Neil Gaiman is one of the best writers of this century and if you don’t think so I will fight you. With words. Not fists. Because I’m weak and cry easily.
This is not to say that I believe him to fall into the realm of godlihood. There are those who worship his works, and for people to have found something to connect to on such a level is beautiful. They find comfort and peace and relation in his words where they cannot find them in life, and he gives them hopes and sorrows and dreams. He is a powerful force in the literary world, and should be given the highest of respects. He is not, however, perfect. He is human, wonderfully human (which makes his works accessible and cutting), and it gives him a level of charm most authors only dream of.
Fragile things is aptly named (in my opinion), as so many of the are crafted paper thin, stretching and bending them as far as they are able to go. One push, one nudge, one tiny squeeze in the wrong place and they could shatter into a thousand pieces, never to be reassembled. For some, this becomes a beautiful display of the malleable English language. For others, it makes them tender and tense. For others still, it doesn’t seem to work at all.
I won’t go into a description of each story, but comment on just a few:
OCTOBER IN THE CHAIR is clearly a dry run for THE GRAVEYARD BOOK, but that doesn’t matter. It’s one of the most beautiful and concisely written short stories I’ve ever read. It doesn’t waste a single letter, and should be read twice in a row.
A STUDY IN EMERALD is cute, quirky, and so goddamn tongue in cheek you’ll feel like someone’s making out with you while you’re reading it.
OTHER PEOPLE is short and horrifying and will haunt you for weeks, as it should, because it’s really what hell may be.
HARLEQUIN VALENTINE is the most clever and original dream a person could have, sculpted into a brilliant story that gives you just enough info to follow if you don’t know comedia, and more than enough references to make you giggle and gasp if you do.
THE PROBLEM OF SUSAN should be required reading for everyone at the age of 15. It will both ruin your childhood and expand your mind at the same time.
HOW TO TALK TO GIRLS AT PARTIES got a lot of attention but didn’t deserve it as much as some of these other stories. Still, I use it as an example for young men who don’t understand that Gaiman does, in fact, teach you how to talk to girls. You listen, you reflect, you repeat, you sympathize. It’s called not being an ass. Which is exemplified by the secondary male character who is an ass and does not know how to talk to girls. Okay, I’ve changed my mind. This book should also be required reading for every boy at the age of 15.
THE MONARCH OF THE GLEN is a fantastic continuation of AMERICAN GODS but the first time I read this, I had not read AMERICAN GODS. I was confused and lost. It is not a standalone tale, and needs AMERICAN GODS to have any of it make sense.
There are so many other stories in here worth mentioning, but I’ll leave it at that. If you’re a fan of Gaiman and haven’t delved into this book, you should do so. If you’re unfamiliar with his works, FRAGILE THINGS may not be a great place to start. You could be touched and left in awe, but may also feel cast adrift at times.
But I will leave you with this, the best line in the entire book, from OCTOBER. It is a single line which shows the unbelievable brilliance of Gaiman as a writer, for here, he absolutely captures everything about a person in a few short words:
“If you were to try and pick him out of a group of boys, you’d be wrong. He’d be the other one. Over at the side. The one your eye slipped over.”