M is for Magic

"M Is for Magic" is a compilation of stories by Neil Gaiman. He tells us in the introduction that he got the idea for his title from Ray Bradbury's books "R is for Rocket" and "S Is for Space," and that Mr. Bradbury was more than happy to let him use the pattern for naming his book. I thought that was a neat tribute to an author that Gaiman told us he read as a kid.

There are 11 stories in this book and, as usual, they are full of imagination! The first story, "The Case of Four and Twenty Blackbirds," had me laughing the whole way through! Gaiman cleverly weaves famous nursery rhyme characters into a detective mystery that reads like a Dick Tracy story. You'll have a lot of fun finding out just who it was that offed Humpty Dumpty!

"Troll Bridge" brought me back to memories of my youth. My cousin and I would go up and visit our Granny and she had a little crick with a small bridge over it out back. We played many games out there, but one of the one's I remember the clearest was playing the classic story of the troll and the bridge. Maybe because I always seemed to end up being the troll.

Another story that really stuck out at me was "Sunbird." I've always been fascinated by the Pheonix, but it's not a creature I've encountered in too many tales. I thought this approach was quite unique, and one that quite frankly made me hungry!

Odd and the Frost Giants

"Odd and the Frost Giants" is a fanciful children's tale set in a frozen Nordic setting. Odd is the name of the hero of the story, and while that might seem strange to you or I, in that place it was actually a lucky name to have, because it means "the tip of a blade."

Odd was, um, a bit strange though. His father had been killed in a sea raid, which was fairly normal, but these particular circumstances weren't. Not long after that, Odd crippled accidentally with an axe, forever solidifying his place as "different" among the villagers.

One lonely winter day Odd decides that he needs to get away from the cramped winter quarters and the arguments, and he goes off by himself in the woods. There he meets some interesting animals, that he soon discovers are not animals at all, but gods who have been trapped in animal form!

Next thing Odd knows he's off to talk with Frost Giants and on the adventure of his life! It's a fun and quick read, I completely enjoyed it, and I would love to share it with a child. It does get a little tense at times, but there's nothing super-dark in here like there is with some of Gaiman's other writings.

Coraline by Neil Gaiman

When people hear that I like Neil Gaiman's work they inevitably ask me if I've seen "Coraline." That always bugs me, shouldn't they be asking me if I've READ "Coraline" and THEN ask if I've seen the movie made from the book? I guess I'm a purist. If the book came before the movie than the book should always come first in my eyes. Well, ladies and gentlemen, the current answer is yes, I've read "Coraline," and no, I have not seen the movie. I'd like to see the movie though! It's now officially been added to my list of things to see at some point.

"Coraline" is the story of a young girl who's family moves into a new flat, and in the process, she discovers she has some um, rather strange neighbors. First of all, she has to deal with everyone trying to call her "Caroline," which is annoying, but I suspect she's dealt with that particular nuisance most of her life. Her downstairs neighbors are couple of spinsters and their dog, and her upstairs neighbor is an old man and his rats that he claims to be training. While they each have their quirks, these are not the strangest neighbors of all.

No, the weirdest neighbors are the one's she discovers when she opens the door in between her flat and the vacant flat that's on the same level as her flat. That's when she meets her alternate family. They look almost exactly like her parents, except they have button eyes, and they don't act the same as her parents.

Coraline soon discovers that these alternate parents are far more sinister than they initially appeared. It's up to her, with a little help from the cat she's befriended, to save her parents, and to rescue the souls of other children these wicked people have lured in. It's a bit of a harrowing story, but fascinating at the same time!

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

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The Graveyard Book

I was absolutely enthralled by "The Graveyard Book" by Neil Gaiman! It's not often I read a book in one sitting any more, I get too distracted by my crafty projects, but this is one that I sat down and just read straight through. I even tried to put it down once, but I was too curious to see what happened next!

"The Graveyard Book" has a unique premise. A very small boy manages to escape being murdered with the rest of his family when he climbs out of his crib and toddles into a graveyard. The murder tries to pursue him, but his mother's ghost persuades a kind old lady ghost to protect him. Soon, the baby boy has been adopted by an old couple of ghosts, and the rest of the graveyard!

Can you imagine growing up in a graveyard? Your only friends are dead, your teachers are dead, and you learn to read and write off of gravestones? Despite this strange upbringing Bod (short for Nobody), grows up to be a fairly well-adjusted, if a little strange, boy. The story of why his family was murdered, how Bod eventually integrates with the "normal" world, and everything else, makes for a fascinating story that you won't want to put down either!

The Dangerous Alphabet by Neil Gaiman, Illustrated by Gris Grimly

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The Dangerous Alphabet

This is a great children's book, if you don't mind exposing your children to a bit of the macabre! Since that tends to be my bent, I would show this to my kids, if I ever have any that is. Maybe not when their really young though. The best way to describe this book is to share with you the introduction:

"A piratical ghost story in thirteen ingenious but potentially disturbing rhyming couplets, originally conceived as a confection both to amuse and entertain by Mr. Neil Gaiman, scrivener, and then doodled, elaborated upon, illustrated, and beaten soundly by Mr. Gris Grimly, etcher and illuminator, featuring two brave children, their diminutive but no less courageous gazelle, and a large number of extremely dangerous trolls, monsters, bugbears, creatures, and other such nastiness, many of which have perfectly disgusting eating habits and ought not, under any circumstances, be encouraged."

It's a short book, but with the illustrations you'll find yourself staring at it for a long time!