I very much enjoyed the book, but I cannot - try as I might - ignore the slight disappointment I had upon finishing the story. My first mistake, which greatly influences my second mistake, is that I saw the film first. You see, generally, I make it a rule to read the book first if I know a movie is based on one. This tale and The Lightning Thief are the only two in which I've broken this rule. And in all the occasions where I was not aware of the inspirational book, only once did I find myself enjoying the book less after having seen the movie (Practical Magic, do not recommend it)
Normally, I'm proud of my ability to view books and film as two separate forms of media and easily enjoy both versions of a story for often very different reasons. This is what brings me to my second shortcoming: I could not stop from thinking fondly of the movie as I was reading parts of the book. All and all I think I enjoyed the both equally, but the film had taken certain liberties with the story - which, at the time, I was not aware were in fact liberties - that I thoroughly enjoyed. Many added humor and quirky character traits that I couldn't wait to read on paper only to miss them when they failed to appear.
The third and final blunder. One that I've repeated numerous times despite my complete awareness of this personal flaw. Unlike my previous mentioned ability, I cannot separate a book from its accolades or reproaches reviews and word of mouth. And in the cases where people have hinted about the story before I've had the chance to read it, I can never seem to shake the preconceptions I've formed from them. In this situation, I have a few Neil Gaiman fans for friends who have eulogized his books on high, so I entered this first book of his - for me anyway - with fairly high expectations.
However, given all this, I still laughed at quirky characters and amusing twists in the story and enjoyed his style of weaving a story. Unfortunately, this tale, like its characters, had a few things conspiring against it... in my head... mostly.
P.S. To my Neil Gaiman loving friends. This lengthy explanation of my rating is due to my hopes that in clarifying my reasoning, I will avoid at least some ire that I'm sure will be directed my way after I've dared give only a measly 3 stars. Please, guys, I still love you. Don't hate me.
Normally, I'm proud of my ability to view books and film as two separate forms of media and easily enjoy both versions of a story for often very different reasons. This is what brings me to my second shortcoming: I could not stop from thinking fondly of the movie as I was reading parts of the book. All and all I think I enjoyed the both equally, but the film had taken certain liberties with the story - which, at the time, I was not aware were in fact liberties - that I thoroughly enjoyed. Many added humor and quirky character traits that I couldn't wait to read on paper only to miss them when they failed to appear.
The third and final blunder. One that I've repeated numerous times despite my complete awareness of this personal flaw. Unlike my previous mentioned ability, I cannot separate a book from its accolades or reproaches reviews and word of mouth. And in the cases where people have hinted about the story before I've had the chance to read it, I can never seem to shake the preconceptions I've formed from them. In this situation, I have a few Neil Gaiman fans for friends who have eulogized his books on high, so I entered this first book of his - for me anyway - with fairly high expectations.
However, given all this, I still laughed at quirky characters and amusing twists in the story and enjoyed his style of weaving a story. Unfortunately, this tale, like its characters, had a few things conspiring against it... in my head... mostly.
P.S. To my Neil Gaiman loving friends. This lengthy explanation of my rating is due to my hopes that in clarifying my reasoning, I will avoid at least some ire that I'm sure will be directed my way after I've dared give only a measly 3 stars. Please, guys, I still love you. Don't hate me.
It's written in prose style so if you are not into that you may not like it. The prose gives it that extra flair and detail, and even with that it's a very fast read. An excellent fairy story for adults.
This was a charming, quick story of self-growth and achieving adulthood, all done up in a nifty magical world. There's humor there, too, and it's quite engaging. Fun.
I read this book almost immediately after seeing the movie; it's not clear to me how much of my good feeling is from attaching the words to the movie. There were few differences between the two; you can either take that to mean that the movie did a good job of following the book, or that the book adds damn little to what the movie presents. It is clear that Gaiman has the knack for writing short novels (or novellas) that can easily be transformed into screenplays, and this is one of those.
4 of 5 stars.
I read this book almost immediately after seeing the movie; it's not clear to me how much of my good feeling is from attaching the words to the movie. There were few differences between the two; you can either take that to mean that the movie did a good job of following the book, or that the book adds damn little to what the movie presents. It is clear that Gaiman has the knack for writing short novels (or novellas) that can easily be transformed into screenplays, and this is one of those.
4 of 5 stars.
