The Sandman: Endless Nights

The Sandman: Endless Nights
by Neil Gaiman
Graphic Novel. 152 pp.
DC Comics. 2003.

back copy:

Before becoming a New York Times two-time best-selling author, Neil Gaiman revolutionized the comic-book arena with The Sandman. The most acclaimed and award-winning comic series of the last decade, The Sandman is a rich blend of modern myth and dark fantasy, in which contemporary fiction, historical drama and legend are seamlessly interwoven. The Sandman set new standards for comics literature, and the ten volumes of The Sandman library are seen today as one of the high-watermarks of the medium.

The Sandman: Endless Nights will be a delight to fans of Gaiman's work and newcomers to the graphic novel. Whether haunting, bittersweet, erotic or nightmarish, the seven stories in this book—one for each of the Endless siblings—reveal strange secrets and surprising truths. Each story is illustrated by some of the greatest comics artists from around the world.

Fortunately, I checked this book out from the library at the same time as I checked out Preludes and Nocturnes. had I not done that, I would have never read this one, I enjoyed this one considerably more than the other. There are a couple things I'm going to chalk such like up to. First, the stories are better contained and more interesting, probably because we get to see a little about each of the Endless siblings. Second, the illustrations are in a style that I find more pleasing, even if each story is illustrated by a different illustrator. This was a huge component of my liking this one.

So, I won't completely write off the Sandman series; I just won't actively set about finishing it.

The Last Exit to Normal

The Last Exit to Normal
by Michael Harmon
YA fiction. 288 pp.
Knopf. 2008.

kindle summary:

Yanked out of his city life and plunked down into a small Montana town with his father and his father's boyfriend, seventeen-year-old Ben, angry and resentful about the changed circumstances of his life, begins to notice that something is not quite right with the little boy next door and determines to do something about it.

further summary:

It’s true: After 17-year-old Ben’s father announces he’s gay and the family splits apart, Ben does everything he can to tick him off: skip school, smoke pot, skateboard nonstop, get arrested. But he never thinks he’ll end up yanked out of his city life and plunked down into a small Montana town with his dad and Edward, The Boyfriend. As if it's not painful enough living in a hick town with spiked hair, a skateboard habit, and two dads, he soon realizes something's not quite right with Billy, the boy next door. He's hiding a secret about his family, and Ben is determined to uncover it and set things right. In an authentic, unaffected, and mordantly funny voice, Michael Harmon tells the wrenching story of an uprooted and uncomfortable teenaged guy trying to fix the lives around him—while figuring out his own.

This is the first book I read on my Kindle. (And I haven't told you how much I lurve my Kindle yet, but I do. And I will. After I finish catching up with these reviews.) I had tagged this book as To Read some time ago, though I don't remember where I found the recommendation. Overall, I found the book to be average. That said, there are some strengths to it to commend it.

For starters, the characters are well drawn. Particularly Miss Mae, Ben's new step-grandmother. She's brusque and apparently rather weather-worn and hardened. But there's a deep and abiding love underneath her tough exterior, and you're thrilled as Ben begins to discover this. (You're also thrilled every time she whacks him with a wooden spoon for some offense, be it foul language, laziness, or smarting off. Even better when she kicks him out of the house for his behavior and makes him sleep in the shed.) You fall in love with Billy, the boy next door who is walking a tough line in his own life. Edward is even extremely likable.

The novel shows amazing growth on Ben's part, and that leaves the book with an overall feeling of hope. Is Ben a punk? Yes. Do you see and understand why he is? Yes.

I'd say the one thing I found distracting was the language. I'm not even sure why. Because this was the language used around school as I grew up. It's the language of ranch hands and cowboys. But it just seemed to be in excess in this novel.

other reviews:
Becky's Book Reviews | Guys Lit Wire | Literature Blog

The Demigod Files

The Demigod Files
by Rick Riordan
YA fantasy. 151 pp.
Hyperion. 2009.

back copy:

Young demigods, brace yourselves for a peek inside the highly classified Demigod Files! Compiled by Camp Half-Blood's senior scribe, Rick Riordan, these top secret archives include three of Percy Jackson's most perilous adventures and behind-the-scenes interviews with your favorite characters—Connor and Travis, Clarisse, Annabeth, Grover, and Percy. Become an authority on Percy's world with this must-have guide to the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series.

So, we know that I lurve me some Percy Jackson. I had forgotten that this little nugget was to be released until I happened to be at the Devil's Den buying a birthday present for Bruce and saw sitting there, begging to be bought. So I bought it. And enjoyed it. This book consists of a few short stories, some character interviews, and some puzzles. I like that it fleshes the characters out a bit more. What I wonder, though, is if Riordan is using the short stories to move the principals along to where they need to be for the final volume, The Last Olympian. All I know is that I'm glad to have a little bit of Percy to tide me over until May.

The Sandman: Preludes and Nocturnes

The Sandman: Preludes and Nocturnes
by Neil Gaiman
Graphic Novel. 239 pp.
DC Comics. 1991.

back copy:

Enter a dark and enchanting world of dreams and nightmares and meet the Sandman, master of dreams, and his kin—the Endless. This first collection of Neil gaiman's unique and multi-award-winning Sandman Saga introduces key themes and characters, combining myth, magic and black humor.

bn synopsis:

A wizard attempting to capture Death to bargain for eternal life traps her younger brother Dream instead. Fearful for his safety, the wizard kept him imprisoned in a glass bottle for decades. After his escape, Dream, also known as Morpheus, goes on a quest for his lost objects of power. On the way, Morpheus encounters Lucifer and demons from Hell, the Justice League, and John Constantine, the Hellblazer. This book also includes the story "The Sound of Her Wings" which introduces us to the pragmatic and perky goth girl, Death.

I picked this title up at the suggestion of a few friends because I've found myself interested in Gaiman's writing of late. ejwise said:

Gaiman, for the unitiated, is best known for his Sandman comic book series -- or for the more sophisticated, a graphic novel series. (It was serialized before it was bound into separate volumes based upon its many story-arcs.) This is a must-read!

In terms of story, I think I'd agree with him. The story itself is intriguing. Morpheus himself is fascinating. As I've thought about it over the weeks since I finally finished the volume, I mostly didn't care for the illustration style. And because of that, I found that I didn't particularly care for this book and will likely not carry on into the series.

InterWorld

Interworld
by Neil Gaiman and Michael Reaves
YA fantasy. 239 pp.
Eos. 2007.

back copy:

Joey Harker isn't a hero.

In fact, he's the kind of guy who gets lost in his own house.

But one day, Joey gets really lost. He walks straight tout of his world and into another dimension.

Joey's walk between worlds makes him prey to armies of magic and science, both determined to harness Joey's power to ravel between the dimensions. The only thing standing in their way is Joey—or, more precisely, an army of Joeys, all from different dimensions and all determined to save the worlds.

Now Joey must make a choice: return to the life he knows or join the battle to the end.

I enjoyed this book. What I found most intriguing was the alternate reality in which it played out. Essentially, every time a significant decision has to be made, a world splits, each of the two worlds following the path of one of the opposing decisions. That said, the realm of worlds exist on a plane that shifts from magic to science, the bulk of the worlds residing in that center space.

So when Joey inadvertently Walks between worlds, flags are set off as the civilizations existing at the extremes vie to capture Joey (and the other Joeys) to harness his essence to conquer the universe. Through this all, Joey must learn who he is and who he wants to be. (This summary doesn't do the story any justice at all, which I guess would explain why the authors had difficulty summarizing it to pitch it to television producers. A crying shame, really, because this would serialize fantastically.)

Joey is extremely likable. He's flawed in believable ways but emotionally endearing. Whereas the conflict in the plot does seem to stem from his decisions, it wasn't the kind of conflict where I spent the bulk of my time muttering about how stupid he was. I don't know how much of the writing was Gaiman's and how much was Reaves', but I'm starting to understand why people praise it so. (Which makes me look forward to reading Coraline now that I have it.)

As a complete and utter side note . . . Remember how Gaiman won the Newbery this year for Graveyard Book? I found a new reason to love Gaiman after reading his blog post about his experience:

You are on a speakerphone with at least 14 teachers and librarians and suchlike great, wise and good people, I thought. Do not start swearing like you did when you got the Hugo. This was a wise thing to think because otherwise huge, mighty and fourletter swears were gathering. I mean, that's what they're for. I think I said, You mean it's Monday?

"You can tell your agent and your publisher, but no-one else," said Rose. "And it will be announced in about an hour."

And I fumfed and mumbled and said something of a thankyouthankyouthankyouokaythiswasworthbeingwokenupfor nature.

Then I phoned my agent and my publisher, both of whom seemed to have intuited my news already through secret methods, but it may have just been that I was calling them on this particular Monday morning (and, in retrospect, someone must have phoned someone to get my home phone number). (Merrilee-my-agent: "You didn't start swearing, did you?" Me: "No." Her: "Oh good.")

The Magician's Assistant

The Magician's Assistant
by Ann Patchett
Fiction. 357 pp.
Harcourt. 1997.

back copy:

When Parsifal, a handsome and charming magician, dies suddenly, his widow Sabine—who was also his faithful assistant for twenty years—learns that the family he claimed to have lost in a tragic accident is very much alive and well. Sabine is left to unravel his secrets, and the adventure she embarks upon, from sunny Los Angeles to the bitter windswept plains of Nebraska, will work its own magic on her. Sabine's extraordinary tale captures the hearts of its readers just as Sabine is captured by her quest.

I read this book on the recommendation of a friend, and I'm pleased I did as this isn't an author I had heard of before or would have been inclined to pick up.

Before I get into my feelings on the book, I just want to clarify one little tidbit in the back copy: It should read his faithful assistant for twenty years Sabine—who was also his widow. Because this is what Sabine was to Parsifal. What with his being gay and all and marrying her during the last year of his life to make her inheritance easier. Anyway.

This is a character book. I realize that I generally come down fairly harsh on character books. After reading this, I realize it's because they generally aren't done very well. Patchett's language and sense of timing are remarkable. Remember how Ogre likes to talk about how he has layers, like an onion? Patchett proves herself quite adept at peeling back those layers with the right pacing and at the right time.

I can't say I ever felt compelled to read this book, but I noticed that it was written in such a way that all of a sudden I had read forty or fifty pages without being cognizant of it. I think that's a mark of an author who has crafted a fine novel.

It's a character book, so there's not much plot. Though there was a sudden introduction of plot toward the end. And I wasn't happy with it. Because suddenly there was an interesting action, but it was never developed. Giving the author the benefit of the doubt, I'd say it's because she's established these detailed and exquisite character descriptions and we are left to imagine what the characters will do now that something has happened.

First Among Sequels

First Among Sequels
by Jasper Fforde

Alternative reality. 362 pp.
Penguin. 2007.

back copy:

Fourteen years after she pegged out at the 1988 SuperHoop, Thursday Next is grappling with a host of problems in the BookWorld: a recalcitrant new apprentice, the death of Sherlock Holmes, and the inexplicable departure of comedy from the once-hilarious Thomas Hardy novels. The Council of Genres is trying to broker a peace deal between certain antagonistic genres: Racy Novel has been recklessly placed between Ecclesiastical and Feminist, and they are at each other's throats. Meanwhile, back in Swindon, the government is reporting a dangerously high stupidity surplus, and Thursday's idle sixteen-year-old son would rather sleep all day than follow his destiny as a member of the ChronoGuard. Not only does she captain the ship Moral Dilemma to the very limits of acceptable narrative possibilities, but Thursday also finds she must face down her most vicious enemy yet: herself.

It has occurred to me, with this novel, that Thursday Next novels stop up my reviewing. I think this is because I like them but I don't know if there's anything more to say than I've said before about Lost in a Good Book or The Well of Lost Plots or Something Rotten. Now that we're five books in, I think that overall I enjoy the alternative reality Fforde has set up. I like how Next functions in that universe. All that said, however, I think I prefer The Eyre Affaire where Next operates primarily in this world or Well of Lost Plots where she operates primarily in the BookWorld. I find the bouncing back and forth a bit irritating.