Reviews

"I remember my own childhood vividly...I knew terrible things. But I knew I mustn’t let adults know I knew. It would scare them." - Maurice Sendak

Neil Gaiman knows about childhood—he knows that feeling of longing for something you used to have, and may never have again. He knows how childhood memories can fade away, becoming nebulous over time; how our early years are wondrous when we look back, but really not so great when they happened.

This book is absolutely incredible. Gaiman captures feelings so difficult to put into words and he does so magnificently.

Here are just a few of my favorite quotes:

"I wonder how I looked to her, in that place, and knew that even in a place that was nothing but knowledge that was the one thing I could not know. That if I looked inward I would see only infinite mirrors, staring into myself for eternity."

"The dream was haunting me: standing beside me, present and yet invisible, like the back of my head, simultaneously there and not there...I tried to pull the dream that had upset me so to the front of my mind, but it would not come. There had been betrayal in it, I knew, and loss, and time."

"I do not miss childhood, but I miss the way I took pleasure in small things, even as greater things crumbled. I could control the world I was in, could not walk away from things or people or moments that hurt, but I found joy in the things that made me happy."

eesh25's review against another edition

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4.0

This was a great read. Gaiman really knows how to pull of a folk-esque tale with his choice of characters and the setting he creates. The Hempstocks were so intriguing, made so by us knowing just enough to be fascinated by them but not enough for them to feel real.

I also loved how Gaiman really made you feel the fear and horror of being a frightened child, helpless in the face of the adults in his life. Not to mention how creepy this book is. I can totally see my younger self having nightmares about Ursula Monkton. My adult self, on the other hand, was more affected by how unhappy the protagonist's life seems. So many of Gaiman's protagonists are very sad adults. Why is that? Are you okay, Mr. Gaiman?

Anyway, the final third of the story maybe got dragged out a tiny bit. The ending... I'm not sure how I feel about it. No positive or negative feelings, it just was. Overall, I really liked this book, and loved Gaiman's narration for the audiobook. Definitely recommend.

faeriesparks's review against another edition

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2.0

I can't believe I finally finished this book.
The reason I'm only giving this book 2 stars is simply because I didn't enjoy it. I can acknowledge that this is a good (maybe even great) book - but it definitely wasn't for me.

ecottone33's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

c4msx's review against another edition

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4.0

Esse livro foi uma jornada diferente, não consigo descrever ainda a experiência de ler esse livro. Parabéns Neil Gaiman pq eu chorei no final

yousrabushehri's review

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mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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