Review - Fragile Things by Neil Gaiman
It's almost impossible for me to think of something intelligent to say about this book, other than "Go read this if you don't you're insane", but I know that's not terribly helpful for people who have 1000s of titles calling their name. It's a book of short stories, poems, character sketches, and a novella, so it's an easy book to dip in and out of, as I have been doing for the past couple of weeks. I've had a bit of a book-crush on Gaiman since reading his "Sandman" series - this isn't quite as heart stopping as that series, but it's pretty dang close.
Here's what Gaiman does better than just about anyone else - he writes a first sentence that makes it impossible to not keep reading. Here's a sample of first lines from this book:
"It is the immensity, I believe. The hugeness of things below. The darkness of dreams."
"October was in the chair, so it was chilly that evening, and the leaves were red and orange and tumbled from the trees that circled the grove."
"I like things to be story-shaped."
"In every way that counted, I was dead."
" 'If you ask me,' said the little man to Shadow, 'you're something of a monster. Am I right?' "
Don't you just want to know what comes next? This collection has a detective story, a zombie story, an alien story, a story about an epicurean club, a story set in the world of The Matrix, several poems, and so much more. If you like stuff a little weird, but beautifully written and with amazing ideas, I'd encourage you to jump into Neil Gaiman's head with this book. It's worth it!
Finished: 6/27/08
Source: my bookshelves
Rating: 9/10
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