Which book should Neil Gaiman put online for free?
Breaking cover from my paternity leave again with an important bit of news: Neil Gaiman's publisher HarperCollins have given him the green light to do a free (as in beer) web-release of one of his books and Neil's running a poll to see which one he should put online -- go vote! They'll leave it up for a month and track sales -- if the experiment succeeds, they'll do more.
Link (Thanks, John!)
What I want you to do is think -- not about which of the books below is your favourite, but if you were giving one away to a friend who had never read anything of mine, what would it be? Where would you want them to start?
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I voted for Smoke & Mirrors... The variety of short stories and poems inside this book can give a first-time Neil Gaiman reader a pretty good insight on his style. S&M (lol) was the first Gaiman non-comic/graphic novel publication I read and I like to think it made me enjoy a lot more my following readings of his work such as Stardust, Neverwhere and American Gods.
Btw, sorry for my horrible english. I read all this stuff in portuguese ^^'...
If I had to recommend any Neil Gaiman it would be The Sandman comics. I haven't enjoyed any of his work as much. I realize that isn't an option, but that's what I would give to a friend.
I'm bummed that "Wolves In The Walls" isn't on the list, because that book managed to both scare the bejesus out of my kids and also become the number one most requested book we've ever read together.
But otherwise, Coraline. Gaiman is great all around, but his knack for freaking people out on a juvenile level is unparalleled.
I hope "American Gods" will be preserved for our ancestors.
And BTW:
Late congratulations, dude.
I hope you pronounce your daughter's first name the right/German way.
And I challenge all boingboin readers to tell me: What's more beautiful, more human than "Poesie"?
I'm torn between Stardust and Coraline. Both are easy reads for those new to Gaiman.
On the one hand, I want more people to read Stardust, because the book is so much better than the film (IMO).
On the other hand, there's a film of Coraline coming out soon, and if people can read a free copy of the book first, they might go out and buy it before the film hits.
Mm. Coraline it is.
@ #1 Nunks: Your English is better than that of too many native speakers. They owe you the apology, not vice versa.
Now that whatever marketing blitz for the movie and subsequent DVD of Stardust has come and gone, I'd recommend that. It's short, so whatever sales the beancounters might fret they're missing out on will be of a lower-priced item, and there's still the edition lavishly-illustrated by Charles Vess published by Vertigo that anyone who might love the story enough can then buy for added value. Additionally, if the book goes viral that might then make the movie more of a cult hit.
If I have a second choice I'd vote for Neverwhere. It's Neil's first full-fledged solo prose novel, so it has its weaknesses, and by now there's enough copies of it floating around that one could just as easily obtain it at a decent second-hand bookstore without him or HarperCollins seeing a penny. It also has the Henson-produced BBC miniseries and a more recent Vertigo miniseries adaptation it can advertise. Gotta parlay these things into the functions they may serve to still bring Neil profit indirectly.
Huh. Looks like American Gods has a predictably strong lead, followed by Neverwhere. My own picks languish towards the end, with only Anansi Boys doing worse...
Actually, while I personally would like to see Neverwhere win, American Gods is probably more accessible to the average reader. Neverwhere is very British in its setting, and a lot of the resonance is probably lost to someone who's not familiar with London.
I vote Fragile Things or Smoke & Mirrors. I can't decide between the two! Fragile Things is great all over, but Smoke & Mirrors really has some amazing things, too. I own FT though, so maybe SM. Short story anthologies don't sell well because people expect novels nowadays. Short stories don't appeal for some reason, so I think it would be a good idea for them to offer up something more accessible than his longer works, though American Gods IS great (and in first place).
I voted for Fragile Things. I like the variety in his short stories and I think short stories are a good way for the reader to get a 'feel' of the author. Unfortunately, it looks like Romania isn't the only place where short stories don't sell...
My second option would've been Neverwehere. #7 is right, you'd have to know London to appreciate it, but we've got wikipedia for those of us who haven't been to London. The story is a bit confusing, but I liked the storytelling (and some awesome jokes).
Unfortuately, American Gods seems to be winning... I can't say I didn't like it, but it's definitely not my favorite.
I voted for Coraline. I think it is a pretty nice book to start with and to get a feeling of what he writes. It's just simply a darn good book to start with! :)
I'm kinda sad to see Stardust fairing so poorly over there; it's by far my favorite thing of his outside Sandman.
Many of my students have read and liked Coraline. If it was published on the net, it would give me the oportunity to use it in teaching.
It would be a cool idea if britney spears hadn't done it first and asked fans to vote on her album title. Don't you hate it when a lame-o does something you thought of and ruins it forever?!
I like Coraline... very surreal and creepy. No 2 choice, M is for Magic.
Neverwhere.
When I want to turn friends on to an author, I do hand them my favorite book first.
Using Neil's own criteria, I'd have to go for one of the volumes of short stories/poems/fugitive what-nots. I revere 'Sandman', and even the stuff that doesn't quite come off (like 'Stardust') I'd still have given my left nut to write. But the shorter work shows off his range as a writer.
Man... That was genuinely a difficult decisions!
I eventually did decide on American Gods because, despite its popularity, I do believe it to be one of his best works.
It looks like the voting is following past sales. That's too bad as if they took the one with the least votes, it would show the best effect on sales.
Neverwhere and American Gods won't show much of a boost from a web release. That little change will "prove" that web releases "only create more bootlegs"
I've read all of these books, Neil's request was "if you were giving one away to a friend who had never read anything of mine, what would it be?". I don't see anything in the request to best effect sales.
With that in mind and not looking at the existing results I picked "American Gods", with "Neverwhere" and "Coraline" close. I picked those because I feel that they are the most easily accessible to a new reader.
I went with Fragile Things, for the same reasons as Jennee and Nunks, and also because I think short stories are easier to read on a computer screen. You read one in its entirety and then you can stop reading for a long while and not have to worry about forgetting what happened last.
I find it odd that the percentages don't seem to change much, no matter when I look at the results. The number of votes do, but people seem to have been voting in pretty much the same proportions. Neverwhere has climbed a bit, but that's it, really. I'll have to check again tonight.
American Gods, definitely. As for you, Cory, the book I buy for friends who don't know you is "Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom."
Alas, I only read one, and it gave me the heebee geebees.
So Coraline gets my vote.
Voted for American Gods, but any one of those would be great to have free!
Neverwhere.
You can also use the TV series as a tool to get them to read it.
American Gods gets my vote for what I would give to friends. It was the first thing I read of Gaiman's and it blew me away. I've read all but the short stories now. I've even recommended it to some people who "don't read fantasy" because it is accessible.
Also, I throughly enjoyed Neverwhere and no nothing of London except other works of fiction. I may have missed some location-based subtext, but the story was still enthralling.
I voted for American Gods. I loved Coraline, Stardust (my first Gaiman's book) and Neverwhere but American Gods ' premise is fascinating and I felt that it was a more "serious" book.
Moreover, I read it in Italian, I'd love to read it in English, and I know that I'd never buy it because when I order from amazon or internetbookshop I prefer to spend my money on something new. :)
I'm going to go for Coroline, I think.
After very careful consideration, I chose to buy Anansi boys as my firt Gaiman book and I have yet to read it. I don't know if it's just the edition I got, or if they truelly have a problem with their typesetting department at Harper Collins, but I can hardly read the typing. It's a combination of the font and the spacing - yuck.
Good Omens would introduce people to Pratchett and Gaiman both (if such people existed)
Gahhh, this is like trying to pick out which kind of chocolate you'd want. They're all good @_@
I did waver, thinking that maybe it would be better to pick one of the books of short stories to help introduce people to him. But,when it came to clicking on a cover I was drawn to American Gods. I couldn't help myself. I just love that book!
I absolutely adored american gods and anansi boys. I loved how both took place in the same continuity but were totally different styles of story.
American Gods is just, unclassifyably brilliant, whereas anansi boys takes the same world and the same rules, and makes a douglas adamseque romantic comedy.
If Good Omens were up in that list, I'd immediately go for that one, because it IS such a good introduction to both Pratchett and Gaiman. I'm glad I picked it up randomly in the bookstore one day. So yes, there are people who don't know about them. Thankfully, most people are enlightened after reading one of his books.
I've just finished Smoke and Mirrors, even, so I'm happy to see it up there. I'd recommend it in a hearbeat. However, while I'd recommend any of his fiction, I can't help return to my first loves when I try to bring it to others, and that would be American Gods in this case.
Another thumbs up for Coraline. It's short, really well written, and can be enjoyed by young and old.
I was indifferent to Neverwhere. Well written, neat premise, but . . . I dunno, not my cup of baroque tea. I like American Gods quite a bit more, but still not a knock-out for me.
I'm hoping for Stardust, I simply MUST read it! The movie was so delightful, And they book is always 1000 times better than the movie.
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Voted!☆
Then get the audio book, which is wonderfully read by British actor and comedian Lenny Henry. I think the book is even available as an mp3 disc.
One of the short story collections.
Coraline!
I am still in love with Sandman, the furious unpredictableness of the story unfolding still uncompatible in Gaimans more recent novels. American Gods simplifies the Gaiman-storytelling in my view, and I could easily have dreamt of a trilology instead of the one book.
Coraline is so beautiful, so elegant and intriguing, definitely my gift to a could be-Gaiman reader.
Also I toast to the Radiohead-like treat to fans - to vote for a favourite give-away, nice =)
I'm with you, Takuan and Kestrel - Good Omens, hands down.
As I recall, the book has the four horsemen of the apocalypes plying their trades in the modern world (Famine creating Lean Cuisine meals, etc.) and Satan's henchmen doing things like inventing phone trees and bad traffic patterns. Explains so much about Microsoft Vista. At any rate, it's fun and without the usual Pratchett slapstick.
I voted for American Gods, not because it was my favorite, but because I genuinely think it is the most accessible of the choices that shows off a lot of Gaiman's range. Yes, the short story collection win hands down for range; but I'd be afraid the sheer variety would also make it likely to hit stories not to a reader's taste. AG is a compromise, the mostly likely (IMO) to hook the largest number net. It is my guess as the right commercial choice, the right flavor to use for a "First taste is free" promotion.
You know, now that I think of it, "Neil Gaiman, the first taste is free." might not be a bad slogan for the promotion once they pick the book.
I would vote for Good Omens as well. It took Terry Pratchett's help, but it's the closest thing to a Douglas Adams book I've seen from another author.
Ouch!
I voted for American Gods for a purely selfish reason, I've bought the book three times and managed to lose it once and have it stolen twice before being able to finish it, so I guess that must mean it's more accessible to the general population if it's walked off on me as many times as Pink Floyd's The Wall :)
If anything, I'd want Stardust - the GN - to be free. It's bittersweet ending is perfect to get reluctant readers hooked.
My second choice would be Neverwhere ...
Coraline, clearly. Upcoming 3D film release? Cross-marketing potential? Mutual back-scratching with publishers? Is there any question?
I voted for Fragile Things, for reasons already covered well here, but I am glad to see that it is likely to be American Gods, as it's one of the few Gaiman books I haven't yet read myself, so that helps me out. I'm just starting work on a Masters thesis on The Sandman, so shall be spending much time with Mr. Gaiman this year (I hope I still feel as fondly about his work this time next year as I do now!).
Not 'Anansi Boys' I struggled to finish it. It kicked in enough in the last 1/4 to make finishing it worthwhile, but I was disappointed, as I'd had Neil Gaiman recommended to me as an Author I should read and would probably enjoy.
So with that in mind, could somebody suggest the next book by Mr gaiman I should try?