Mr. Sandman, bring me a dream

I read pretty much incessantly. I visit the library on a regular basis, and more often than not come home with a pile of books, of nearly any genre. One area into which I had never ventured was that of comic books, or graphic novels. A few months ago, however, I picked up the first volume of the Sandman series, both because I love Neil Gaiman, and on the recommendation of a few friends.

As I just mentioned, I am a huge fan of Neil Gaiman and have read almost all of the novels and short stories he has published. (In fact, my web address name for this blog was inspired by The Graveyard Book, one of the best things I've read in a very long time. Maybe ever.) So, despite some skepticism, I decided to give the graphic novels a try. I certainly didn't regret it.

Initially, I had to adjust to the style of the graphic novel format. When reading a regular book, the author paints a picture using his or her words, which you interpret in your imagination; with a graphic novel, you interpret the pictures that have been drawn for you while you also take in the story. After reading the first volume in the series, I judged it merely very good, but continuing through the books, I saw Gaiman beginning to hit his stride, and collectively the series became an amazing piece of work.

So many elements are combined throughout the Sandman series. Gaiman incorporates myth, religion, literature and history in telling the stories of Dream and his dysfunctional (and fascinating) family of the Endless. Much like in his novels, the horrifying and the humorous are interspersed, and the "real" and "imaginary" are not clearly delineated, but mixed together until they become inseparable. Sometimes the Sandman takes center stage, and sometimes he is merely a presence in the background of the story. His moral ambiguity, and his development throughout the series, add to the uniqueness of the work. The artists change from volume to volume as well, each giving a different visual rendering of Dream.

I am not alone in my regard for the books; each volume features an introduction by such illustrious names as Clive Barker, Stephen King, and Harlan Ellison. As soon as I finished the last volume of the series, I picked up the first one again at my next library trip. It's that good. Whether you are a comics devotee or, like me, had never picked up a graphic novel before, I highly recommend the Sandman books.