This was so the wrong book for me.

If you are a big Neil Gaiman fan, or a big fan of any of his collaborators in the graphic novel/comic book world, you will probably love this book.

I am merely a member of the cult of personality that revolves around Neil Gaiman, as opposed to a Fan.

Here’s what happened: Back in 1999 or 2000, I went to a meeting of a bunch of people who were involved in challenging the Virginia mandatory library Internet filtering law. The group included People for the American Way, some pro bono attorneys, the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, and the American Library Association. I was there for CDT . I can’t remember if Bob Corn-Revere was there with us or not, but it seems like he should have been.

The guys from CBLDF were having a fundraiser in DC that evening, and they brought their guest of honor, Neil Gaiman, to this meeting.

Poor guy. None of us had a clue who he was, and he was FAR and again the most charismatic person in the room.

But the CBLDF guys offered everyone free tickets to the fundraiser that evening, and I went. Gaiman is a GREAT reader, and I really enjoyed the work. The only problem was it was far away from where I lived, and I didn’t have a car, so I was metro-dependent. I had to leave well before it was over.

Since then, I’ve read a couple of the Sandman books, and most of Gaiman’s novels and children’s books. Like the novels, LOVED Coraline. But I’m just not a comic girl.

And Hanging Out with the Dream King is really a book for the comic fans. The more hardcore, the better.