Little, Big
core novel 1981 Little, Big
Record
| First published | 1981 |
|---|---|
| Original language |  EN |
| Work type | novel |
| Canon status | core |
| Reader rating | 3.80 (12,586 ratings, collected 2026-08-27) |
| Page count | 538 |
| First-edition ISBN | 9780553012668 |
| Internal chronology | 1 |
Synopsis
Little, Big, published in 1981, follows Smoky Barnable, an unremarkable young man who travels on foot from the City to the remote, otherworldly house of Edgewood, having been told that walking rather than taking faster transport is a condition of his engagement to Daily Alice Drinkwater, as foretold within her eccentric extended family. Smoky's 1982 marriage into the Drinkwater family draws him into their sprawling, secretive household and its long-held belief that Edgewood borders another, stranger world, one connected to fairy tale and older folklore in ways the family both cultivates and half-understands. As Smoky settles into Edgewood's peculiar rhythms and the family's generations of lore and prophecy, the novel unfolds into a multigenerational saga following the Drinkwater descendants across decades, tracing how the family's fate grows ever more entangled with the magical world at the edges of their own.
Where it sits
- Universe: Little, Big
- Series: not part of a registered series (standalone work within its universe)
- Author: John Crowley
Awards (verified)
- World Fantasy Award (Best Novel), 1982: won
- Nebula Award (Best Novel), 1981: nominated
- Hugo Award (Best Novel), 1982: nominated
- Locus Award (Best Fantasy Novel), 1982: nominated
Sources
← Little, Big dossier · All universes
Part of the Library. Fields without an identified source are omitted, never guessed.