I agree with you John -- the book does seem to be some sort of recepticle of magical power. Moreover, I think it is an excellent vehicle for the sort of interactive fiction projects on which Archipeligoans groove.

In my Advanced Comp. class at Poly, I used this book to get kids to try their own Burdick-like stories. It was a roaring success. If the Crab Novellas ever peter out, this would be a good alternative.