Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Neverwhere
Book Review: Advice for non-British readers: get a good Tube map first!
Summary: 5 Stars
First off, this book is terrific. I found the story and characters imaginative and mesmerizing. We never had the TV series in the US, but without having seen it, I feel the book stands on its own as a complete work of fiction.One quick bit of advice for non-British readers: the story relies heavily on wordplay based on the names of London tube stations. If you are unfamiliar with the London Underground, get yourself a good map and familiarize yourself with it before you read the book. If you have friends who've lived in London, ask them to tell you about the tube stations mentioned in the book what the stations look like, what the reputation is, what the neighborhood is like. Knowing a bit about the Underground will greatly deepen your appreciation of the book.
Book Review: Afghan Sam
Summary: 5 Stars
Great Book. If you enjoy British humor, this will make you laugh. Gaiman picks up in the footsteps of Douglas Adams, though not as rollicking and probably a with a stronger emphasis on storytelling.It's good fantasy, and a quick read. If any of you out there are bankers, or know some, this book gives an interesting description of where that training will get you if you're ever tossed in the sewers with mystical rats and ancient boars.
Book Review: Alice & Wonderland gone horribly wrong...
Summary: 5 Stars
Simply put, Gaiman is a masterful storyteller, and one of the few still operating in the folklorist tradition. Now, I feel sure that none of us can point to a story that resembles this one so much, but certainly Gaiman has bent a popular story, as he does so well, to his own will. Richard Mayhew, the main character, is a man who leads a dull and uninvolving life. That is, until he finds a strange, injured girl, and interrupts his affairs to help her. With that, a tiny mote appears in his universe, and it sucks him in (Just as a certain prim and proper girl once followed a white rabbit). He finds himself caught in the mysterious world of London Below that had always been there, but that he had been ignoring all of his life. And in order to escape this realm of darkness, he must find a key- one that will restore him to his former life, and bring him to himself.Book Review: Alice In Wonderland meets Monty Python
Summary: 5 Stars
Neil Gaiman, familiar to me only for his Sandman comics... I had heard that he had written a few novels, but the thought never occured to me to check any of them out until a few days ago.
I picked up Neverwhere expecting a heavy read. I did not expect the book to be as captivating as it was. Perhaps a modern day Alice in Wonderland (read: Alice In London) this book is full of characters and places that not only do you get to know in depth, but can also visualize due to the great descriptions that Neil Gaiman has provided. I've noticed that in many books, when you are given a description of a location, many times the authors become extremely long winded and drab. This is not one of those books. I can not tell you how long it has been where I did not want a story to end because it was so good.
This book follows Richard Mayhew, a regular guy whom seems to be a bit of a patsy. A good guy, just soft. He helps an injured girl out and that begins his decent into "London Underground". A world of lost dreams and past lives, where people and places have fallen thru the cracks and keep on falling away from society and into a new world of sorts. This world has everything that a "hidden world" needs; heros and villians, love and betrayal, and even a little humor thrown in for good measure. There is adventure and excitement and a number of twists thrown in. All I can really suggest is that if you are even remotely interested in the plot of this book, pick it up, I guarentee that you won't be able to put it down.
Book Review: Alice in Neverware
Summary: 4 Stars
As many reviews have said, this is a modern day Alice in Wonderland with a darker side. Gaiman's graphic novel backround really shine in this comicbook-esq fairytale. I was captured very early into this novel but the unique, cartoonish characters and setting. This tale never lets up as it propels you down into a dream world and holds you tight until it spits you out into the unexpected ending. This is the type of book that makes remember why you loved those bedtime stories as a kid. If done respectfully, this would translate into one heck of a movie. I am very much looking forward to reading Gaiman's other novels.