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11th out of 34 books
—
157 voters
My rating:
add to my books
M Is for Magic
by
Neil Gaiman (Goodreads Author)
Stories to delight, enchant, and surprise you.
Bestselling author and master storyteller Neil Gaiman here presents a breathtaking collection of tales that may chill or amuse readers—but always embrace the unexpected. Collection includes:
"The Case of the Four and Twenty Blackbirds,"
"Troll Bridge,"
"Don't Ask Jack,"
Hardcover, 260 pages
Published
July 1st 2007
by HarperCollins Publishers
(first published 2007)
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I'm trying out audio (again), this time during my commute to work. My commute isn't bad, about 30 minutes, so a collection of short stories, written and read by Neil Gaiman no less, seemed like a good place to start. I was right!
I'll say first of all that I love Gaiman's voice. I could listen to the man all day. I don't really have any other narrators to compare him to, but just the fact that I actually finished this audio book should be a testament to his greatness!
I've ...more
I'll say first of all that I love Gaiman's voice. I could listen to the man all day. I don't really have any other narrators to compare him to, but just the fact that I actually finished this audio book should be a testament to his greatness!
I've ...more
The problem with assigning a star rating to this book is that, like any book of short stories, it is a mixed bag. Especially considering that this particular book of stories is by Neil Gaiman who can pen novles that are original enough that the only resemblance they bear to one another is the name on the front cover.
What I gather from this book (intended for a YA audience) is that Gaiman allows himself to get more experimental with stories than perhaps with his novel. As always, th...more
What I gather from this book (intended for a YA audience) is that Gaiman allows himself to get more experimental with stories than perhaps with his novel. As always, th...more
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Federiken Masters
rated it
·
review of another edition
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Fans del autor.
Recommended to Federiken by:
Bucletina al regalármelo.
Me siento amarrete poniĂ©ndole sĂłlo tres estrellas a un libro de Gaiman. Pero si tengo que ser sincero, tardĂ© mucho en leĂ©rmelo en parte porque la mayorĂa de los cuentos no lograban engancharme demasiado, pese a estar bien escritos y ser más o menos originales. Quizás me sugestionĂ© con la "advertencia" que hace el autor al principio, donde dice que no es obligatorio que a uno le gusten todos los cuentos del libro para poder disfrutar cada uno de ellos, pero más allá de "CĂłmo vender...more
Luann
rated it
On the whole these were nice enough stories - some stranger than others. None of them were incredibly memorable, but none of them were incredibly horrible, either.
My favorite short story in this collection was Chivalry, followed by How to Sell the Ponti Bridge. My least favorite was Sunbird - the one with the Epicurean Club.
I was interested that the first three stories each had a character named Jack. I thought the trend might continue throughout the book, but it did...more
My favorite short story in this collection was Chivalry, followed by How to Sell the Ponti Bridge. My least favorite was Sunbird - the one with the Epicurean Club.
I was interested that the first three stories each had a character named Jack. I thought the trend might continue throughout the book, but it did...more
Neil Gaiman... short stories... how can this miss? The shorts are a pleasure to read, and each individually memorable. The woman who buys the holy grail at the thrift shop? Charming.
I was impressed with Neil Gaiman for doing a great job narrating his own stories. He's one of the few authors that can get away with it. Unfortunately I didn't enjoy the material quite as much. While I've never been a fan of twisted nursery rhymes (translation: I hate them; if you can't come up with original material you shouldn't be writing) Gaiman did a reasonably good job of making the Humpty Dumpty parody palatable (but just). When I got to the completely pointless second story about a troll...more
Neil Gaiman is an artist of prose and poetry. In his capable hands, ordinary things become new worlds of magic and mystery:
Favorite nursery rhyme friends become suspects in a film-noir detective’s murder case.
Mystical artifacts turn up on the bargain racks in the local charity donation shops.
Seemingly normal parties are mere covers for inter-galactic research and experimentation.
Readers can nearly always expect the unexpected from Gaiman and “M is for Magic” ...more
A differenza dei paesi anglosassoni, in Italia le raccolte di racconti e i racconti brevi in generale non hanno molto successo.
Tuttavia basterebbe aprire questo volume di Gaiman e leggere l’introduzione per scoprire quanto anche i racconti siano piacevoli e possano, al pari di opere letterario con il respiro del romanzo o della saga, diventare preziosi e indimenticabili.
“Da giovane, e davvero non sembra sia passato tutto questo tempo, adoravo i libri di racconti. I racconti li potevi leggere dal...more
Tuttavia basterebbe aprire questo volume di Gaiman e leggere l’introduzione per scoprire quanto anche i racconti siano piacevoli e possano, al pari di opere letterario con il respiro del romanzo o della saga, diventare preziosi e indimenticabili.
“Da giovane, e davvero non sembra sia passato tutto questo tempo, adoravo i libri di racconti. I racconti li potevi leggere dal...more
My husband and I listened to this as an audio book. The audio book was read by Neil Gaiman himself.
As always the stories are wonderfully crafted and Gaiman is able to create worlds that each of the short stories allows you a quick glimpse of. I have always had a bit of a problem with short stories. Mainly my issue is that if the short story is good it usually leaves you wanting more. I am always a bit frustrated with good short stories because they seen to leave me unsatisfied. That ...more
As always the stories are wonderfully crafted and Gaiman is able to create worlds that each of the short stories allows you a quick glimpse of. I have always had a bit of a problem with short stories. Mainly my issue is that if the short story is good it usually leaves you wanting more. I am always a bit frustrated with good short stories because they seen to leave me unsatisfied. That ...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
M is for Magic is a collection of short stories by Neil Gaiman who is known as the author of Coraline. The first story titled “The Case of Four and Twenty Blackbirds” features familiar nursery rhyme characters such as Humpty Dumpty, Little Jack Horner, and Old Mother Hubbard. It is a clever tale that investigates the death of Humpty Dumpty. My least favorite tale was “Don’t Ask Jack” simply because there wasn’t much to the story; it was only four pages long. “October in the Chair” is a noteworth...more
Summary: A collection of short stories that are alternately fantastic, scary, and funny, written during various periods of Mr Gaiman's career.
As this is a collection, I would only like to talk about my favorite stories although as I really enjoyed this I definitely recommend all.
[In the order that I read them:]
1. "The Case of the Four and Twenty Blackbirds"-This is sort of a children's noir story with a hardboiled detective Jack Horner searching out ...more
As this is a collection, I would only like to talk about my favorite stories although as I really enjoyed this I definitely recommend all.
[In the order that I read them:]
1. "The Case of the Four and Twenty Blackbirds"-This is sort of a children's noir story with a hardboiled detective Jack Horner searching out ...more
This was my actual first introduction to Neil's works. I read "How to talk to Girls at Parties" on an online site following SlashDot or Boing Boing. A good friend Always told me how she loved "Sandman". I thought it was about a weird man in a hat putting sand on people to sleep. Hardly worth making into a comic, let alone a beautiful and moving saga. At the time I read very few sci-fi works, only Zelazny really. It was fun and quirky and defiantly thought provoking. Re-readi...more
This is like 3 1/2 stars, but I really don't think a lot of it is appropriate for younger readers as Gaiman claims in his foreword. I enjoy reading his books, but I don't think he and I would have much in common if we were to meet.
Anyway, this is an entertaining and extremely creative bunch of stories. If you like Gaiman's non-Graveyard Book stuff, you should like this. Gaiman creates powerful, creepy inferences, leaving a lot of the stories not quite finished, unexplained, but yo...more
Anyway, this is an entertaining and extremely creative bunch of stories. If you like Gaiman's non-Graveyard Book stuff, you should like this. Gaiman creates powerful, creepy inferences, leaving a lot of the stories not quite finished, unexplained, but yo...more
What did I learn from this collection of short stories? That it is my creed to believe in all things dark and dangerous.
Short stories aren't really my thing, but Neil Gaiman is. In this collection he examines the dark side of fairytales and the magic that permeates through childhood. The book is marketed towards a young audience but it's definitely one that adults can enjoy--probably more so than a preteen. One of my favorite tales was about a troll living under a bridge and a man tha...more
Short stories aren't really my thing, but Neil Gaiman is. In this collection he examines the dark side of fairytales and the magic that permeates through childhood. The book is marketed towards a young audience but it's definitely one that adults can enjoy--probably more so than a preteen. One of my favorite tales was about a troll living under a bridge and a man tha...more
It is an interesting set of short stories targeted at young adults. The tone was slightly on the creepy/unsettling side for many of them. I thought the stories got progressively better as the book went on, and my favorite was 'The Price'.
The Case of Four and Twenty Blackbirds (3/5) - A private detective investigates of Humpty Dumpty's alleged fatal accident. It is steeped in nursery rhyme references, which were mildly amusing, but also, distracting for me since apparently, I do no...more
The Case of Four and Twenty Blackbirds (3/5) - A private detective investigates of Humpty Dumpty's alleged fatal accident. It is steeped in nursery rhyme references, which were mildly amusing, but also, distracting for me since apparently, I do no...more
Like a magical little gift, I found this on the shelf last night while wandering around looking for something to read. (I'd somehow miraculously managed to make it through the library stack before today's due date.) Got a couple of stories in before nodding off--these are wonderful and it was a hoot that lying next to me is Alan reading The Big Over Easy as the first one is a Raymond Chandleresque story investigating Humpty Dumpty's untimely demise. Ah, the classic Richard Thompson question, ...more
While blushing at what my mother would think of some of the content in this "book for children", I am thoroughly enjoying it (of course - it's Gaiman). I might wait till my kids are a bit older than 8 & 9 before handing it to them... or else I'll have some 'splainin' to do as they read. =)
BTW, loved the intro, where Gaiman talks about Bradbury & stuff. =)
Also, I recommend keeping your mother out of your head at most times, but especially when reading! Haha!
BTW, loved the intro, where Gaiman talks about Bradbury & stuff. =)
Also, I recommend keeping your mother out of your head at most times, but especially when reading! Haha!
3.5 Stars
This book's weak point is also its strong point. With so many different stories, of course you will have some gems and then some that feel lacking.I did like quite a few of the stories though.
I didn't like: Case of the Four and Twenty Blackbirds, How to Talk to Girls at Parties, and How to Sell the Ponti Bridge.
I disliked these for different reasons.
Case of the Four and Twenty Blackbirds seemed like a good idea for a story, but the story itself jus...more
This book's weak point is also its strong point. With so many different stories, of course you will have some gems and then some that feel lacking.I did like quite a few of the stories though.
I didn't like: Case of the Four and Twenty Blackbirds, How to Talk to Girls at Parties, and How to Sell the Ponti Bridge.
I disliked these for different reasons.
Case of the Four and Twenty Blackbirds seemed like a good idea for a story, but the story itself jus...more
Meh, this was a pretty disappointing collection from Neil Gaiman. Maybe I just had ridiculously high standards from reading Coraline and the Graveyard Book. Don't get me wrong there were some really good stories, but the mediocre ones almost canceled those out. Out of the 11 stories (10 stories and one poem), 5 were good.
The Case of the Four and Twenty Blackbirds is a dark look at Humpty Dumpty, Little Jack Horner, and Cock Robin.
Don't Ask Jack is a story about a wic...more
The Case of the Four and Twenty Blackbirds is a dark look at Humpty Dumpty, Little Jack Horner, and Cock Robin.
Don't Ask Jack is a story about a wic...more
I couldn’t resist reading more of Neil Gaiman after reading the Graveyard Book. M Is for Magic has a different feel because it is a collection of short stories. Although enjoyable enough, most of the stories had a very strange, eerie and sometimes demented ending. (Gaiman would have made an excellent tv writer for the The Twilight Zone!)
I think I liked the first story, The Case of the Four and Twenty Blackbirds, the most. Gaiman uses the characters from Nursery Rhymes to tell a ...more
I think I liked the first story, The Case of the Four and Twenty Blackbirds, the most. Gaiman uses the characters from Nursery Rhymes to tell a ...more
So I've read a few Neil Gaiman books of all kinds (comics, YA, full length adult novels) and thus far the absolute worst I could say about any of them has been that it was "Okay", so when I saw this one cheap on Kindle I figured why not, surely I couldn't go wrong. Well, except for the fact that I was seeing mixed reviews. Upon further review of the reviews I noticed something. The really bad ones all seemed to center around one theme -- It appears in the 9-12 year old category and ...more
I was planning to take a break from audiobooks, but then I spotted this collection of short stories written and read by Neil Gaiman, and I simply couldn't say no. Fortunately the writing and the reading lived up to my expectations, as Gaiman always seems to do.
"The Case of the Four and Twenty Blackbirds" (4.5): Nursery Rhymes rewritten as a hard-boiled detective story. It's delightful, and was probably even more fun to write.
"Troll Bridge" (4.5): Inte...more
"The Case of the Four and Twenty Blackbirds" (4.5): Nursery Rhymes rewritten as a hard-boiled detective story. It's delightful, and was probably even more fun to write.
"Troll Bridge" (4.5): Inte...more
M is for Magic
Neil Gaiman
published 2007; 249 pages
Stories that you read when you're the right age never quite leave you. You may forget who wrote them or what the story was called. Sometimes you'll forget precisely what happened, but if a story touches you it will stay with you, haunting the places in your mind that you rarely ever visit. (ix)
I was never a great fan of short stories as a whole until I discovered Neil Gaiman. And while I love all ...more
Neil Gaiman
published 2007; 249 pages
Stories that you read when you're the right age never quite leave you. You may forget who wrote them or what the story was called. Sometimes you'll forget precisely what happened, but if a story touches you it will stay with you, haunting the places in your mind that you rarely ever visit. (ix)
I was never a great fan of short stories as a whole until I discovered Neil Gaiman. And while I love all ...more
Featuring a collection of Gaiman's short stories intended for children that's meant to either amuse or give you goose bumps :)
I agree with Gaiman that in as much as people love reading novels, it is another kind of ride that a short story offers us. A novel provides one with a long journey, more time to get to know the various characters; whereas with a short story the travel time may be short-lived but is an enjoyable ride all the same. You can read a short story from start to finis...more
I agree with Gaiman that in as much as people love reading novels, it is another kind of ride that a short story offers us. A novel provides one with a long journey, more time to get to know the various characters; whereas with a short story the travel time may be short-lived but is an enjoyable ride all the same. You can read a short story from start to finis...more
This is a collection of stories that had been published elsewhere. Having only read Gaiman's books and never his short stories, they were all new to me (with the exception of "The Witch's Headstone," which is from The Graveyard Book). They are a mixture of fantasy, comedy, and drama, with a little horror thrown in for good measure.
A few of the stories are good, but not great. "Sunbird" just kind of sits there, although the ending is interesting. "The Case...more
A few of the stories are good, but not great. "Sunbird" just kind of sits there, although the ending is interesting. "The Case...more
It was a slow start for me with this book, but towards the end, I started to embrace the wackiness, constructions of short stories, abrupt endings, wonderful twists and occasional wordplay. I definitely loved it towards the end!
I had never read a Neil Gaiman book before, and this short story collection seemed like a good start, just to try and see how it goes. I got the audiobook, narrated by the author himself (have to admit the voice and tone goes perfectly in sync with the mood of the s...more
I had never read a Neil Gaiman book before, and this short story collection seemed like a good start, just to try and see how it goes. I got the audiobook, narrated by the author himself (have to admit the voice and tone goes perfectly in sync with the mood of the s...more
Carissa Anne
rated it
I listened to this as an audio book, read by the author himself, and was immensely pleased with it. Unfortunately, I had read all but two of the short stories in his other two short story novels, "Smoke and Mirrors" and "Fragile Things," and it would have indeed been nice to hear some more new selections, but it was still definitely pleasing. Some of these are my favorites by him, including, "Instructions," "October in the Chair," and "The Price,"...more
In the introduction, Neil Gaiman states that he's always enjoyed short stories, partly because if he didn't like one, he knew that something else would be along shortly. I find that phrase particularly fitting with this collection. I feel that some of the stories were brilliantly crafted, whereas other ones I could have done without. However, on the whole, I enjoyed this collection. And, as they are short stories, I find myself wanting to listen to my favorites again, like a beloved movie. ...more
Audiobook read by the author - A collection of short stories by Gaiman that have all been published previously, this time collected with the Young Adult reader (listener) in mind. There's a definite building of story depth as you progress through this book, from the beginning "The Case Of The Four And Twenty Blackbirds", a noir crime fiction using some of the best known names in nursery rhymes, to the final "The Witch's Headstone" that brings together all sorts of dark magic...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
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| short story: How to Talk to Girls at Parties | 1 | 19 | Oct 30, 2008 01:41pm |
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“Stories you read when you're the right age never quite leave you. You may forget who wrote them or what the story was called. Sometimes you'll forget precisely what happened, but if a story touches you it will stay with you, haunting the places in your mind that you rarely ever visit.”
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351 people liked it
“Where does contagion end and art begin?”
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