A Love Letter to Neil Gaiman

I first heard Neil discuss The Ocean at the End of the Lane when I attended the 2012 Zena Sutherland Lecture at the Chicago Public Library. Amusingly titled "What the %$#& is a Children's Book?", Neil discussed how he delved into his childhood memories to write a story about a child for adults. In this story, a nameless protagonist revisits his childhood home after a funeral, and remembers the Hempstocks - a group of women with an "ocean"-pond in their backyard and ties to the mystical world. In the lecture, Neil discussed how we are protective of children's books, but that we rarely give children the credit they deserve for facing their fears through reading.

Right now, I am digesting Ocean.  I'll be honest and say it wasn't earthshattering, compared to my other favorites The Graveyard Book and the Shakespeare storyline in Sandman (the one that I could write a dissertation about). I don't really feel the need to pick it apart, but it has left me with a thoughtful note, as his work always does. The story's tone is elegiac, and the style reminded me strongly of American Gods. Neil's stories allow darkness to creep in through your nose like being underwater. He always reminds us that stories rarely contain flat "monsters" and "people." I felt it in Ocean - the characters are always a lot bigger on the inside than they appear. His child-characters are always so resilient too, which I love as a children's librarian. As a kid, I had to retreat into my imagination to deal with the things I couldn't understand to survive. My mind was a shelter from the things I couldn't deal with, and books were the bricks keeping me safe from the cold. As an adult, I sometimes forget the strength in my imagination. My library students are the ones who now bring me back home to that book-shelter whenever I need it. Great authors will always make you remember what's important to you, and give you the strength to fight for it. 

When I met Neil after the lecture, I was too starstruck to do anything other than to blurt, "MY FOURTH GRADERS LOVE GRAVEYARD, YOU HAVE MADE THEM READ." Even if it was awkward as hell, I'm glad I told him that one thing. (What else was I supposed to say? "Everything you write makes me love Humanity, Neil?") Because I love my students, and I always connect to the fact that they must be resilient, more than regular children, and we need more authors like Neil telling them it's okay to use your imagination and fight back against the strange monsters in this world.

We need you, Neil. Don't ever go away.

ETA: Did you know that Neil publicly confesses his love for librarians? SWOON.