Long ago I purchased a copy of American Gods. It sat on my shelf unread for too long and then, without ever reading it, I donated it to a bookstore. Fast forward a few years and I saw a wonderful commencement speech by Neil Gaiman on YouTube via a link sent by a friend. A few days after I saw that speech, which stayed in my mind, I was in the library and saw this book. It's a collection of some of his short stories and poems. I was so inspired by what he said, I wanted to get to know his art. I wanted to ease into his work so I could come back to American Gods one day. This book has a "wow" factor. I mean that I would sometimes finish a story and literally say "wow" or "that was SO good". There were, of course, a few stories that I didn't care for either way. However, the majority of his stories absorbed me. At times I would be reading a story and become so enveloped in it that when it ended, I had to remind myself that I was reading a short story and not a novel. I had settled into the story so deeply that I was somehow fully expecting it to go on, and the point is I
wanted it to go on. If you are a fan of Mr. Gaiman's work, I think you'll enjoy this. If you are unsure whether or not you will enjoy his work but enjoy fantasy, this is a very nice introduction.
*On a side note, as I was reading his work, I found myself thinking that it is very much possible to write great stories without being lofty. In fact, making a story more accessible lends a certain authenticity to it. This was a good writing lesson for me!
