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Original Essays | September 9, 2013

Chris Bolton: IMG A Smash Is Born

4 comments By Chris Bolton

Editor's note: Chris Bolton is not only a former Powell's employee, he was also once the primary writer for this blog. So we are particularly proud... Continue »
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    Smash: Trial by Fire

    Chris Bolton and Kyle Bolton 9780763655969
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Smoke and Mirrors: Short Fictions and Illusions (P.S.)

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Smoke and Mirrors: Short Fictions and Illusions (P.S.) Cover

 

Staff Pick

If you've only read The Sandman, you're cheating yourself, but if you haven't read Gaiman at all, it's simply a crime. Smoke and Mirrors is his first — and, I think, best — short story collection, with not a bad story in the lot. The best are the charming grail story "Chivalry," the short and creepy "Babycakes," and the harrowing ode to cats "The Price," but "Only the End of the World Again" and "Snow, Glass, Apples" shine brightly as well.
Recommended by M.A.S., Powell's City of Books

Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

In Neil Gaiman's richly imagined fiction, anything is possible. And the proof is in the telling in this extraordinary collection of short stories. Discover within these pages miraculous inventions and curious characters: an elderly widow who finds the Holy Grail tucked beneath an old fur coat in a thrift store, a terrified boy who barters for his life with a mean-spirited troll living beneath a bridge by the railroad tracks, a young couple who receives a wedding gift that gradually reveals a chilling alternative history of their marriage. Smoke and Mirrors will dazzle your senses, touch your heart — and haunt your dreams.

Review:

"A whopping collection....[T]he volume's numerous successes put an engaging spin on even more-than-twice-told tales....[A]n exhilarating display of the work of one of our most entertaining storytellers." Kirkus Reviews (Starred Review)

Review:

"[Gaiman] is, simply put, a treasure house of story, and we are lucky to have him in any medium." Stephen King

Review:

"Poe would love him....A box of bonbons for dark fantasy fans, and a strong successor to Neverwhere." Booklist

Review:

"Imaginative twists on old legends and frightening glimpses into the impossible combine to form this impressive collection....The intriguing world behind these pages is indeed smoke and mirrors, just a step or a word or a story away from our own." Publishers Weekly

Review:

"Short stories guaranteed to excite the senses and inflame the imagination..." Book Alert

Review:

"Highly imaginative...readers will find echoes of H.P. Lovecraft, Harlan Ellison, Ray Bradbury and Stephen King, but the voice is all Gaiman." Dallas Morning News

Review:

"Gaiman's incantatory storytelling ignites both the bitter and the sweet and its smoke twists and seeps into dark corners, wafts into the light and amusing, even wends poignantly into the heart: nothing he writes should be missed." HorrorOnline.com

Review:

"Gaiman is a star. He constructs stories like some demented cook might make a wedding cake, building layer upon layer, including all kinds of sweet and sour in the mix." Clive Barker

Synopsis:

Now available in paperback is the definitive collection of short stories that reveals one of the world's most gifted fantasy writers at the peak of his form.

Synopsis:

In the deft hands of Neil Gaiman, magic is no mere illusion . . . and anything is possible. In Smoke and Mirrors, Gaiman's imagination and supreme artistry transform a mundane world into a place of terrible wonders—where an old woman can purchase the Holy Grail at a thrift store, where assassins advertise their services in the Yellow Pages under "Pest Control," and where a frightened young boy must barter for his life with a mean-spirited troll living beneath a bridge by the railroad tracks. Explore a new reality, obscured by smoke and darkness yet brilliantly tangible, in this extraordinary collection of short works by a master prestidigitator. It will dazzle your senses, touch your heart, and haunt your dreams.
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About the Author

Neil Gaiman is the author of the New York Times bestselling children's book coraline and of the picture books The Wolves in the Walls and The Day I Swapped My Dad for Two Goldfish, illustrated by Dave McKean. He wrote the script for the film MirrorMask and is also the author of critically acclaimed and award-winning novels and short stories for adults, as well as the Sandman series of graphic novels. Among his many awards are the World Fantasy Award, the Hugo Award, the Nebula Award, and the Bram Stoker Award. Originally from England, Gaiman now lives in the United States.
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Product Details

ISBN:
9780061450167
Author:
Gaiman, Neil
Publisher:
Harper Perennial
Author:
by Neil Gaiman
Subject:
General
Subject:
Short Stories (single author)
Subject:
General Fiction
Subject:
Fantasy fiction
Subject:
Horror fiction
Subject:
Literature-A to Z
Copyright:
2008
Edition Description:
Trade PB
Series:
P.S.
Publication Date:
February 2008
Binding:
TRADE PAPER
Grade Level:
General/trade
Language:
English
Pages:
368
Dimensions:
8.04x5.28x.88 in. .61 lbs.
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Related Subjects

Fiction and Poetry » Literature » A to Z
Fiction and Poetry » Science Fiction and Fantasy » A to Z

Smoke and Mirrors: Short Fictions and Illusions (P.S.) New Trade Paper
0 stars - 0 reviews
$14.99 In Stock
Product details 368 pages Harper Perennial - English 9780061450167 Reviews:
"Staff Pick" by ,

If you've only read The Sandman, you're cheating yourself, but if you haven't read Gaiman at all, it's simply a crime. Smoke and Mirrors is his first — and, I think, best — short story collection, with not a bad story in the lot. The best are the charming grail story "Chivalry," the short and creepy "Babycakes," and the harrowing ode to cats "The Price," but "Only the End of the World Again" and "Snow, Glass, Apples" shine brightly as well.

by M.A.S.
"Review" by , "A whopping collection....[T]he volume's numerous successes put an engaging spin on even more-than-twice-told tales....[A]n exhilarating display of the work of one of our most entertaining storytellers."
"Review" by , "[Gaiman] is, simply put, a treasure house of story, and we are lucky to have him in any medium."
"Review" by , "Poe would love him....A box of bonbons for dark fantasy fans, and a strong successor to Neverwhere."
"Review" by , "Imaginative twists on old legends and frightening glimpses into the impossible combine to form this impressive collection....The intriguing world behind these pages is indeed smoke and mirrors, just a step or a word or a story away from our own."
"Review" by , "Short stories guaranteed to excite the senses and inflame the imagination..."
"Review" by , "Highly imaginative...readers will find echoes of H.P. Lovecraft, Harlan Ellison, Ray Bradbury and Stephen King, but the voice is all Gaiman."
"Review" by , "Gaiman's incantatory storytelling ignites both the bitter and the sweet and its smoke twists and seeps into dark corners, wafts into the light and amusing, even wends poignantly into the heart: nothing he writes should be missed."
"Review" by , "Gaiman is a star. He constructs stories like some demented cook might make a wedding cake, building layer upon layer, including all kinds of sweet and sour in the mix."
"Synopsis" by , Now available in paperback is the definitive collection of short stories that reveals one of the world's most gifted fantasy writers at the peak of his form.
"Synopsis" by , In the deft hands of Neil Gaiman, magic is no mere illusion . . . and anything is possible. In Smoke and Mirrors, Gaiman's imagination and supreme artistry transform a mundane world into a place of terrible wonders—where an old woman can purchase the Holy Grail at a thrift store, where assassins advertise their services in the Yellow Pages under "Pest Control," and where a frightened young boy must barter for his life with a mean-spirited troll living beneath a bridge by the railroad tracks. Explore a new reality, obscured by smoke and darkness yet brilliantly tangible, in this extraordinary collection of short works by a master prestidigitator. It will dazzle your senses, touch your heart, and haunt your dreams.
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