Headline
The Ocean at the End of the Lane
By
Neil Gaiman
THE OCEAN AT THE END OF THE LANE is a novel about memory and magic and survival, about the power of stories and the darkness inside each of us, created by the unparalleled imaginative power of Neil Gaiman.
THE OCEAN AT THE END OF THE LANE is a fable that reshapes modern fantasy: moving, terrifying and elegiac - as pure as a dream, as delicate as a butterfly's wing, as dangerous as a knife in the dark, from storytelling genius Neil Gaiman.
It began for our narrator forty years ago when the family lodger stole their car and committed suicide in it, stirring up ancient powers best left undisturbed. Dark creatures from beyond the world are on the loose, and it will take everything our narrator has just to stay alive: there is primal horror here, and menace unleashed - within his family and from the forces that have gathered to destroy it.
His only defense is three women, on a farm at the end of the lane. The youngest of them claims that her duckpond is ocean. The oldest can remember the Big Bang.
Some books you read. Some books you enjoy. But some books just swallow you up, heart and soulI loved itGaiman's achievement is to make the fantasy world seem trueIt's possibly Gaiman's most lyrical, scary and beautiful work yet. It's a tale about childhood for grown-ups, a fantasy rooted in the darkest corners of reality. It is a story he's been waiting all his life to tellA hugely satisfying scary fantasy and a moving, subtle exploration of family, of what it's really like to be a child, and how the memories of childhood affect the adults we become. It's a wonderful bookThe most affecting book Gaiman has written, a novel whose intensity of real-world observation and feeling make its other-worldly episodes doubly startling and persuasiveThis beautiful fable with flashes of terror and sparks of humour is about memory and magic and the darkness that lives without and within. Loneliness and longing saturate the pages but so does the redemptive power of friendship in the person of the magnificently adorable Lettie HempstockIt's a very rare thing, maybe once a decade, for a novel to come along and within a few pages you know you're reading a future classic. If you haven't heard of Neil Gaiman yet you can be forgiven, but this, his sixth adult novel, will firmly cement his handprints in the literary walk of fame...this is one of those stories that is almost primitive in its power - it captures you heart and soul, and makes you grateful we have storytellers like Gaiman to feed our minds and stoke our imaginations. The Ocean at the End of the Lane is this year's big bang bookThis is a book to sink into, allowing yourself to be gradually pulled along by its currents, into a childhood that's half remembered. Events take place over just a few days, and since the consequences of his actions are forgotten by the main character, it's easy to believe that nothing of importance has really happened. But experiencing those few days, that snippet of a childhood and a quest for survival in a world that's already terrifying for children is a joy, an experience that will stay with you long after the final page is turnedDark, strange and scarily brilliant: an otherworldly fable about memories and magicI really don't want to say too much about the story itself. I will say it is short as it focused on one event, one wrong that needs to be put right. And because of that focus Neil Gaiman is free to explore the minor but significant details as well as look at the grander parts of life. It made me smile, it made me sad, it made my heart ache and it made me think. "What else could I ask for?" Read itA book that will resonate powerfully with anyone attempting to process the darker aspects of their own childhood. And in an age when childhood ends early, and often brutally, that makes it a book for almost everyoneIf it's not just for adults, and not quite for children, there is one age-flexible group it is written for. An obtuse thing to say about a book it may be, but The Ocean at the End of the Lane was written for readers. It's for people to whom books were and are anaesthesia, companion, and tutor. If you're one of them, you'll want to wade into it, past your ankles, knees and shoulders, until it laps over the crown of your head. You'll want to dive inA mind-bending tale with a hint of horrorNeil Gaiman was born in England but now lives in Minnesota, in a big house of uncertain location where he accumulates computers and cats.Neil Gaiman is a tour de force of creative talent. He is the bestselling author of STARDUST and CORALINE, both of which are major motion films. Neil also co-wrote the script for Beowulf starring Anthony Hopkins and Angelina Jolie. He is the creator/writer of the award-winning Sandman comic series and has written several books for children.Neil's acclaimed novel NEVERWHERE will be broadcast on Radio Four and Radio Four Extra in March 2013, brought to life by a stellar cast of celebrated actors including James McAvoy, Natalie Dormer, David Harewood, Sophie Okonedo, Benedict Cumberbatch, David Schofield, Anthony Head , Bernard Cribbins , Romola Garai, Christopher Lee, Andrew Sachs, George Harris, Don Gilet, Abdul Salis, Paul Chequer, Yasmin Paige and Johnny Vegas.ANANSI BOYS debuted at No. 1 on the New York Times bestseller list and AMERICAN GODS won the Bram Stoker Award best novel, the Nebula Award for best novel and the Hugo Award for Best Science Fiction/Fantasy Novel in 2002 and was a nominee for the BSFA award. It is currently in development for television by HBO.Neil's official website has more than one million unique visitors each month, his online journal is syndicated to thousands of blog readers every day and he has nearly two million followers on Twitter.Neil's books have won numerous awards, including the Hugo, Nebula, Bram Stoker, Newbery Medal, and Carnegie Medal in Literature and have been translated into more than twenty-eight languages.