Book Talk: The Ocean at the End of the Lane

I've put off posting about this book for a while now...not because I don’t like it, but because I do! For weeks I’ve struggled to put into words the feeling that has lingered with me since I began reading The Ocean at the End of the Lane. It really is indescribable.

The Ocean at the End of the Lane was an experience I was entirely unprepared for. I knew very little about it going in - I had read the jacket description a while ago, but when the library notified me that the book was finally available for checkout, the only thing that I remembered was that I had heard remarkable things about Neil Gaiman and was eager to read something he had written.

My first exposure to the author had been through Yulin Kuang’s webseries “I Didn’t Write This,” in which she interprets excerpts of other people’s writing. She created a video about Dark Sonnet by Neil Gaiman, and I was completely captivated by his words.

Needless to say, I signed out the audiobook to listen to on my way to work. As soon as I started it, I was elated to discover that it was narrated by the author. Listening to this story, told by this person, was a singular experience. In addition to having quite a pleasant voice to listen to, there was something very special about being read a story like this by the person who gave life to it in the first place. It felt very much like I was being told a bedtime story. I was - and still am - mesmerized by Neil Gaiman’s prose. So while I remain completely unequipped to describe the way reading this book made me feel, I’ll stick to singing its praises to everyone I meet, and recommending this as a great way to introduce yourself to Neil Gaiman’s work if like myself, you find yourself interested in this author, but unsure where to begin.