Fragile Things

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The Problem of Susan" – written for the anthology Flights by Al Sarrantonio, written in response to the character Susan in Narnia Inventing Aladdin" (3 stars)- Another poem taking a look at Scheherazade. This was one of the few poems in the collection that I enjoyed. I love Neil Gaiman. He is brilliant, imaginative, and abso- friggin-lutely weird, and I love him for it. And this book of short stories and prose, Fragile Things, is by far my most favorite compendium of his.

Scattered through the book are a number of poems, all of which I am completely not qualified to give an opinion on, and none of which really spoke to me.October in the Chair" has wonderful characterization and keeps the reader on the edge of his/her chair. Monarch of the Glen" is a novella which serves as a sequel to American Gods. Here we get to see a little bit of how Shadow is carrying on after the events of that novel. This was a nice teaser, making me want a new American Gods novel now. C'mon, Neil. Everybody wants you to write it. The Flints of Memory Lane" (4 stars)- Just a short story about a young man remembering the time he came across something evil. This is my second read-through of this book, and it was just as great, and oddly, just as surprising this time around as the last.

For me, by far the most enjoyable was 'Monarch of the Glen,' in which the American Gods's character, Shadow, is visiting Scotland. Two characters from an earlier short make an appearance here, and it is Mr. Alice and Mr. Smith. I enjoyed the way local mythology got weaved in on a number of different levels. It is recorded that the emperor died in his sleep, and that is true, as far as it goes—although it could be remarked that his death was not entirely unassisted; and his oldest son, who became emperor in his turn, had little interest in maps or mapmaking. In a novella set two years after the events of American Gods, Shadow pays a visit to an ancient Scottish mansion, and finds himself trapped in a game of murder and monsters. is really a set of twelve very short stories, written to accompany Tori Amos’s CD Strange Little Girls. Inspired by Cindy Sherman and by the songs themselves, Tori created a persona for each of the songs, and I wrote a story for each persona. It’s never been collected anywhere, although it was published in the tour book, and lines from the stories were scattered throughout the CD booklet. HARLEQUIN VALENTINE There are bones untouched beneath the warm French earth which dream of a daughter's wedding. Good wine is drunk. The only tears shed are happy ones.”I think there are more stories about the unpleasant Mr. Smith to be told, particularly the one in which he and Mr. Alice come to a parting of the ways. THE FACTS IN THE CASE OF THE DEPARTURE OF MISS FINCH It seemed like a fine title for a book of short stories. There are so many fragile things, after all. People break so easily, and so do dreams and hearts.” Strange Little Girls. Creo que me faltó contexto en este relato (esa opinión la sustento, en parte, en que el autor explica que esta historia fue creada para un album homónimo).

The only reason I finished the book was because I wanted to see at what lengths Neil can elaborate his fantasies and I really respect him for that since I believe No one can write Fantasies as Neil does & he sure didn't disappoint me in that area. Michael Chabon was editing a book of genre stories to demonstrate how much fun stories are and to raise funds for 826 Valencia, which helps children to write. (The book was published as McSweeney’s Mammoth Treasury of Thrilling Tales.) He asked me for a story, and I asked if there was any particular genre he was missing. There was—he wanted an M. R. James–style ghost story. Forbidden Brides of the Faceless Slaves in the Secret House of the Night of Dread Desire" – gothic story published in the anthology Gothic! Sunbird. Creo que este cuentito se me hizo más predecible que ningún otro. Supongo que me gustó, pero no es mi favorito en el librito. Written for Peter Straub, for the remarkable volume of Conjunctions that he guest-edited. It began some years earlier, at a convention in Madison, Wisconsin, at which Harlan Ellison had asked me to collaborate with him on a short story. We were placed inside a rope barrier, Harlan at his typewriter, me at my laptop. But before we could start the short story, Harlan had an introduction to finish, so while he finished his introduction I started this story and showed it to him. Nope. It reads like a Neil Gaiman story, he said. (So I put it aside and started another story, which Harlan and I have now been collaborating on ever since. Bizarrely, whenever we get together and work on it, it gets shorter.) So I had part of a story sitting on my hard drive. Peter invited me into Conjunctions a couple of years later. I wanted to write a story about a dead boy and a living one, as a sort of dry run for a book for children I had decided to write (it’s called The Graveyard Book, and I am writing it right now). It took me a little while to figure out how the story worked, and when it was done, I dedicated it to Ray Bradbury, who would have written it much better than I did.Harlequin Valentine. Quizá esta historia también podría tener algo con el karma, como el embustero termina siendo embaucado. Aunque debo decir que no me gustó particularmente, y probablemente sea de aquellas historias que olvide primero. The Facts in the Case of the Departure of Miss Finch. Esta es una de las historias lo suficientemente importantes para tener una breve alusión en la contraportada del libro. Es bizarro, pero también creo que muestra que lo que uno quiere (o cree querer) puede ser un arma de doble filo. Inventing Aladdin – a poem depicting the invention of stories, in this case, Aladdin by Scheherazade (3 stars) In your fantasies," she said, "my people are just like you. Only better. We don't die or age or suffer from pain or cold or thirst. We're snappier dressers. We possess the wisdom of the ages. And if we crave blood, well, it is no more than the way you people crave food or affection or sunlight - and besides, it gets us out of the house. Crypt. Coffin. Whatever." Keepsakes and Treasures" (1 star)- I know that there are evil people in the world, but this whole story was repulsive as hell. I found it hard to read and hope that Mr. Alice and Mr. Smith show up again and something terrible happens to them both.