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pedanther's review
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
3.75
The thing about the short story, which is titled "Wall: A Prologue", is that it does feel like a prologue: it kind of works as a story in itself, but there's clearly another entire story following it that we don't get to hear about. I have a suspicion (or possibly half a memory of being told once) that it really is the prologue to a novel that Gaiman never got around to writing the rest of; the fact that it first saw print in a collection of unpublished bits and bobs for charity, and not in a regular short story form, is suggestive.
The poems are all fun.
The poems are all fun.
abisometimesreads's review
2.0
A mixed experience! This collection contains one short story and three poems, all set in the world of Gaiman's novel Stardust.
The short story... I don't get why it's part of this collection. Why I was reading about [SPOILERS!] a 13-year-old girl communicating with magpies and then getting her first period, I don't know! It contains one VERY fleeting reference to the village of Wall (which marks the boundary between our world and Fearie in Stardust), but that's it. Apparently, it was written before Stardust, but I still don't get why Gaiman looked at it and thought it was suitable for this collection, rather than, like... writing a few extra poems!
The poems, I did love! Septimus's Triolet is a dark, fun little stanza that I enjoyed because it relies on the reader already having all of the necessary context re: Septimus, who he is and what his deal is. This might seem like a duh, but a lesser author might have given exposition or wasted time repeating things we already know from Stardust. If you haven't read Stardust, you just get what's obvious from context.
The Song of the Little Hairy Man I also loved because it gets the voice of Charmed PERFECT. It's funny and endearing, and it provides a bit of context for a character who doesn't get a lot in Stardust – but not too much, because Charmed is the kinda guy who doesn't actually NEED an explanation.
The Old Warlock's Reverie wasn't much fun, for me, though. He's a new character, and there's not enough here for me to be interested in him. But, I like that it expands the mythology of Faerie by establishing some other life forms that exist there but don't feature in Stardust.
I was hoping there'd be something from the P.O.V. of the Lilim or their kingdom, Carnadine, before it was lost to the sea. I know witches get their moment in Stardust, but there's so much to mined, here! The eldest is implied to be as old as time!
I'm giving this a low rating because, ultimately, the short story does account for over half of it. But I loved the poems, and I'd enjoy it if Gaiman ever decided to publish more – or even some better short stories!
The short story... I don't get why it's part of this collection. Why I was reading about [SPOILERS!] a 13-year-old girl communicating with magpies and then getting her first period, I don't know! It contains one VERY fleeting reference to the village of Wall (which marks the boundary between our world and Fearie in Stardust), but that's it. Apparently, it was written before Stardust, but I still don't get why Gaiman looked at it and thought it was suitable for this collection, rather than, like... writing a few extra poems!
The poems, I did love! Septimus's Triolet is a dark, fun little stanza that I enjoyed because it relies on the reader already having all of the necessary context re: Septimus, who he is and what his deal is. This might seem like a duh, but a lesser author might have given exposition or wasted time repeating things we already know from Stardust. If you haven't read Stardust, you just get what's obvious from context.
The Song of the Little Hairy Man I also loved because it gets the voice of Charmed PERFECT. It's funny and endearing, and it provides a bit of context for a character who doesn't get a lot in Stardust – but not too much, because Charmed is the kinda guy who doesn't actually NEED an explanation.
The Old Warlock's Reverie wasn't much fun, for me, though. He's a new character, and there's not enough here for me to be interested in him. But, I like that it expands the mythology of Faerie by establishing some other life forms that exist there but don't feature in Stardust.
I was hoping there'd be something from the P.O.V. of the Lilim or their kingdom, Carnadine, before it was lost to the sea. I know witches get their moment in Stardust, but there's so much to mined, here! The eldest is implied to be as old as time!
I'm giving this a low rating because, ultimately, the short story does account for over half of it. But I loved the poems, and I'd enjoy it if Gaiman ever decided to publish more – or even some better short stories!
nwhyte's review
3.0
http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/2776783.html
This was part of the Neil Gaiman Humble Bundle, only 14 pages, published in 1999 and illustrated by Charles Vess. Most of it is a very short coming of age story about a girl and the significance of magpies; there are also three poems. The third poem is rather neat but the other two (including the one excerpted above) are rather slight.
This was part of the Neil Gaiman Humble Bundle, only 14 pages, published in 1999 and illustrated by Charles Vess. Most of it is a very short coming of age story about a girl and the significance of magpies; there are also three poems. The third poem is rather neat but the other two (including the one excerpted above) are rather slight.
nmcannon's review
5.0
Like many, I received this as part of the Humble Bundle of Gaiman rarities. A super quick read, it contains a writings relevant to the Stardust universe, including a prologue and 3 poems. A lovely little gem with lovely stylized art!
marc_lucke's review
3.0
Ever since I was mesmerized by Instructions, I've been looking forward to reading this other collaboration between Gaiman & Vess. Once again, the crisp art is a perfect complement to Gaiman's restrained, poetic narrative. My only real complaint is that the entire exercise feels a bit rote: it's almost Gaiman-by-the-numbers (which isn't entirely a bad thing).
mxhermit's review
4.0
The poems in this short piece were cool because even though most weren't stated out and out, you could tell which characters from Stardust they were talking about.
The piece that I'm confused about the most is in the beginning about Jenny. It takes place in 1963 and other than a mention of Wall doesn't seem to have much connection to the Stardust story. It feels like a tease and I really wish this were going to be a longer story because Jenny, or her family, sound like they could have been very important.
The piece that I'm confused about the most is in the beginning about Jenny. It takes place in 1963 and other than a mention of Wall doesn't seem to have much connection to the Stardust story. It feels like a tease and I really wish this were going to be a longer story because Jenny, or her family, sound like they could have been very important.
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