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deckofdragons's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
vgk's review against another edition
2.0
Neil Gaiman can be a magnificent story teller (see: The Graveyard Book, Neverwhere, The Ocean at the End of the Lane), but he isn't always (see: Anansi Boys, American Gods). This collection leans heavily toward the latter category. In fact it isn't actually that he tells the stories badly, it's more that the stories are deeply troubling, and not in a good way. I wish I hadn't read them.
grrr8_catsby's review against another edition
4.5
The Neil Gaiman Reader is a collection of 52 short stories and excerpts written by the titular author, far too many to list out in a simple book review.
Neil Gaiman is a master storyteller, and has the rare ability to satisfactorily tell a story of any length, whether it be a short story, novella, or full length book. Gaiman's prose is intentional; focused, but allowing for glimpses of flavorful description when description is needed, but never being overly gushing or flowery. Passages will lull you into a sense of nostalgia of memories of reading fairy tales, while never feeling juvenile.
Overall, this feels like a complete and authentic collection; every story is well written and none feel added for content or length. Every entry in this book is included in chronologic order, and it is nice to appreciate the changes and development of Gaiman's writing style over the years.
While there are no bad stories included in this book, there are some interesting thematic choices. Several of the included novellas serve as companion pieces to Gaiman's American Gods novel (which I have not yet read) and multiple short stories can be classified as "Sherlock Holmes" tales. Most surprising, however, are the sheer number of Cthulhu adjacent stories; some the reader may not identify until nearing completion of the tale.
If you are a fan of Neil Gaiman's work, you will enjoy this book. If you are interested in picking up one of Gaiman's novels but are too daunted by the length of books like Coraline, there is plenty to enjoy in a book like this, while being a truthful representation of what the author consistently offers.
Neil Gaiman is a master storyteller, and has the rare ability to satisfactorily tell a story of any length, whether it be a short story, novella, or full length book. Gaiman's prose is intentional; focused, but allowing for glimpses of flavorful description when description is needed, but never being overly gushing or flowery. Passages will lull you into a sense of nostalgia of memories of reading fairy tales, while never feeling juvenile.
Overall, this feels like a complete and authentic collection; every story is well written and none feel added for content or length. Every entry in this book is included in chronologic order, and it is nice to appreciate the changes and development of Gaiman's writing style over the years.
While there are no bad stories included in this book, there are some interesting thematic choices. Several of the included novellas serve as companion pieces to Gaiman's American Gods novel (which I have not yet read) and multiple short stories can be classified as "Sherlock Holmes" tales. Most surprising, however, are the sheer number of Cthulhu adjacent stories; some the reader may not identify until nearing completion of the tale.
If you are a fan of Neil Gaiman's work, you will enjoy this book. If you are interested in picking up one of Gaiman's novels but are too daunted by the length of books like Coraline, there is plenty to enjoy in a book like this, while being a truthful representation of what the author consistently offers.
lisas_novel_idea's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
A compilation of many of his short stories or excerpts from his books, I had read many of them but still enjoyed.
frogcatcher3's review against another edition
5.0
Large collection of Gaiman short stories and excerpts from his novels. I've read most of these in other collections but it was still a great read.
billylegenie's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5