THE VIEW FROM THE CHEAP SEATS

Dream collection

released OUT NOW! 532 pages | Hardback/ebook Author Neil Gaiman Publisher Headline

Neil Gaiman has never been just one type of writer. From his early journalism career, to the comics that made his name, to novels and short stories and screenplays and picture books, to the all-popular blog and Tumblr and Twitter accounts, there are many ways to read his words. And this is for the best, for words are something he is very good at.

The View From The Cheap Seats is a collection of more than 80 non-fiction writings from the last 30 years. It’s a broad church: there are book introductions, speeches, newspaper articles and liner notes, discussing everything from the state of the comics industry to his favourite musicians and childhood

You’re in for a real treat

love of a travelling bookshop. If you’re a Gaiman fan, you will almost certainly have read a lot of them before, but the joy of such a large collection is that there will just as certainly be new treats here to enjoy.

Highlights include a lecture on the boundaries between children’s and adult fiction, as well as a 1993 speech comparing the then current boom in the comics industry to 17th century tulipsmania in Holland. There’s also a great introduction to a 2003 Doctor Who novella (Eye Of The Tyger by Paul McCauley), written before the series came back, where he talks about the effect the show had on his perception of reality.

With a selection as varied as this it doesn’t really matter if you’re a genre, music or literature fan – the constant here is Gaiman’s distinctive authorial voice, filled with love and wisdom and understanding. If you’ve read it before you’ll recognise it instantly; if not, then get reading, you’re in for a treat.

The collection takes its name from an essay on attending the Oscars – where Gaiman wasn’t allowed near the Important People.