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DNF after Foreign Parts (23 of 33 stories). i kept cringing and hoping the stories would improve, and finally realized i didn't have to do that to myself. several stories were enjoyable, with creepy twists and end of the world scenarios, though with less hope and whimsy than i remember in his other works. the amount of objectified, purely self-gratifying sex (even when it was with another person) was dismaying. like no one even enjoyed the sex or masturbating, it was just another gross and depressing part of life. and, except in "Chivalry", there were few fully personified female characters - they were largely a backdrop for male activities or a sexual interest. a very disappointing read overall.
possibly the most uneven of gaiman's short story collections. some are quite good - especially the wedding present, shoggoth's old peculiar, and the last story, snow, glass apples. others are wholly forgettable.
dark
medium-paced
As with Fragile Things I'm working my way through for stories that can be shared with the family, because when Gaiman is writing things that can be read aloud they are amazing. This collection really only had one and a half - Chivalry and Shoggoth's Old Peculiar - which worked in that sense as the horror elements in the others are just too much for me to share with the kiddo.
Chivalry is worth the price of the book. It is flawless.
The remainder of the book is good. Spooky, clever, funny. Gaiman is sharing a lot of his early career here so the stories vary more in tone and theme than they do in later collections.
Chivalry is worth the price of the book. It is flawless.
The remainder of the book is good. Spooky, clever, funny. Gaiman is sharing a lot of his early career here so the stories vary more in tone and theme than they do in later collections.
I love reading Neil Gaiman. I love the athmosphere he creates, I love the way his brain works and tells a story that can change completely in the last sentence... Smoke and Mirrors wasn't an exception on that. Of course there are always stories that appear more than others, but I can say I really enjoyed most of them. Some even blew my mind...
Excellent collection of short stories and poems. As always, Neil Gaiman does an excellent job of making each story just realistic enough to seem like it could be true, but still so fantastic you can't quite believe it would be.
The trademark of his story collections is the stomach-churning discomfort when reading each story. Its an excellent indicator of how vivid the worlds he creates are, even if you only get to glimpse the character's lives for a page or two.
The trademark of his story collections is the stomach-churning discomfort when reading each story. Its an excellent indicator of how vivid the worlds he creates are, even if you only get to glimpse the character's lives for a page or two.
There are Probally 1000 little old ladies out the each with their own holy grail.