Neverwhere A Novel

The fact that I finished this book in under 48 hours (fast for me) says something about how much I enjoyed it. It's got all the classic Gaiman sytle, taking real names, places and myths and twisting them into a world of dark comedy fairy tale. I was going to write a novel about London city's disposed, this would be the way I'd love to do it. It conveys the feel of the town and it's people -...more

The fact that I finished this book in under 48 hours (fast for me) says something about how much I enjoyed it. It's got all the classic Gaiman sytle, taking real names, places and myths and twisting them into a world of dark comedy fairy tale. I was going to write a novel about London city's disposed, this would be the way I'd love to do it. It conveys the feel of the town and it's people - seemingly inspired by Dickens and Blake. I love the way that the characters and fashions of London Below symbolise the amalgamated time bubbles of architecture and layers history that make up the real city. Small anecdotes like Old Bailey's reflections on the Square Mile are spot on. Walk through London at night yourself and you'll see how well Neverwhere evokes the spirit of ancient London town! Perhaps not as complex as American Gods or as fulfilling a story as Anansi Boys (perhaps due to being a TV show first), but richly envisaged and compellingly told all the same. I'd recommend both the above to anyone who enjoyed this!   hide

This was Book Grub's selection for our September 2007 meeting, recommended by Kara. And it was amazing! Everyone knows London's famous tube slogan "Mind the Gap," but Neil Gaiman infuses it with an entirely new meaning. After helping the mysterious Door, Richard Mayhew slips through a gap in space and time, entering the impossible underground world of London Below. Suddenly, what were just stops...more

This was Book Grub's selection for our September 2007 meeting, recommended by Kara. And it was amazing! Everyone knows London's famous tube slogan "Mind the Gap," but Neil Gaiman infuses it with an entirely new meaning. After helping the mysterious Door, Richard Mayhew slips through a gap in space and time, entering the impossible underground world of London Below. Suddenly, what were just stops on a subway map become matters of life and death for Richard and Door. In London Below, Blackfriars Bridge houses combative friars and Islington is not just a borough, but an angel. It is really cool how Gaiman twists the real and the familiar into a strange, dark fantasy world. This book combines elements of Alice in Wonderland, legends, urban fantasy, Victoriana, and adventure into a cohesive whole that will keep you guessing until the very end.    hide

My first book by Neil Gaiman was Good Omens but it didn't really count as it was co-written with Terry Prachett, of whom I am a fan. The next book was Stardust which failed to impress me. I had hoped that Neverwhere would revive my flagging regard of Gaiman as an author...and wow, Neverwhere was great. Having being to London before, I enjoyed the puns Gaiman made out of the London subway...more

My first book by Neil Gaiman was Good Omens but it didn't really count as it was co-written with Terry Prachett, of whom I am a fan. The next book was Stardust which failed to impress me. I had hoped that Neverwhere would revive my flagging regard of Gaiman as an author...and wow, Neverwhere was great. Having being to London before, I enjoyed the puns Gaiman made out of the London subway station names. The world and characters he created of the London Below was also so fantastic and fascinating. He has transformed the way in which London, the place and its people, exists in my mind. Gaiman's Neverwhere also brings to mind the world of Labyrinth, a movie starring Jennifer Connelly and David Bowie, with all its eccentricity but with ten times its violent deadliness. While I wished for more engagement with and development of its characters, the book is still an excellent read. This is something I could read again.    hide

All of Neil Gaiman's works I find compelling and uniquely, well, Neil Gaiman. He blends a contemporary social mirror with mythologies old and vast. I was steeped in many mythologies as a child and teenager, and then moreso in college, so how he weaves our archetypal worlds into our material world is riveting. Any friends read him? K.