RECOMMENDED READS
'Harlequin Valentine'
Neil Gaiman
Found in: Fragile Things, 2006
Reviews by: Carlotta Eden
No-one doubts Neil Gaiman’s ability as a fine writer and storyteller, and he proves it yet again in this modern re-telling of the grinning harlequin handing over his heart – his actual heart - to his Columbine.
‘Harlequin Valentine’ is a love story. It is the embodiment of hopelessness and tomfoolery, total surrender to desire, blithely told through the trickster figure of the commedia dell’arte; the harlequin. He dances and frolics around his Columbine all day, invisible, waiting for her to notice him – waiting for the chance to kiss her. He is the masked caper, with diamonds adorning his costume and a perpetual spring in his step.
There is a sense of urgency to the harlequin’s story – suggestive of his furtive desire for his Columbine. She, oblivious and carefree, takes his musings - quite literally - with a pinch of salt. It’s a love story, with all its elements deliciously packed in. Desire? Yep. Unrequited love? Sure. Heartbreak? Why not. And yet, Gaiman brings an originality to this modern re-telling of a character so repeatedly depicted in pictures and books – a grotesque and absurd twist that’ll leave you thinking, hang on a second... what?!
A perfect short story
- sure to bring a
trickster grin to
your face.
For those who
love:
Ben Aaronovitch,
Hans Christian
Anderson,
Charles Perrault
After an accident that leaves an ex-porn star with full-body burns, he meets a beautiful stranger who tells him they were once lovers in medieval Germany.
The Gargoyle will have you whimpering, sobbing and heaving with anger, love and amazement. In Davidson's debut and so far, only novel, the first few pages alone will steal your breath away
Hear the full story read by Neil Gaiman himself here!
The Gargoyle
Andrew Davidson
Publisher: Canongate Books, 2009
and forget to give it back. Don't expect it to return, either.
For those who love:
Neil Gaiman, The Book Thief, having their breath taken away