Book Reviews: Neil Gaiman under the spotlight

[dweomeroflight]

I've thought about reading "that Neil Gaiman guy" for awhile... ever since goblin author jimhines posted this utterly hilarious post of Chuck Norris Neil Gaiman jokes and even got to wear the tshirt (man this guy is SO on my to read list). Link here... http://www.jimchines.com/2009/09/20-neil-gaiman-facts/
and then when it was announced that Gaiman was writing an episode of Dr Who well of course I had to read SOMETHING of his.

I ended up reading The Graveyard Book (Is there a film of this does anyone know?) and Anansi Boys. Coraline and American Gods are on my to read list. Does anyone have other Gaiman suggestions?

Anyway thoughts under cut for both books...



The Graveyard Book. I liked this one alot. I think the best summation is actually the Garth Nix review on the back "I wish my younger self could have had the opportunity to read and reread this wonderful book, and my older self wishes that I had written it." This Garth Nix. THIS. (By the way I met Garth Nix two years back at the Sydney Writer's Festival. He had funny glasses and wasn't Isobelle Carmody so I had a terribly awkward conversation with him, having never ever read his books before. Then the orange stocking wearing Isobelle Carmody appeared and all else was forgotten).

This book reminded me of A Series of Unfortunate Events (which by the way I totally have to do a write up of on here one day. I love that series to bits for all kinds of weird and wonderful meta reasons) and this is a good thing.

I liked how the book was kind of like lots of little short stories all loosely linked together and I liked the little bits of wisdom dropped in throughout. I also liked the bittersweet ending and the overall message of the book... everyone has to grow up and make their own way someday, we all have to experience as much as we can. I think it was promethia_tenk who was describing the series five theme back in the day who said pretty much the same thing aka this:

This is what I hear from Steven Moffat over and over and over: Think deeper. Imagine wilder. Believe good things are possible. It's ok to forgive. It's ok to trust. Be good to each other. Remember. Keep trying. And keep telling stories, because the stories are where we keep the meanings.
That isn't trite, and that isn't naive. That's humanism. And we need to hear it, over and over. We need to hear it all the damn time.

I totally agree and apparently so does Neil Gaiman which makes him fit into new new Who very, VERY well I hope.

On to Anansi Boys. I actually liked The Graveyard Book better than Anansi Boys which was a horror cum comic fable for adults (what this says about me I don't know) but I still absolutely devoured this book.

I think the reason I didn't like this book as much as The Graveyard Book was because I didn't sympathise with the characters as much. I liked Spider and the policewoman, but I didn't actually like Fat Charlie or Rosie all that much. Maybe that was just me though.



Are the Sandman comics good? I might try those too eventually :)

Now I am off to write a quick how to post on the nicola_walker comm and then write a bit of an essay on environmental history. Fun.

Comments

[impetusofadream.livejournal.com]

Glad you found it AND liked it. I really enjoy it. Granted I read all of The Chronicles of Narnia in a different light now that a) I'm aware of their religious overtones and b) not really a follower of any particular religion anymore. But I'm looking forward to your review!