Featuring a collection of Gaiman's short stories intended for children that's meant to either amuse or give you goose bumps :)

I agree with Gaiman that in as much as people love reading novels, it is another kind of ride that a short story offers us. A novel provides one with a long journey, more time to get to know the various characters; whereas with a short story the travel time may be short-lived but is an enjoyable ride all the same. You can read a short story from start to finish anytime you're free to enjoy it: maybe during office breaks, on the bus, before going to bed, etc. Gaiman describes short story writers as "conjurors who, with just twenty-six letters and a handful of punctuation marks, could make you laugh and break your heart, all in a handful of pages."

This collection features:

The Case of the Four and Twenty Blackbirds >> started off like you're usual "hard boiled" detective story. Wait 'til you realize that the setting is in Nursery Land and the case is that of uncovering whether Humpty Dumpty fell from the wall or was pushed. Definitely one of my favorite stories in this collection.

Troll Bridge >> "Trolls can smell the rainbows, trolls can smell the stars," it whispered sadly. "Trolls can smell the dreams you dreamed before you were ever born." The saddest troll I've ever met in stories. What would you do if a troll wanted to eat your life? "Fol rol de ol rol."

Don't Ask Jack >> inspired by Lisa Snelling's sculpture of a demonic Jack-in-the-Box. I wouldn't play with this toy either.

How to Sell the Ponti Bridge >> one member of the Lost Carnadine Rogues' Club tells of the ingenious scam of selling the Ponti Bridge. That was certainly a scam worth retelling to others of the same ilk.

October in the Chair >> if the months of the year could be personified and be able to tell stories around a campfire, what would they say?

Chivalry >> the search for the Holy Grail (and the war accompanying it) has been going on for years. Imagine yourself finding it inside a secondhand thrift shop! Poor Sir Galaad :)

The Price >> a middle aged writer (echoes of Gaiman here) living with his family in rural England adopts a stray black cat which serves as an addition to the growing number of pets in his home. The newly adopted cat shows signs of desperate combat resulting in serious wounds every night. When the writer stays up one night to see who is fighting the cat, he finds out that it is actually a demon wanting to gain entry to his home. The only time I even came close to liking black cats.

How to Talk to Girls at Parties >> "They're just girls; they don't come from another planet." I'm reminded of B. Willingham's wooden soldiers describing humans very much how Gaiman described it, as "a decaying lump of meat hanging on a frame of calcium."

Sunbird >> what happens if you're a member of the Epicurean Club who has eaten everything that can be eaten? Hunt down the Suntown Sunbird of course! It supposedly tastes "richer than quail and moister than turkey, fatter than ostrich and lusher than duck."

I like the description of one member "who had been once a great beauty but was now a grand and magnificent ruin, and who delighted in her ruination."

The Witch's Headstone >> a story that'll be a part of Gaiman's soon to be released book "The Graveyard" about a boy who grew up in the graveyard. He asks the question whether people who take their own lives become happier afterwards. "It's like the people who believe they'll be happy if they go and live somewhere else, but who learn it doesn't work that way. Wherever you go, you take yourself with you."

Instructions >> reminiscent of stories that make up the collection of the Brothers Grimm. Literally a set of instructions for what to do when you find yourself in a fairy tale.

Book Details:

Title M is for Magic (signed copy)
Author Neil Gaiman & Teddy Kristiansen
Reviewed By Purplycookie ( )

There were only two stories in this book that I hadn't read in the author's other short story collections. (I guess I should've looked at the table of contents before buying it.) Still, I enjoyed rereading some of my favorite Neil Gaiman stories.

It's a little unusual for a book aimed at young readers because in many of the stories, the protagonists aren't children or young adults, but to say that young people wouldn't understand or enjoy the stories would be selling young readers short.

As always, I loved exploring the worlds that spring from Gaiman's stories. ( )

In this collection, we have a variety of short stories that go from funny, to creepy, to fascinatingly clever. Although M is for Magic is aimed at the YA audience I guarantee these stories are great for any adult to enjoy.

Here’s an overview of the stories:

The Case of the Four and Twenty Blackbirds
Little Jack Horner is hired to solve the mystery behind the death of Humpty Dumpty. - I personally loved this one. Detective stories always suck me in.

The Troll Bridge
Hands down this is my favorite of the bunch. Upon a stroll through the forest, a young boy encounters a troll under a bridge who wants to eat his life.

Don't Ask Jack
A very short and creepy tale of an old Jack-in-the-Box.

How to Sell the Ponti Bridge
Not one of my favorites but still a great crime story.

October in the Chair
Also one of my favorites. The months of the year hold a gathering to tell their stories.

Chivalry
Fine... this one is also a favorite. When an old lady finds the Holy Grail at her local thrift store a dashing stranger on a magnificent horse comes a knockin’.

The Price
Quite creepy really... this is the tale of stray black cat that fights the devil every night to protect the family that took him in.

How to Talk to Girls at Parties
ehhh... Didn’t do much for me. But nonetheless, it was still worthy. Two boys walk into a party where they realize the kids aren’t everyday average teens.

Sunbird
A gathering of Epicureans who have become bored having tasted everything there is to taste. They are enticed into seeking the legendary Sunbird of Suntown... for a taste that is to be richer than peacock and lusher than duck.

The Witch's Headstone
This is an excerpt from The Graveyard Book. It tells a story of Bod getting into trouble outside the graveyard while trying to help the ghost of a witch.

There's always something great about short stories; the satisfaction of being able to read something as a "whole" in a few hours. Yet, as always with short stories, I always want more.

Mr. Gaiman does not disappoint with this collection. This was quite an enjoyable read no matter what the age. ( )

A collection of short stories (supposedly aimed at the YA audience) by one of my favorite authors. I tucked this book into my choir bag, and read a story a week when I went for coffee before choir on Sundays. Counting the introduction, 12 pieces, and since I missed choir a time or two in there, and yakked with other coffee shop patrons a few weeks instead of reading, I read this over maybe 4 months.

I love Gaiman's delightfully twisted and funny mind. I sometimes wonder how he even dreams up the brew of words he serves, but it's so idiosyncratic that it almost always makes me grin. He must be a helluva conversationalist.

The stories are a great mix...some sentimental, some just downright quirky. A mix of fairy tale and ghost...but magic, none the less. I wonder if the last one is a preview of The Graveyard Book? ( )

A collection designed to be kid friendly, big print, lots of spaces between lines, all that stuff. A not too bad selection at 3.30.

M Is For Magic : The Case of the Four and Twenty Blackbirds - Neil Gaiman
M Is For Magic : Troll Bridge - Neil Gaiman
M Is For Magic : Don't Ask Jack - Neil Gaiman
M Is For Magic : How to Sell the Ponti Bridge - Neil Gaiman
M Is For Magic : October in the Chair - Neil Gaiman
M Is For Magic : Chivalry - Neil Gaiman
M Is For Magic : The Price - Neil Gaiman
M Is For Magic : How to Talk to Girls at Parties - Neil Gaiman
M Is For Magic : Sunbird - Neil Gaiman
M Is For Magic : The Witch's Headstone - Neil Gaiman

Humpty Dumpty push investigation.

4 out of 5

Eat Jack.

3 out of 5

Lurking toy.

3 out of 5

Skull tennis con.

3.5 out of 5

Monthly avatar stories that most of them don't even like.

2 out of 5

Magic junk knight.

3 out of 5

Cat love.

3 out of 5

Ordinary party and alien chicks = run away.

3.5 out of 5

"I have a presentiment of doom upon me," ..."And I fear it shall come to us with barbecue sauce

4 out of 5

Visibly grave talk.

4 out of 5

http://notfreesf.blogspot.com/2008/12... ( )