‘What kind of story would you like me to tell you?’ ‘Well,’ he said, thoughtfully, ‘I don’t think it should be too scary, because then when I go up to bed, I will just be thinking about monsters the whole time. But if it isn’t just a little bit scary, then I won’t be interested. And you make up scary stories, don’t you?’

Many of you know that this year was the year I had my first experience with Neil Gaiman. Everyone had stressed to me how fantastic Gaiman was and everyone had ideas on which book I should begin with and I decided to go with Stardust as my first read. I was already familiar with the story (and obsessed with the movie) and therefore knew that I would be happy with the outcome. My ideas on Stardust are for another time. This post is about my first experience with Neil Gaiman as a storyteller. That’s right, into audiobooks I delved.

I mentioned All Hallow’s Read and Neil Gaiman’s free audiobook in a prior post, and I encouraged you all to go download it but I never told you that I downloaded it, and obsessively listened to it for days. Because friends? Neil Gaiman is the shit. I know, I know. You all told me how fantastic this man was but I was wary, my friends, because how often does something or someone live up to the hype? The best part about this whole situation is that it isn’t just the books that I love. Oh no, it is the audiobooks, the ones narrated by this master storyteller himself.

The ones that made me change my whole perception and made me realize that being read to is in fact a glorious past time.

I won’t go in to what Click Clack the Rattlebag is like, except that it was wonderful. Neil Gaiman asked us listeners to keep the storyline to ourselves and I for one am abiding by that. Just know that it is creepy and intriguing and really keeps you listening intently. Currently, I am listening to Gaiman’s Neverwhere and it is so amazing that I find myself driving around in circles, taking the long way home, and sitting in my car long after arriving to my destination just to continue listening. In fact, as I sit at my workstation I am counting the hours until my long drive home whenI will be soothed by Gaiman’s lovely narration.

I encourage you all, old fans and new, to take a listen to Neil Gaiman’s works as he is an excellent storyteller and heightens any listening experience.

Move over, Jim Dale, methinks I have found a new narrator husband!