The core of Mr Clute's theory is one that Forster might have found sad, but that most, be they bus drivers or golfers, will enjoy: that fantasy is about stories.

ECONOMIST: Fantasists

For the time being, though, Mr Clute has chosen to press his argument for real fantasy through the skeins of theory, influence and resemblance that pull the unwitting browser through this magnificent encyclopedia.

ECONOMIST: Fantasists

This leads to the means for distinguishing fantasy from the far broader category of the fantastic, which includes a vast range of other forms such as horror, fabulation, surrealism and science fiction, the subject of an earlier excellent encyclopedia edited by Mr Clute and Peter Nicholls.

ECONOMIST: Fantasists