M Is for Magic

I have always admired Gaiman's writing. I really enjoyed this collection of short stories- especially the idea/execution of using a nursery rhyme and months of the year as characters. His imagination knows no bounds, but somehow the stories feel “familiar” when you read them.

I'm not 100% sure, but I could have chanced upon the stories before (as they have been published elsewhere's) and that could count for the familiarity, but I don't think this is relevant. A good story will always be a good story. However, I do get that some people may feel shortchanged that they didn't get a whole collection of new stories.

That aside, I would recommend this book to not-kids. Some details are particularly graphic and explicit, but otherwise, it is still a great read.

Neil Gaiman reading his own books aloud to you is its own special magic. To demonstrate, follow this recipe:

Start by being sick in bed with a cold. Best to be past the first day, maybe day 3 or 4, to make sure you are properly bored and irritable.

Get a fresh pair of sheets on the bed. Just a fresh pillowcase will do in a pinch.

Make a hot cup of tea with honey and lemon. This will be the first of dozens, and is integral to success.

Put on this audiobook, loud enough that you can hear fine even with one ear flat on the pillow but not so loud that you are unable to doze.

Settle in and let the stories surround you. By the end of the book the magic will have taken hold, and you will surely feel better than when you started.

These short stories are little masterpieces. I was particularly taken in by the story about the witch in the graveyard, and the Instructions at the end had special meaning to me in my current situation.
“When you come back, return the way you came. Favors will be returned, debts be repaid. [...] And then go home. Or make a home. Or rest.”