The Sandman: The Dream Hunters and Endless Nights by Neil Gaiman

September 27, 2013 Tobe Buffenbarger

Title: The Sandman Vol 11: The Dream Hunters and Vol. 12: Endless Nights

Author: Neil Gaiman, Yoshitaka Amano

Publisher: Vertigo 1999, 2003

Genre: Graphic Novel; Fantasy

Pages: 128, 160

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Neil Gaiman; Seriously Series; 52 Books -- Week 39; Fall into Reading; NPR SciFan

How I Got It: Library Loan

As I read these back-to-back, I thought I would review them together. Plus, I don't have a huge amount to say about these two volumes. Basically: they were good.

Written by Neil Gaiman; Art by Yoshitaka Amano Featuring striking painted artwork, this love story, set in ancient Japan, tells the story of a humble young monk and a magical, shape-changing fox who find themselves romantically drawn together. As their love blooms, the fox learns of a devilish plot by a group of demons to steal the monk's life. With the aid of Morpheus, the King of All Night's Dreamings, the fox must use all of her cunning and creative thinking to foil this evil scheme and save the man that she loves. This book also boasts an eight page section highlighting Yoshitaka Amano's amazing painted art.

This is an interesting volume. Definitely a departure from the rest of the series, but I like it. It has an even more dream quality than the rest. I believe this is due to the beautiful illustrations. I almost felt like I was intruding on someone's personal dream to follow the storyline. Very interesting...

Joined by a dream team of artists from around the world, Neil Gaiman—the Hugo Award-winning, NEW YORK TIMES bestselling author of AMERICAN GODS and CORALINE—returns to the beloved characters he made famous in THE SANDMAN: ENDLESS NIGHTS. Alternately haunting, bittersweet, erotic and nightmarish, the seven stories in this book—one for each of the Endless siblings, each illustrated by a different artist—reveal strange secrets and surprising truths. In addition to the seven tales of the Endless, THE SANDMAN: ENDLESS NIGHTS includes a biography section in the spirit of the Sandman collections (designed by Dave McKean) and a summary of each volume in the Sandman Library.

This volume was a nice ending to the series. It wrapped up a few of the leftover story lines. It created a few new ones. But overall, I loved seeing all the Endless siblings highlighted throughout the volume. Very enjoyable series if you like the strangeness of Neil Gaiman. I definitely do!

Sandman