Neil Gaiman's "Trigger Warning"...A Book Review

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It takes the author at least one audiobook chapter to get to the stories. But it was in Mr. Gaiman's description of how these particular short stories came to be collected into one edition that gave me a personal sense of satisfaction. He explains that an anthology should contain tales of similar genres and themes. He then proceeds to tell his customers and library patrons that this book ignores that very important rule.

The reason I was glad to hear this is because my singular published work is also a collection of short stories with no central theme. So, I suppose there's hope for me, too.

The stories in, Trigger Warning: Short Fictions and Disturbances are as varied as Mr. Gaiman's imagination. If you've read any of his works, you'll understand just how varied this is. Trigger Warning is the author's third short story collection. I need to read the other two.

What I love about his writing is the way he takes a normal situation, or a character we think we know and he opens another page--another dimension of the subject. And as I read, I think to myself, "of course--it makes so much sense." Mr. Gaiman allows us to see a point of view that is completely understandable, if not unexpected.

I have my favorites, The Man Who Forgot Ray Bradbury, Nothing O'Clock (a "Dr. Who" story...), and Black Dog. There's something special about short stories. For me, they showcase better an author's personality and the way the man thinks than do a novel or a longer work. I may be completely off base, but that's the way these short stories make me feel.

Another wonderful addition to this anthology is Mr. Gaiman's commentary on each story, its origin and how the tale came to be. Brad Torgerson did the same thing in his Lights In the Deep collection. I appreciate very much the background offered by these authors.

I've said it before it's hard to beat an audiobook narrated by Mr. Gaiman. It's an audible treat for the mind. If you're in the mood for excellent literature, you can't go wrong with this one.

* Photo used without permission from: https://www.goodreads.com/book/photo/22522808-trigger-warning