Duncan EaglesonReseñas

A wonderful collection of short stories that are only loosely connected to the overall narrative, but give a lot of depth to it.

In the introduction, Gene Wolfe says:

"... you will understand yourself and the world better for having read [this] and ... you will have been both ennobled and troubled by the experience ... this is not just art ... but great art."

I can give no better or more accurate review than this

The Sandman that is a short story collection version! I'm certainly not one opposed to short story collections. But it seems this may have existed because they wanted to draw Arabia or the Orpheus myth. (Though I loved seeing gigantic Hades & Persephone.) It's the Sandman that is the "collected shorts in the middle of the series" so I don't think it would ever be the favorite of anyone.

A good mix of alternate history fantasy and myth-making here. It's interesting that Morpheus, The Sandman, is a key character in each tale, but only shows up for a small portion of each. As with all Gaiman stories, characters are key, and we get a wide variety. We also get a variety of settings and plots, showing that he is no slouch in those areas either.

Took me way too long to read this, but I had a lot of inertia during the pandemic. This one is more of a collection of unrelated stories. Great stuff as is the rest of the series.

Otra coleccion de historias cortas. Incluso una de las historias cortas es en si una coleccion de historias.
Como siempre ocurre con las historias cortas, algunas son mejores que otras, hay un par que me gustron mucho como la historia sobre Baghdad, o la de los lobos. Otras me dejaron un poco mas indiferente, la de orfeo no es mas que el propio mito.

Looking back over this book again, I see how much fun it is and how it's where Gaiman decided to spell out just what was going to happen at the end of Sandman. At first read, it seemed a bit of a catch-all of unconnected stories, just some fun he was having with myth and history and folktale. But no, the pieces are nicely thematically linked, and cut a twisting path toward what's to come in the narrative. Nicely done!

Discovering the Gene Wolfe introduction was just icing. Or maybe it was a sign.

Do you read introductions? I do, and after having read a good many of them, I am sadly aware that most of us who write them do not know what they are supposed to accomplish, which is to enable you to start the stories without embarrassment. Like a social introduction -- some friend says, "This is Nina. She likes mint juleps and breeds ferrets," and you're off.

Now I want to use this book in class, as an introduction to and fellow traveler with the original Orpheus myth and some of the other entertaining threads. It would make the core of a GREAT unit. This is what happens when you tell English teachers, "we don't use textbooks."

Bay City is haunted by a supernatural serial killer newsfeeds have named "The Beast." City Boss Micah Roth calls on the Railwalkers—a shamanic Order trained in both clerical and warrior skills—to champion his cause and return the city to some semblance of safety. Railwalker Wolf and his crew answer the call, but this Beast is unlike anything they've seen, putting all their skills to the ultimate test. Each crewmember will pay a price, but what Wolf uncovers during their investigation will push his courage and commitment to his limits, and beyond.

Darkwalker gives the reader a glimpse into a post-apocalyptic world, generations after the crash of civilization. Things are different here. New norms are long-since established, one of which is the accepted presence of Railwalkers--clergy trained in esoteric ways who travel from city to city and town to town, crossing the wastes in between to bring spiritual guidance and healing to those in need. Railwalkers are priests who preside at seasonal festivals, appease the land spirits where necessary, look for answers from shades of the dead when a mystery arrives. But they are also warriors, protecting others from paranormal threats and dangers. The biggest mystery in Darkwalker is the Beast—not just who he is, but why and how he does what he does. The detective work of nailing down the Beast's identity and motives reveals more than Wolf expected, bringing a surprise not just about his opponent, but himself as well.

This is a multi-perspective story, with the reader seeing turns of events from various character viewpoints. Each chapter is named for its point-of-view character. Even the Beast gets his own chapters, some of which are deeply creepy. While all the characters felt well-developed to me, Wolf (the main character) was my favorite. He is chivalrous, spiritual, honorable, and practical. But he's not perfect. He doesn't have everything figured out. He's sometimes uncertain. He doubts himself from time to time. He doesn't always accomplish what he intended, at least not in the way he expected to do so. These "weaknesses" only make him a stronger character and I really like that he thinks outside the standard parameters when solving a problem.

While I enjoyed every part of this story, my favorite element was the presence of magic, spirituality, and "otherness" laced throughout. It was clear to me that the author has knowledge of contemporary magical and spiritual practices in the nature-based community. As a reader who has spent much time in that world myself, it was validating to see them so well-represented on the pages of Darkwalker.

Eagleson's writing style is succinct. I saw very little fluff or florid prose. Every word serves a purpose and moves the story along nicely. There is violence on the page in several scenes, but it felt balanced to me, necessary to the storyline and not gratuitous at all. Overall, this was a good read, one I enjoyed a great deal. If you enjoy urban fantasy with a healthy sprinkling of down-to-Earth magic, you may want to check it out.

These are very meaty graphic novels-not the quick snack I make of many others. There were some neat re-tellings of old stories in this one and some that were new to me that I still need to research and figure out if they were just stories I'd never heard or things Gaiman made up. Still gotta go with 4 stars, though, because I just don't love the art.

This volume was a slew of short stories. Good book all together. My favorites were The Parliament of the Rook which had Cain and Abel in it and the long Orpheus storyline. Artwork continues to be great especially with Dream in the sequences.

More storytime, this time not connected again other than by the theme and the protagonist. So, basically, we see the sandman influence fables and historical people. Okay.

Probably the weakest collection since the first one. Yet, two stories really stood out for me. The one in Rome with Caesar Augustus, because the story was so damn good. And then there was the last one in the collection, with the best art of the entire Sandman series so far, by the incomparable P. Craig Russell. As far as I'm concerned, he drew the definitive Sandman.

Still a good collection, but nothing that truly moved the Sandman mythos forward all that much.

The fonts varied quite a bit in this collection and I found some of them difficult to read. The palette of colours was quite different in the final story, Ramadhan, very bright primary colours like illustrations in a children's story. The longest story, The Song of Orpheus, was also the one I liked best, sticking for the most part to the myth as it has come down to us.

Death was a little older than Dream. Things had the potential to die before they had the potential to dream.

The Endless are so fascinating. As it this story.

It's rather a grabbag, somewhat less directly related than preious compilations, but really, that works as well. Especially in such a broad universe as is Sandman.

Of particular interest, we have an Emperor spending a day as a common man, Marco Polo in a desert of dreams, another Emperor--this time of the United States[^sf], and another take on the myth of Orpheus[^hades].

A fun read.

Many many spoilery pictures;



The changes of the art style are odd sometimes. And the idea of falling in dream.



Joshua Norton, EMPEROR OF THE UNITED STATES.



You know. It works. It's sort of like a few in the Bible and otherwise, with various temptations. But he's Emperor--and a pretty good one, all things considered.



You know, I fully expected to see said 36 after this. That's quite the closeup of Death.



Ah Death. She's got a light touch and seems pretty good at the whole job. I guess she's been doing it for a very long time...



A head. That is all.

Listen, blood of my blood. Although I'm a hard man to anger, and I love you deeply, if you interrupt me again so help me I'll rip out your throat with my teeth.

You know... I feel that sometimes.



The Emperor spending time as a begger and learning about family. It's quite a story.



All because of a dream.



Trying to figure out exactly who's real and who's a dream--and if a dream, just how self aware are they anyways--is a fun job in these stories. Especially when they get all timeywimey and circular.



Heh. Fiddler's Green is weird but a lot of fun. And a few 'soft places'. A neat idea, worth exploring just for that.



Son of Morpheus, son of Dream. I don't think that's how it worked in the myths I'm familiar with, but it fits.



Hilarious. Just... hilarious.

[^sf]: I lived in the Bay Area for a few years. We learned all about this wonderful man and his story. It's fun to hear it done well.

[^hades]: I've been playing a lot of Hades. Another interesting take on a story I once knew. I don't think he'll be getting ahead in this one though.

I enjoyed the retelling of the Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice.

Also, li'l Death and li'l Morpheus? dawwwwwwwwww.

I think I like The Sandman series best when it's a series of vignettes, as opposed to one continuous story. Here, the variety of stories give me a better perception of Dream/Morpheus, and I appreciate the many facets of his character. I really liked the story of Orpheus. I feel that Gaiman looks at mythology and retells it in such a way that it feels new and fresh. The story of Ramadan is JUST fantastic. I might even teach that piece in my class this fall...

I like the shorts in this one. Short stories are my favourite.
Three Septembers and a January was nice because we got to see some of the other Endless. And, I learned about the actual emperor of the United States, Emperor Norton.

The Hunt I liked because I liked fairy tales. The relationship between grandpa storyteller and grandaughter was adorable, and Baba Yaga showed up - I liked her creepy chicken leg house!

I was very happy to see Fiddler's Green again in Soft Places, and his being so disgruntled about the explorers disappearing the soft places with their discovering.

Cain and Abel always make me sad because Abel hates dying all the time. They tell some lovely stories to baby Daniel in The Parliament of Rooks, along with Eve and Matthew (the raven). I especially liked the "L'il Endless" because they were SO CUTE.

Ramadan was gorgeously illustrated. The story was adorable as well...I loved the last couple panels where Dream is holding the city in a bottle.

Not my favorite in terms of storylines, but I felt like there was a big improvement in the art at this point. It’s looking a lot more consistent.

SYNOPSIS | This second volume of stand-alone stories ranges far afield, some featuring familiar characters and others brand new. As in the last, individual tales hone in on one or another aspect of the Dreaming or Morpheus's role in it. This time: eight tales rather than four, plus an extended backstory (a retelling of the Orpheus myth). Morpheus appears more frequently in these stories than in those from Volume 3.

IN THIS VOLUME
From the Endless: Dream | Despair | Delirium (nee Delight) | Desire | Death | Destiny | Destruction (first appearance in the series)
From Dreamtime / Supernatural: Orpheus (Greek myth) | Caius (Roman Legend) | Eve, Matthew, Cain & Abel, Goldie (Dreaming) | Baba Yaga (Slavic folklore) | Three-In-One given cameos with no speaking lines
From DC: Johanna Constantine | cameos by Hippolyte (Lyta) and her toddler son, Daniel

//

The selection underscores the importance of story itself to the Sandman opus. Gaiman frequently has his characters tell stories to one another, like Chaucer. The theme links to the idea of Morpheus himself, whose rules and meaning come from story.

Other themes:
Rules -- what they permit, as much as what they restrict.
Mystery -- what it does when its secret remains hidden, and when its secret is revealed. (And that cycle is, precisely, story.)

//

I wonder at the decision to re-sequencing these stories, e.g. "Thermidor" appears before "Orpheus", so the significance of the talking head is unclear to the reader, not knowing who Orpheus is, or having read why he was beheaded, nor even how it is this head retains ability to talk. It appears not to follow publication date, and if it follows some internal chronology that's unclear to me.

Fear of Falling
Behind the scenes, dream and story entwined.

Three-In-One glimpsed in the panels depicting Todd's dream.

Introduction by Gene Wolfe
Notable for listing the Endless by their Greek names, helpfully pointing out the first appearance of Destruction (Olethros).

Three Septembers and a January
Emperor Norton whose madness keeps him sane.

Despair, Delirium, and Desire wager with Dream; more hints about Destruction. Desire threatens Dream at end with "Kindly Ones".

Thermidor
Johanna Constantine undertakes an errand on behalf of Morpheus, retrieving the head of Orpheus from within Revolutionary Paris. Robespierre's intent to destroy mystery through brutal ratiocination is his undoing.

The Hunt
A grandfather tells a story to his teen granddaughter, melding the lore of Romani and lycanthrope, Slavic Jewry and Diaspora. The mystery here is built up in the story, then revealed to be of a highly personal nature. Evidently he wants his family's legacy to endure.

Lucien has a small role regarding a book lost from Dream's library. Another nod to Cabell with the emerald of Koshchei the Deathless.

August
A story told by a dwarf, companion to Caius Augustus, underscoring the importance of rules. Caius leaves his ceremonial role once a year, for only then can he think unobserved even by the gods. Notably, this setting aside is itself a ceremony or ritual in adhering to rules.

Morpheus says (without naming) that Gods all start in his realm, and die there, and that all Gods are subordinate to "seven others" (presumably the Endless) and a few more besides, e.g. Jupiter defers to Terminus, the god of boundaries.

Soft Places
Marco Polo, with hints of Calvino's Invisible Cities. Stories help him find his way.

Fills in some holes in the Endless story arc, specifically: the briefest of rest stops for Morpheus between his escape and his retribution against either those responsible for his imprisonment, or those who took liberties in his absence. Also: a glimpse into what Fiddlers Green was up to in the Dreaming.

Orpheus (mini-arc, Chapters 1-4 + epilogue)
This retelling reveals that Orpheus is the son of Morpheus and Calliope. Orpheus wed to Eurydice, in many points appears to retell the Orpheus myth with very little alteration by Gaiman.

Destruction in person at the wedding, and later enables Orpheus to visit Death at her home (and notes the rules governing when mortals see Death). Evidently an appearance before Death's abdication, not a return. A hint that Delirium transformed from Delight following her own "almost marriage".

Three-In-One seen in Underworld, listening with Hades and Persephone to Orpheus's song.

Parliament of Rooks
Daniel (Morpheus's godson) and a visit to Dreaming, befriending Goldie the gargoyle and hearing a story each from Cain, Abel, and Eve. Cain suggests an important purpose for every person: their life is, precisely, a story. Cain emphasises the importance of mystery to story, which requires merely that the secret not be told, in order to endure. (Yet one secret is revealed.)

Three-In-One depicted as the three wives of Adam.

In an aside, we learn that Morpheus has been spending time alone with "her", whom Eve doesn't believe is his "type". (Calliope?)

Ramadan
Haroun al Raschid tours Baghdad in its Golden Age. Again Gaiman employs a framing device, though that's not clear until last few pages. Again mystery figures prominently, though here the secret is apparent (to the reader).

Allusion to seven strangers who each confess to murdering a hunchback, "Though the poor fool had but choked on a fishbone." A suggestive allegorical reading of the Endless and their influence on mortals.

I'm really in the swing of my Sandman re-read and loving every second of it, now.

I love the retelling of Orpheus. Hell, that entire sequence sent chills down my spine and kept making me think along the original storyline, making fantastic connections. It's not for the faint of heart. My only complaint was the script. It wasn't the easiest to read. Still, what lies underneath is the most important. French-revolution and the Furies, indeed!

I liked all the stories, really, and even while they don't come with the same kind of kicks I'm used to, quiet reflection isn't exactly a bad outcome. Watching Emperor Augustus play a beggar was priceless, as was the examination of what makes an everlasting empire. But the First and Last Emperor of America was brilliant. Nuff Said. :)

In this sixth book of the Sandman series, Gaiman takes a brief pause from the main storyline. There are nine of new stories in here, some short, others longer, with characters from earlier stories and a host of new ones.

Compared to earlier books, this is not as dark or bleak, and Gaiman has dusted the stories within with a touch of whimsy, but they still have depth and the ability to make you think. Some are based in America, but he travels time and the world in the tales, with Morpheus appearing in some of them.

Having read some of the others, I didn’t feel that it was as strong, but he picks up on the dreams of the characters all the way through the stories. They are still intense and richly illustrated, and that it what makes these such a pleasure to read.

The Sandman series always elicits the same reaction from me. The stories are excellent, but the illustrations are a bit too graphic for me. I keep returning to them because I love Gaiman's writing. This volume includes the stories about the following:

- The Emperor of the United States
- Orpheus during the French Revolution
- Werewolf hunter
- Caesar Augustus
- Marco Polo
- Orpheus’ wedding
- Orpheus' trip to Hades to save Eurydice
- Adam, Eve, Cain, Able and baby Daniel

The ones that were the most powerful were the tragic tales of Orpheus. In Sandman, he is
Morpheus' son. I knew his story from Greek mythology, but it's retold here in a heartbreaking way.

“At times the fact of her absence will hit you like a blow to the chest, and you will weep. But this will happen less and less as time goes on.”

This was one set of stories I didn't remember much at all from my reading back when the comics were first published. I tend to prefer the contemporary tales to the historical/mythological ones collected here. These were spread out in the original run, and grouped together they made me anxious to return to the present. Still, they are very good, and I think I appreciate them more now that I'm older. "Ramadan," in particular, is exquisite.

Do you remember those days when you were young, singing in front of the campfire, listening to the stories those around you had to tell? Maybe a parent, maybe a grandparent or a sibling - but whoever it was who told the stories, they told them magnificently. You could close your eyes and see the past, not as it was, but as it should have been. You hung upon every word, and by the time the tale was over, for a day, two days, a week or more the images - the feelings - they stuck with you. They may not have been true stories, but still, the truth lived in them.

Thus is Fables and Reflections. Each tale is woven carefully, fact and fiction melding together to create a new truth. The figures are very real, the settings likewise so - and what unfolds? Well, all writers are liars who still speak a truth.

Magnificent.