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'Smoke and Mirrors' is a collection of short pieces, mostly stories, some poetry. Most appear to have been initially written for something else, and the book does contain information about this, for the seriously dedicated. There's no putting a genre title on this - some of it is fantastical, ... Read review
Best known for hisSandmangraphic novels about Morpheus, Lord of Dreams, Neil Gaiman has ... more
also written the standalone booksGood Omens(with Terry Pratchett),Never Wherefrom his BBC TV series revealing a fantastic realm under London, andStar Dust, a poigna...
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Best known for his Sandman graphic novels about Morpheus, Lord of Dreams, Neil Gaiman has ... more
also written the standalone books Good Omens (with Terry Pratchett), Never Where from his BBC TV series revealing a fantastic realm under London, and Star Dus...
Postage & Packaging: refer to website Availability: Check Site.
Gaiman is a strange and diverse creator of fiction. He is perhaps best known for his work on the Sandman graphic novel series, but also has some more conventional fiction to his name. Well, for suitable values of 'more conventional'.
'Smoke and Mirrors' is a collection of short pieces, mostly stories, some poetry. Most appear to have been initially written for something else, and the book does contain information about this, for the ... ...- some of it is fantastical, some horrific, some erotic, some just weird. If you're Gainman fan, that will come as no surprise, but the previously uninitiated may find it unsettling.
Some of the work very self consciously refers to other writing - H.P. Lovecraft comes up a few times, and there's a story about being obsessed with Michael Morcock. There's a fair bit drawing on fairy tale and folklore - Beowulf, Snow White, the Billy ... more
Gaiman is a strange and diverse creator of fiction. He is perhaps best known for his work on the Sandman graphic novel series, but also has some more conventional fiction to his name. Well, for suitable values of 'more conventional'.
'Smoke and Mirrors' is a collection of short pieces, mostly stories, some poetry. Most appear to have been initially written for something else, and the book does contain information about this, for the seriously dedicated. There's no putting a genre title on this - some of it is fantastical, some horrific, some erotic, some just weird. If you're Gainman fan, that will come as no surprise, but the previously uninitiated may find it unsettling.
Some of the work very self consciously refers to other writing - H.P. Lovecraft comes up a few times, and there's a story about being obsessed with Michael Morcock. There's a fair bit drawing on fairy tale and folklore - Beowulf, Snow White, the Billy Goats gruff, the grail romances - Gaiman really does know his mythology and has a talent for producing the slightly familiar in very unfamiliar ways. Hence you can find a little old lady who has discovered the holy grail in a charity shop, and a troll waiting under a disused railway bridge.
There are too many tales for me to go over them all - some are very short indeed, some, to be honest, I couldn't make much sense of and some I know are going to stay with me for a long time. Most are written in first person (perhaps half a dozen aren't, at most) and sometimes you do rather get the impressions that the narrator is Gaiman himself, talking about something very close to personal experience, but with this author, you never know. There is less humour in this than in some of his work - less Pratchett like, more Clive Barker, but ultimately rather Gaiman. He goes to some very strange places.
Gaiman has a very simple, matter of fact writing style and can tell you the most improbable things "it was the devil" in the most straightforward of voices - this is an odd effect, misleadingly simplistic at times. His prose is quite elegant, his tales are generally well constructed and beautifully written. A few are a bit rambly, and don't seem to go anywhere, but are fascianting none the less.
I read the whole thing in 2 days, unable to put it down, and finding it easy to move from one tale to the next. Some stories do reference each other, so you have to keep an eye open for that. It did make me laugh a couple of times, it also made me think, ( a fascinating tale about all the animals vanishing, and the human race just using its own babies instead to fill the same functions - we are going down that path already) a few times it made me cringe a good deal as well - not entirely comfortable reading, not something to snuggle up with on a dark winter's night.
I'd have to recomend that you do go back and read the notes on each story, as these can add some interesting dimensions - most especially to "Shoggoth's old peculiar" whicha ctually features a couple of familiar faces, if you know to look for them.....
If you like dark fantasy and weird stuff (Clive Barker when not at maximum malevolence) then you will undoubtedly get on with this. For established Gaiman fans, it is a must read, and you will occasionally wonder if you might be seeing a familair face. Was that Desire modling in one of the tales?
Advantages: a really good little collection! Disadvantages: some stories can be considered confusing
This book I got off Bookcrossing.com where the site's ideal plan is to turn the whole world into a library. I asked to be put into this bookring for this book, and I'm very glad I asked. The author is Neil Gaiman. Who is quite famous for a number of books, such as: Stardust and Neverwhere. I have currently read a few books by Neil Gaiman and I have fully enjoyed them, and now I have a few more coming to me thanks to bookcrossing.com There is quite ... ...I decided to get a note pad while reading each of the stories, so that when I finished each of those stories, I could write a short review of each of them, well this is what I thought (considering they are only short stories, I shall not be telling you much (if anything) about them): ~The Wedding Gift~ This is found in the introduction so you should read it! I really enjoyed this story, with the little twist, it was very good! ~Chivalry~ I didn't ...
Jonni_boi 30.08.2009
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Smoke and Mirrors - Neil Gaiman
Advantages: Can't rate this one highly enough - the mamrks below could apply to each and every story in there. Disadvantages: Well, if you LIKE being maniacally depressed, I'd avoid this. It'll cheer you up in no time.
'Smoke and Mirrors' collects together a substantial amount of Neil Gaiman's short fiction, published and unpublished. Containing an impressive thirty-six short stories, I figure this to be a must-have volume.
Reading Gaiman's short fiction remains me slightly of the reaction I once had to Clive Barker's 'Books of Blood', an overwhelming awe that a writer's imagination can be so clearly painted out in words. However, where Barker's work was overtly ... ...handle dark pieces, he's equally at home with broad humour, magical realism, and more - all of which you'll find in these pages.
Opening with a lengthy introduction that whets the appetite for what is to come, Gaiman also includes personal notes on the creation of each and every story in the book. As an author myself, I love reading about what inspires others to create a piece of writing, but Gaiman is so damn personable that the more casual reader ...
RichardW 15.12.2000
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Smoke and Mirrors - Neil Gaiman
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Quick review of Smoke and Mirrors - Neil Gaiman
A fantastic collection of short stories ranging from the quirky and comedic to the deep and thought provoking. Gaiman cant fail to please with this unique concoction of literary delights. ...
booeymojo 01.10.2008
Ciao members have rated this review on average: somewhat helpful Review of Smoke and Mirrors - Neil Gaiman
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Advantages: Great Story Telling, Amusing Ideas Disadvantages: Might be a bit too much like an excuse for soft porn for some people
I like short stories. I like a perverse sense of humour. I like dark and terrifying horror tales. And I like sex - preferably lots of it.
Which, when all rolled together, must surely mean that I like NeilGaiman's "Smoke & Mirrors", a collection of some of his finest short stories, shouldn't it?
And, in many ways, I do. Stephen King, noted for several compilations of short stories (and, indeed, with another anthology due out any day), said that "Gaiman is, simply put, a treasure-house of story, and we are lucky to have him." Well, if Stephen says so, I have to pick up the book and read it myself. William Gibson cited Gaiman as "a writer of rare perception and endless imagination", while Chris Carter says "you long for writers like NeilGaiman: his vision is so personal and idiosyncratic. And unexpected..."
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Advantages: Some interesting angles to old stories Disadvantages: None
NeilGaiman's book "Smoke and Mirrors" is a good read. Having just finished it, I have to say that in some ways it reminds me of his "Sandman" comics. In this paperback we are presented with a collection of stories and poems. All fall into the categories of fantastic and fantasy, some horror, some science fiction, some erotic if not pornographic and a few that almost have an autobiographical feel to them.
Another area of interest about this book is its introduction where Gaiman talks about the various stories. It gives, I feel, some insight into the way writers come up with their ideas.
The stories and poems themselves are a mixed bunch some are very short others relatively long. I have to admit to being a little biased because I like Gaiman's work a lot. For fans of his work there is little to disappoint you for those who are ...
Advantages: Witty, dark, enthralling, entertaining Disadvantages: None - it kept me entertained throughout
and entertained as Richard, Hunter and the Marquis face the Beast in the Labyrinth or taking on the Ordeal of the Black Friars.
The amusingly twisted narrative pokes fun at real life London attractions and streets and the snappy story-telling keeps you enthralled as Richard falls in love with the Lady Door but still wishes to be returned to his home and life in London Above.
I had been unsure about whether I would enjoy a full NeilGaiman novel after some of the tawdry tales in his Smoke & Mirrors anthology, but I couldn't help thinking that this was a hugely enjoyable novel which captured my imagination and whisked me off to a world that was utterly believable.
If you fancy reading something that is off-the-wall, funny, gripping and somewhat nail-biting in places, I hugely recommend Neverwhere by NeilGaiman.
And it really will make you ...
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