Product Description

There is nothing more dangerous than a childhood fantasy that has outgrown you. This graphic novel, featuring the character Barbie, from "The Doll's House", explores issues of gender, identity and the fine line between fantasy and reality.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #8656 in Books
• Published on: 1993-09-16
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 192 pages

Customer Reviews

Beautiful, honest and adult
This is the best Sandman book I've read: this is the best graphic novel I've read - it leaves even "The Watchmen" standing. The writing is moving and the plot brilliantly concieved: but this is a graphic novel and the illustrations are where the real real emotional punch is delivered (especially the "reaction shots" of characters to events).

The story is set in a fantasy world very reminiscent of Narnia - only here we have Barbie thrown in and her marriage to Ken has failed and there's no Aslan to sort things out: Gaiman's humanism is a pleasant contrast to Lewis's philosophy - I actually felt morally uplifted.

The subject matter for the book is nothing less than love, life and (especially) death - it feels as though the effects of AIDS may have inspired some of it. I think that this might not suit fans of the other Sandman stories where death and other grim realities are rather romanticised - this is a very adult book in the best sense of the term. If you like this graphic novel and fancy a big heavy, written novel, then you'll like Kundera's "The Unbearable Lightness of Being".

Read this book before you die.

""You?" said the caterpillar. "Who are you!?""
Further to what the reviews above say, this book is a story
identity, and while pretty dark, is really brilliantly written.
I won't give the story away too much, but this a kind of modern
Alice in wonderland type story, which sounds like it's been done
before, but not at this level, taking in modern feminist,social,
and gay issues. This book was suggested to me, and even if,
like me , youre not into comic books generally, this is well worth a look.

Beautiful
In A GAME OF YOU the focus shifts from the Sandman to woman named Barbara, who gets drawn back into a world which she, as a child, had frequented. The cast of characters are wonderful. There are the inhabitants of Barbara's dream world who are suitably comical, noble and mischievous. There are also the residents in Barbara's block of flats: The feisty Wanda, a woman who was born in a man's body; Thessaly, a superior-acting witch; sensitive Hazel and tough Foxglove (who are a couple); creepy George and the listless Barbara. Gaiman does excellent work with these characters, as he explores them in depth and they each develop as the plot progresses.

The story grew on me as I read it. At first I didn't like it so much, there was a subtle menace and darkness and maybe I'm just a sissy but too much of that kind of thing wears me down. But the story was so interesting - quietly so - you know, in unobvious way. The mystery builds wonderfully and the intricate plot develops so gently and subtly up to its conclusion, which is beautiful and perfect. The end of the story leaves one with such a good feeling because it is somewhat of an epiphany, but not one of those brief, sudden, realisations - more a realisation that is complex and deep, one that has been building momentum for a long time and finally comes together in the end.