Monday 21 November 2016

The View from the Cheap Seats

Finished November 18
The View from the Cheap Seats: selected nonfiction by Neil Gaiman, read by the author

This collection ranges over nearly Gaiman's entire career, and is organized into sections. The first section on reading, libraries, and librarians was, naturally, my favourite, but it is interesting overall. There is some repetition when he uses the same experiences in more than one article, introduction, or speech, some of which he recognizes and apologizes for. When it is appropriate, he adds an update on events around the subject that happened since the initial writing was done.
He is a good writer, and he acknowledges those who have influenced him, from other writers to musicians, illustrators, and others.
He talks about or with these people in interviews, introductions to their works, or articles, as well as particular books that he loved or that influenced his life and his writing. Some I'd read, some I'd heard of, and some were entirely new to me. Having him read the book was an extra inducement to listen to the audiobook. He's a good writer, and a good observer, and both those things become obvious in this collection. His love for books also shows here as does the wide range of books he has read.

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