The Sandman: Book of Dreams

The Neil Gaiman's begining work, Sandman, coalize creation and the imaginary. I met the writter in São Paulo, 2000, and I see that he has a sensibility needed for a great author. Don't miss it.

It is funny how one can initially misjudge a book. When I first picked this volume up it was because I saw Neil Gaiman and Clive Barker's names on the cover. Then, on first perusal, I saw that Gaiman had not even written the introduction. Moreover, Barker's only contribution was the frontispiece- a drawing of Death. Nor did I immediately recognize the names of any of the contributors to the collection. I felt cheated. I jumped to the conclusion that this was a hack written collection of short stories intended to exploit the popularity of the Sandman series. I threw the book down in disgust. Then, a little over a year later, I came back to it. Upon actually reading it, I discovered that Gaiman handpicked these stories. Indeed, he actually wrote the brief introductions for each writer and story. As for the stories themselves, there are some hauntingly, lovingly, skillfully, written tales here. What is more important, most of them genuinely capture the atmosphere of the Dreaming from the graphic novels. I could not have been more wrong about this fine collection- it was exactly what I was looking for. These stories are so faithful to the original that the reader might want to read the entire 10 volume Sandman Library before attempting it. There is much here that assumes a familiarity with the entire series.

This is a very diverse collection of authors writing about my favorite story of all time, Dream of the Family Endless. The different authors don't bother trying to mimic Neil Gaiman's style or vision. That would be a waste of time. Instead each tells their story in their own way, offering a very enjoybable alternative to The Sandman.

This was an extraordinary book. I loved all the stories and their characters. I especially enjoyed Stronger Than Desire, Each Damp Thing, Extra Smidgen of Eternity, and The Writer's Child. :) And the afterword by TORI AMOS made me love this book even more!

Not as good as the original Gaiman Sandman comic -- like anything could be! -- these stories come at the Lord of Dreams, his family and the Dreaming from every angle. My favourite was Susannah Clarke's story 'Stopped Clock Yard' , but the John M Ford and the Will Shetterly and the Gene Wolfe and the Barbra Hambly are also amazing stories