reprinted in the novel, ''

The Second Generation ''The Second Generation'' is a collection of five novellas in the fantasy genre by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. It is part of the Dragonlance series. Plot introduction This book is in fact five novellas by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. T ...

''. # "Into the Heart of the Story" by Michael Williams. A

gnome A gnome () is a mythological creature and diminutive spirit in Renaissance magic and alchemy, introduced by Paracelsus in the 16th century and widely adopted by authors, including those of modern fantasy literature. They are typically depict ...

, Virum, tells his version of authorship of the songs involved about the heroes of the

War of the Lance The ''Dragonlance Chronicles'' is a trilogy of fantasy novels written by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman, which take place in the Dragonlance setting. This series is the first set of Dragonlance novels, and is followed by the ''Dragonlance Legend ...

. # "Dagger-Flight" by Nick O'Donohoe. A tale told from the viewpoint of a dagger involved in the novel, ''

Dragons of Autumn Twilight ''Dragons of Autumn Twilight'' is a 1984 fantasy novel by American writers Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman, based on a series of ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') game modules. It was the first ''Dragonlance'' novel, and first in the Dragonlanc ...

''.

Reception

''Kender, Gully Dwarves, and Gnomes'' reached 15 on the New York Times bestseller list on September 13, 1987.

References

1987 American novels American fantasy novels Dragonlance novels Dwarves in popular culture {{dragonlance-stub