The New York Times Book Review - Andrew O'Hehir
…there is an ordered and comforting quality to Gaiman's fiction, and not only because he possesses an unfailing sense of poetic justice and a Dickensian zest for punishing the arrogant, the proud and the wicked. More than that, Gaiman is such a powerful and evocative writer that almost everything he churns out serves to justify the…cultural triumph of fantasy literature over realism and modernism…Like all the best writers of fiction…Gaiman draws power not just from his storytelling gifts but also from his ability to work the crowd. He's like a conjurer who shows us how the magic trick is worked, joins us in laughing at its transparency and simplicity, and makes us believe in it anyway.
Publishers Weekly
★ 02/23/2015
Gaiman (The Ocean at the End of the Lane) again delivers masterful compositions and style in his third collection. His decision to include poetry is vindicated by the concrete images in "Making a Chair" and the mournful tones of "Witch Work." Among the prose pieces are two works of stark horror: "‘The Truth is a Cave in the Black Mountains...'" and "My Last Landlady." The experimental "ORANGE" and the collected internet project "A Calendar of Tales" represent the rewards of Gaiman's fearlessness in storytelling. He also includes shared-world tales, revisiting Sherlock Holmes in "The Case of Death and Honey" and Doctor Who in "Nothing O'Clock." In "Kether to Malkuth" Gaiman creates a new mythology with the flavor of science fiction, while "The Sleeper and the Spindle" is a delightful fusion fairytale that subverts tropes and creates a new sense of wonder. Both enthusiasts of short fiction and fans of Gaiman's longer works may approach this volume with confidence. Full of small and perfect jewel-like tales, this collection is a thrilling treasure. Agent: Merrilee Heifetz, Writers House. (Feb.)
From the Publisher
"His mind is a dark fathomless ocean, and every time I sink into it, this world fades, replaced by one far more terrible and beautiful in which I will happily drown.” — New York Times Book Review
“Gaiman displays an uncanny knack for compressing his expansive imagination into the close quarters of his stories’ caves, cottages, and creepy rooms....[he] takes full advantage of his wide range, and it makes for exciting, often musical writing.” — Boston Globe
“[Trigger Warning] showcases the breadth and depth of Gaiman’s talent and the unique plangent warmth he brings to fantasy fiction. He is never anything less than a pleasure to read.” — Financial Times
“Each of the stories and poems celebrates a different aspect of storytelling that has informed the author’s life.” — NPR
“There’s much to revel in here.” — Huffington Post
Praise for Trigger Warning: “Everything that endears Gaiman to his legions of fans is on display ... Full of all manner of witches and monsters and things that creep in the night, this collection will thoroughly satisfy faithful fans and win new ones—if there’s anyone out there left unconverted. — Kirkus Reviews
“[T]his collection of stories and poems doesn’t disappoint....Gaiman has warned us about the monsters, but then come magic and miracles. And love.” — Washington Post
“Gaiman’s is one of the most distinctive voices in modern fantasy.” — Locus
‘All of [the stories] are told with an assured, masterly confidence that should please anyone who misses seeing a new Ray Bradbury collection on the shelf at the library.” — Newsday
“Gaiman calls the stories a “hodgepodge,” with no real interweaving theme throughout. But each of the stories and poems celebrates a different aspect of storytelling that has informed the author’s life.” — NPR
“Trigger Warning is a comfortable hodgepodge of material ... but there’s enough serious-minded and deeply felt fantasy and horror to make readers hope that it won’t be almost a decade before Gaiman completes another similar volume.” — San Francisco Gate
“Lovingly crafted...gleefully enjoyable.” — Bustle.com
“[I]t’s the phenomenon of connecting mythology and modern life that makes Gaiman such a captivating author.” — Winnipeg Free Press
“[T]his is not a ‘best of’ collection, though you’d be forgiven for thinking so at many instances, since Gaiman is, as always, a skilled storyteller.” — Tor.com
“Neil Gaiman’s writing is so present, so engaging, that it can send spasms of bone-chilling terror through your body and your reaction would still be, ‘Please sir, I want some more.’” — Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
“Each short piece serves as an exciting foray into some macabre microcosm of his mind. ...It’s a testament to Gaiman’s versatility that he exhibits so many different styles of writing in this single anthology.” — The Harvard Crimson
“The short stories in this collection are shocking, disturbing, funny, insightful ... Trigger Warning offers a good introduction to the works of Neil Gaiman, or a delightful addition to the collection of someone who has been following him for a long time. If you’re a fan, don’t miss this one.” — Oklahoma City Oklahoman
“There is something for every type of Gaiman fan here, and those new to his work will find this to be a solid introduction to the type of stories he crafts: lyrical, literary, sometimes quite chilling, and always strange and provocative. ...This is a book to savor and enjoy.” — Bookreporter.com
“Those who want to greet and shake hands, or settle in for a conversational catch-up with Gaiman’s delightfully dramatic minstrel’s tale-by-the-campfire style will love everything in Trigger Warning, naturally.” — Booklist
“Gaiman is such a powerful and evocative writer that almost everything he churns out serves to justify the aforementioned cultural triumph of fantasy literature over realism and modernism. Gaiman’s attention to craft, passion for language and profound respect for the mythological roots...come through even in his abbreviated prose fragments.” — New York Times Book Review
NPR
Each of the stories and poems celebrates a different aspect of storytelling that has informed the author’s life.”
Newsday
‘All of [the stories] are told with an assured, masterly confidence that should please anyone who misses seeing a new Ray Bradbury collection on the shelf at the library.
Financial Times
[Trigger Warning] showcases the breadth and depth of Gaiman’s talent and the unique plangent warmth he brings to fantasy fiction. He is never anything less than a pleasure to read.
Locus
Gaiman’s is one of the most distinctive voices in modern fantasy.
Boston Globe
Gaiman displays an uncanny knack for compressing his expansive imagination into the close quarters of his stories’ caves, cottages, and creepy rooms....[he] takes full advantage of his wide range, and it makes for exciting, often musical writing.
Huffington Post
There’s much to revel in here.
New York Times Book Review
"His mind is a dark fathomless ocean, and every time I sink into it, this world fades, replaced by one far more terrible and beautiful in which I will happily drown.
Washington Post
[T]his collection of stories and poems doesn’t disappoint....Gaiman has warned us about the monsters, but then come magic and miracles. And love.
Washington Post
[T]his collection of stories and poems doesn’t disappoint....Gaiman has warned us about the monsters, but then come magic and miracles. And love.
Financial Times
[Trigger Warning] showcases the breadth and depth of Gaiman’s talent and the unique plangent warmth he brings to fantasy fiction. He is never anything less than a pleasure to read.
Tor.com
[T]his is not a ‘best of’ collection, though you’d be forgiven for thinking so at many instances, since Gaiman is, as always, a skilled storyteller.
Winnipeg Free Press
[I]t’s the phenomenon of connecting mythology and modern life that makes Gaiman such a captivating author.
Oklahoma City Oklahoman
The short stories in this collection are shocking, disturbing, funny, insightful ... Trigger Warning offers a good introduction to the works of Neil Gaiman, or a delightful addition to the collection of someone who has been following him for a long time. If you’re a fan, don’t miss this one.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Neil Gaiman’s writing is so present, so engaging, that it can send spasms of bone-chilling terror through your body and your reaction would still be, ‘Please sir, I want some more.’
The Harvard Crimson
Each short piece serves as an exciting foray into some macabre microcosm of his mind. ...It’s a testament to Gaiman’s versatility that he exhibits so many different styles of writing in this single anthology.
Booklist
Those who want to greet and shake hands, or settle in for a conversational catch-up with Gaiman’s delightfully dramatic minstrel’s tale-by-the-campfire style will love everything in Trigger Warning, naturally.
Bustle.com
Lovingly crafted...gleefully enjoyable.
San Francisco Gate
Trigger Warning is a comfortable hodgepodge of material ... but there’s enough serious-minded and deeply felt fantasy and horror to make readers hope that it won’t be almost a decade before Gaiman completes another similar volume.
Bookreporter.com
There is something for every type of Gaiman fan here, and those new to his work will find this to be a solid introduction to the type of stories he crafts: lyrical, literary, sometimes quite chilling, and always strange and provocative. ...This is a book to savor and enjoy.
Booklist
Those who want to greet and shake hands, or settle in for a conversational catch-up with Gaiman’s delightfully dramatic minstrel’s tale-by-the-campfire style will love everything in Trigger Warning, naturally.
Slate
[Gaiman]’s prolific, like Stephen King, and apparently inexhaustible: He dreams up stories as naturally as he breathes.
Slate
[Gaiman]’s prolific, like Stephen King, and apparently inexhaustible: He dreams up stories as naturally as he breathes.
William Gibson on AMERICAN GODS
Neil Gaiman, a writer of rare perception and endless imagination . . . is . . . an American treasure.
James Herbert
Neil Gaiman is a literary genius!
Denver Post on ANANSI BOYS
[T]here isn’t much Gaiman can’t do when it comes to writing.
Sci-Fi magazine on FRAGILE THINGS
GRADE: A. A feast of imagination, ranging from the eccentric to the terrifying, from the light as air to the genuinely horrific. . . . It is a fine dispatch from one of the wildest imaginations in the field.
Toronto Star on FRAGILE THINGS
A powerful and oddly unified collection, a perfect introduction to Gaiman’s work for new readers and a thrilling reminder to his long-time fans . . . [T]he shorter prose form allows Gaiman a greater freedom of whimsy and provocation than even his graphic work, with stunning results.
USA Today on FRAGILE THINGS
The tales of FRAGILE THINGS are nibbles and bits of Gaiman’s immensely satisfying inner landscape. They are fiercely playful and very grim, wisps of whimsy and wonder buoyed by the happy heart of a tragic poet.
Washington Post Book World on FRAGILE THINGS
[Gaiman] is a one-man story engine. . . . FRAGILE THINGS is a delightful compendium . . . [Gaiman] is indeed a national treasure.
Library Journal - Audio
07/01/2015
In this compilation, Gaiman (The Graveyard Book) brings together poems and short stories, some original and some built inside of existing fictional universes (including Doctor Who, Sherlock Holmes, American Gods, and others). In his typical hauntingly beautiful and well-paced style, Gaiman bewitches listeners, crafting exquisitely detailed worlds and guiding us along the unfamiliar paths of familiar archetypes. Though every narrative is different, and at times some feel slightly out of place, each holds its own in captivating listeners and nudging the boundaries of natural and supernatural realities, leaving us with questions about the worlds into which we've glimpsed. Gaiman narrates his own work, which makes it feel particularly authentic, every pause and tonal shift deliberate and meaningful; unfortunately, some sections are very quiet, requiring occasional fiddling with the volume. VERDICT Both dedicated fans and those new to Gaiman's work will delight in the unexpected twists and turns of this collection.—Jeremy Bright, Georgia State Univ. Lib., Atlanta
FEBRUARY 2015 - AudioFile
Not every author is also a talented narrator, but Neil Gaiman is succeeding at mastering the art. It’s a pleasure to listen to him deliver his new collection of short stories. He’s clearly enjoying himself, and listeners will be carried along with his good cheer. Gaiman’s stories are almost always spooky, odd, and disquieting, and he narrates with tense concern, calm bravado, or quiet menace, as called for. He creates terrific Scottish and American accents and softens his tones for female characters, in particular performing convincingly as an elderly woman. The only quibble with this audiobook is its widely varying volume. When Gaiman drops his voice, it becomes so quiet that it can be hard to hear in a car—listening with headphones is best. G.D. © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Review
2015-01-22
The third collection of short fiction from a beloved modern mythmaker. Everything that endears Gaiman (The Ocean at the End of the Lane, 2014, etc.) to his legions of fans is on display in this collection of short stories (and the occasional poem): his gift for reimagining ancient tales, his willingness to get down into the dark places, his humor. Most of these stories have been published elsewhere, except for the new American Gods story "Black Dog" (which does not disappoint), but the collection as a whole does add up to something bigger than it seems (only partly because there's a TARDIS in it). Even the weakest of these tales have something to recommend them—an image, a turn of phrase, a mood. And the strongest are truly extraordinary. There's the grim implacability of "The Truth Is a Cave in the Black Mountains…," walking steadily on to its inevitable yet unexpected ending; there's the absurd Wodehouse-an charm of "And Weep, Like Alexander"; the haunting power of "The Man Who Forgot Ray Bradbury"; and the skin-crawling, slow-building creepiness of the love letter "Feminine Endings." Sherlock Holmes is here, explaining the real reason he started keeping bees, and Sleeping Beauty, twice, and our old friend Shadow, and even David Bowie, in a way. Full of all manner of witches and monsters and things that creep in the night, this collection will thoroughly satisfy faithful fans and win new ones—if there's anyone out there left unconverted.
