Neil Gaiman (b. 1960)
Filed under the name Neil · June 25, 2026
Neil Gaiman writes these big, strange books, American Gods and The Sandman among them, that take old myths and weave them into something entirely new and modern, and while that's not exactly my usual reading, one of my grandsons is absolutely wild about his work and has tried, patiently, more than once, to explain the appeal to his old grandmother. What I've come to understand, mostly secondhand, is that Gaiman's real gift is showing people that the old stories, the ones that feel dusty and half-forgotten, still have plenty of life left in them if somebody's willing to look at them slant and ask a new question. I spent thirty-eight years trying to convince eight-year-olds that stories mattered, even old ones, especially old ones, so I have a real soft spot for anybody who manages to make an old tale feel urgent to a brand-new generation. My grandson still can't get me to finish one of the books. But I like knowing they exist, and I like watching him light up over them even more.