Short Fiction Friday: Trigger Warning by Neil Gaiman + a Giveaway

(Before you say it, I know this post is going up on Saturday and not Friday. All I can say is that my intentions were thwarted by exhaustion.)

Neil Gaiman is back with another collection of shorts for our reading pleasure, folks, and oh, I have to say, what a freaking pleasure it is!

Trigger Warning: Short Fictions and Disturbances features a handful of brand new stories as well as others that have appeared elsewhere ("The Man Who Forgot Ray Bradbury" from Shadow Show; "Down to a Sunless Sea," which also appears in Fearie Tales; and "The Sleeper and the Spindle" from Rags & Bones, just to name a few). There are short shorts, longer shorts, poems, and even an interview ("Orange") each of them fabulous gems and wonders. There's even a Doctor Who story ("Nothing O'Clock") and a tale featuring Shadow Moon of American Gods fame ("Black Dog").

One of my favorite elements in the collection is Gaiman's insight into the background of each piece. For many, he notes authors past and present who have inspired him throughout his career (also making a book junkie like me add frantically to my own must read lists). As a reader, though, I have to say that Gaiman himself is the kind of author that readers and writers also praise for being both brilliant and inspiring. For me, in reading any of Gaiman's work, it begins with a bit of a tingle... a feeling that I'm diving into something truly special.

Whether you're a longtime fan of Gaiman's work or someone looking to discover what he's all about, Trigger Warnings is quite the perfect read. His dedication to the arts in general, libraries, and independent stores (one in my area won the event contest for Trigger Warnings) would be enough to make him a man to be admired, but he is such a tremendous talent as well and a collection like Trigger Warnings serves to further emphasize that.

Rating: 5/5 and highly, highly recommended!

And now for the giveaway. Unfortunately I don't have a copy of Trigger Warnings for you, but I think you'll like this just as much: a paperback copy of The Ocean at the End of the Lane and the hardcover, illustrated edition of "The Truth is a Cave in the Black Mountains..." (the story sans illustrations appears in Trigger Warnings as well). To enter simply fill out the Rafflecopter below before Monday, February 23 (US only please).

a Rafflecopter giveaway