Most people know Neil Gaiman from "American Gods" and "Good Omens" or his graphic novel series, "The Sandman." Others who are younger may have read or seen the movie "Caroline." Gaiman is versed in many areas of writing. His latest book, "The View from the Cheap Seats," is a nonfiction collection of his speeches, 60 essays, book introductions and his thoughts on various subjects.
Gaiman, a former journalist, walked away from this craft when the fiction bug called him to join its side, and I'm thankful he did. This being said, when I read this remarkable book, I realized he never left journalism. While reading "The View from the Cheap Seats," I saw glimpses of raw honesty I haven't seen in many other books. He is intelligent, thoughtful, creative and very funny. To read Gaiman is to enter another world. I always feel like he is writing just to me and I've become part of his story. This book feels very personal to Gaiman, and yet there are places where the narrative is more journalistic than pleasure.
"The View from the Cheap Seats" is divided into sections. The first section is called "Some Things I Believe," in which he talks about libraries, literature and bookstores. There are sections where Gaiman reflects upon great writers he has known, such as Terry Pratchett and Stephen King. Other sections include science fiction, movies, comics, music, fairy tales and art. Gaiman tells the readers it is all right to read only the section they are interested in and not to worry about the rest.
I've read this book from cover to cover, and I admire Gaiman more now than I did before. His prose is genuine and makes me want to read it again. This is by no means all of Gaiman's nonfiction work but more like a taste of cheese that begs you to want more; and I'm sure in the future the public will be blessed with more of Gaiman's insight - and, if we are lucky, cheese.
Brian Bray is the IT specialist at Missouri River Regional Library.