Video Games

I never did get very far with Coleco's Smurf Rescue In Gargamel's Castle and I always made Qbert jump in the wrong direction. My Atari usage went from sore thumbs from moving Pinhead back and forth to getting run over in Frogger. I've died every death that Oregon Trail has to offer, made some futile searches for Carmen Sandiego, hunted for Ducks, badly, and was often brutally killed in Streetfighter and Mortal Kombat. However, none of these compared to my glorious failings when playing Goldeneye on the N64: I very much earned that Lemming award. These days a majority of my attempts at gaming revolve around spending hours building a decorating a house on Sims 4 only to abandon the sim I created shortly after.

Even without being as dedicated to video games as my children seem to be video games have had an everpresent role in my life, not necessarily one of triumphant glory but it's been a lot of fun just the same.

Copy describing the books listed below is provided by the publishers.

Blood, Sweat, and Pixels: The Triumphant, Turbulent Stories Behind How Video Games are Made by Schreier, Jason

"You've got your dream job--making video games. You have a great project, great designs, and clever controls. One morning, you get a call from your producer. Turns out that wall-jumping trick won't work because the artists don't have time to design a separate animation just for the plumber to move that way. Also, your lead designer keeps micromanaging the programmers, which is driving them crazy. Your E3 demo is due in two weeks, and you know there's no way you can get it done in less than four. You'll have to cut out some of the game's biggest features just to hit your deadlines. And suddenly the investor is asking if maybe you can slash that $10 million budget down to $8 million, even if you have to fire a few people to make it happen? Welcome to video game development. In his years covering the industry, Jason Schreier has often heard developers say that any game actually released is a miracle. In Blood, Sweat, and Pixels, Schreier takes you behind the scenes of some of the biggest recent games to share never-before-told stories of the struggles and failures the development teams faced along the way. His reputation for great storytelling and fly-on-the-wall detail will provide readers with the clearest picture yet of what actually goes on behind the scenes. Each chapter will cover a different game, from major studios with nine-figure budgets to indie games with half a dozen people on their teams. The chapters will also focus on a variety of subjects in the process, from building the basics to adjusting for fan reaction post-launch. Blood, Sweat, and Pixels will give readers an unparalleled inside look at one of the biggest entertainment industries in the world"-- Provided by publisher.

Blips On A Screen: How Ralph Baer Invented TV video gaming and Launched a worldwide obsession by Hannigan, Kate

An engaging picture book biography based on the incredible true story of a Jewish refugee who pioneered home video games and launched a worldwide obsession.

Do you ever wonder how video gaming was invented? What came before your PlayStation or Xbox? This is the story of Ralph Baer, a refugee from Nazi Germany, who used his skills--and a lot of ingenuity and persistence--to make life a little more fun.

Television was new when Ralph returned from serving in World War II, but he didn't settle for watching TV. He knew it could be even more fun if you could play with it. He tinkered and tested, got help and rejected, but with perseverance and skill, he made his vision come true! This is the inspiring story of a fearless inventor who made TV video games a reality.

Gamer Girls: 25 Women Who Built the Video Game Industry by Kenney, Mary

"Discover the women behind the video games we love--from the iconic games they created, the genres they invented, the studios and companies they built--and how they changed the industry forever. From classic games like Centipede and Solitaire to popular modern games like Final Fantasy, Uncharted, and Halo, this book explores the work and history of 25 influential women in the video game industry and how their contributions ultimately built and transformed the medium that we know today. Gamer Girls explores each woman's contributions to the industry, but also their inspirations and hardships as they worked to create the games that they wanted to play. Including smaller sidebars about other influential women, a glossary, additional resources page, and stunning profile and spot illustrations of influential pixel queens such as: Roberta Williams (creator of the adventure genre) * Mabel Addis Mergardt (the first person to write a video game) * Muriel Tramis (the French "knight" of video games) * Keiko Erikawa (the creator of the otome genre) * Yoko Shimomura (the composer for Street Fighter, Final Fantasy, and Kingdom Hearts) * Rebecca Heineman (first national video game tournament champion) * Jade Raymond (builder of the modern game engine) * and many more"--. Provided by publisher.

Tetris: The Games People Play by Brown, Box

"It is, perhaps, the perfect video game. Simple yet addictive, Tetris delivers an irresistible, unending puzzle that has players hooked. Play it long enough and you'll see those brightly colored geometric shapes everywhere. You'll see them in your dreams. Alexey Pajitnov had big ideas about games. In 1984, he created Tetris in his spare time while developing software for the Soviet government. Once Tetris emerged from behind the Iron Curtain, it was an instant hit. Nintendo, Atari, Sega--game developers big and small all wanted Tetris. A bidding war was sparked, followed by clandestine trips to Moscow, backroom deals, innumerable miscommunications, and outright theft. In this graphic novel, New York Times--bestselling author Box Brown untangles this complex history and delves deep into the role games play in art, culture, and commerce. For the first time and in unparalleled detail, Tetris: The Games People Play tells the true story of the world's most popular video game."--Page [2] of cover.

Sid Meier's Memoir! : A Life in Computer Games by Meier, Sid

"The life and career of the legendary developer celebrated as the "godfather of computer gaming," and creator of Civilization. Over his four-decade career, Sid Meier has produced some of the world's most popular video games, including Sid Meier's Civilization, which has sold more than 51 million units worldwide and accumulated more than one billion hours of play. Sid Meier's Memoir! is the story of an obsessive young computer enthusiast who helped launch a multibillion-dollar industry. Writing with warmth and ironic humor, Meier describes the genesis of his influential studio, MicroProse, founded in 1982 after a trip to a Las Vegas arcade, and recounts the development of landmark games, from vintage classics like Pirates! and Railroad Tycoon, to Civilization and beyond. Articulating his philosophy that a video game should be "a series of interesting decisions," Meier also shares his perspective on the history of the industry, the psychology of gamers, and fascinating insights into the creative process, including his rules of good game design"-- Provided by publisher.

Game Boy Modding by Farrell, Greg

GAME BOY MODDING will provide readers with a detailed process for purchasing, refurbishing, modding, and customizing several Nintendo handheld consoles. The consoles and customizations are widely available and affordable for all gamers to try on their own and require only limited tools and know-how. Readers learn basic soldering and hardware modification techniques, then move on to learn how to change speakers, buttons, screen lens, and even fix dead speakers and sticky buttons.

The Ultimate History of Video Games: From Pong to Pokémon and Beyond: the Story Behind the Craze that Touched our Lives and Changed the World by Kent, Steve L.

Traces the history and development of video games, providing information on the first games, influential developers, how the games have changed over the years, and the most popular games.

Level Up: 100% Unofficial

Check out the ultimate annual video game guide from Scholastic AFK! Level Up 2023 is full of the latest information on the hottest games of the last year, how they were developed, and how to beat them.Get ready for another awesome year of gaming with this ultimate guide to all your favorite games, including a definitive list of the biggest games of the past year and hottest new ones coming in 2023! Level Up 2023 is the most comprehensive guide to all the best games, tech, and streamers, featuring a bunch of the year's greatest gaming moments.This complete guide is packed with secrets, stats, tips, and tricks for all your favorite games. All games featured in AFK's Level Up 2023 are rated T for Teen or younger -- perfect for young gamers.

Game On!: Video Game History from Pong and Pac-man to Mario, Minecraft, and More by Hansen, Dustin

Find out about the fast and furious growth and evolution of video games (including how they are quickly taking over the world!) by looking at some of the most popular, innovative, and influential games ever, from Pong, the very first arcade game ever, to modern hits like Uncharted.

Learn about the creators and inspiration (Mario was named after Nintendo's landlord after he barged into a staff meeting demanding rent), discover historical trivia and Easter eggs (The developers of Halo 2 drank over 24,000 gallons of soda while making the game), and explore the innovations that make each game special (The ghosts in Pac-Man are the first example of AI in a video game).

Whether you consider yourself a hard-core gamer or are just curious to see what everyone is talking about, Game On! is the book for you!

The Boy Who Thought Outside the Box: The Story of Video Game Inventor Ralph Baer by Wessels, Marcie

Today, the video game industry keeps growing, with ever more platforms available to fans. But how did the very first system come about? This picture-book biography of Ralph Baer, whose family fled Nazi Germany for the US, introduces kids to a great inventor AND the birth of the first home console. Using wartime technology, Baer thought outside the box and transformed the television into a vehicle for gaming; Baer's invention, the Odyssey, is a precursor to the Atari gaming system. Today, interactive systems like Wii and PlayStation are descendants of Ralph's innovative "Brown Box," making this award-winning inventor the true "Father of Video Games."

Minecraft

Roblox

Movies:

Doom. Jumanji. Welcome to the Jungle. Free Guy

Pixels Pokémon Detective Pikachu. Sonic the Hedgehog

Ralph breaks the internet

Stan Lee

 

December 28th would have been Stan Lee's 100th birthday.  He died just 4 years shy of it, but his legacy will remain long after.  Stanley Martin Lieber was born in New York in 1922, to Romanian immigrants.  His comic book career began in 1939 at Timely Comics as an assistant. A small amount of creative control on Captain America #3 led to Cap acquiring his shield, and a creative legend was born.  In early 1942, Stan Lee was in the Army, where being recognized for his artistic talent, he was given the orders to transfer from Fort Monmouth (New Jersey) working on communication lines, to For Monmouth Film Production Laboratory.  There he worked with Academy-Award winner, Frank Capra (It's A Wonderful Life), cartoonist Charles Addams (The Addams Family), and Dr. Seuss himself, Theodor Geisel. In 1945, Lee's service ended and he was back at Timely Comics, where his Army training came and creativity combined to create the "Marvel Method" a comic book creation assembly line with Lee writing captions in the bubbles, then passing it along to a pencil artist, then someone to color it, and another to finalize the lettering.  

Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, (August 28, 1917 -February 6, 1994) co-created a pantheon of superheroes such as The Hulk, Iron Man, Thor, the X-Men, and Black Panther.  In 1961, the duo came out with Fantastic Four, "Marvel's First Family".

In 1954 the Comics Code Authority was created to tighten the reigns against creative freedoms in comic books.  Essentially, the way to get mass-produced nationally, you had to have a literal CCA stamp of approval. In 1970, the Nixon Administration's U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare requested that Lee provide an Anti-drug storyline.  Drugs in general were a no-go for the Comics Code, but Stan Lee asked anyhow, and they said "no" but they started reevaluating the Comic Code's terms, just a lot slower than Stan Lee liked.  And so, he published the 3 issues of Spiderman comics without the Authority's approval. Afterward, Stan apologized to the Comics Code Authority for his actions. But it was Lee's actions that opened the doors to a more lax Comics Code.

I must admit, I was not a comic book connoisseur and any super-hero knowledge I had was minimal.  So truly, what I remember to be my introduction to Stan Lee, was his appearance in Mallrats.  The list of Stan Lee's television and Movie cameos is far and wide, and towards the end was a favorite thing to spot in any of the Marvel Movies.  It seems impossible for me not to feel Kevin Smith's excitement when things came full circle for him and Stan Lee: “Years later, my man is on a train in Captain Marvel, and he’s reading a Mallrats script and reciting his line out loud. And there’s my name on the script. It was almost as if he returned the favor,” Smith shares. “Winning an Oscar is not really important to me. Having Stan Lee reading a copy of the Mallrats script, which then kind of meta-shouts out the cameo he did … that is far better, to me, than winning the tin. That’s my kind of Oscar right there, man. And the symmetry to it, with him coming full circle from Mallrats, from one cameo to a lifetime of cameos by the end of his run, meant everything, at least for me.”

https://www.cbr.com/spider-man-stan-lee-comics-code-drugs/

https://marvel.fandom.com/wiki/Stan_Lee

https://www.wearethemighty.com/popular/stan-lee-comic-book-legend/

Stan Lee: a life by Batchelor, Bob

The definitive biography of Marvel legend Stan Lee, celebrating the 100th anniversary of his birth. Stan Lee's extraordinary life was as epic as the superheroes he co-created, from the Amazing Spider-Man to the Mighty Avengers. His ideas and voice are at the heart of global culture, loved by millions of superhero fans around the world. In Stan Lee: A Life, award-winning cultural historian Bob Batchelor offers an in-depth and complete look at this iconic visionary. Born in the Roaring Twenties, growing up in the Great Depression, living and thriving through the American Century, and dying in the twenty-first century, Stan Lee's life is a unique representation of recent American history. Batchelor examines Lee's fascinating American life by drawing out all its complexity, drama, heartache, and humor, revealing how Lee introduced the world to heroes that were just as fallible and complex as their creator-and just like all of us. An up-close look at a legendary figure, this centennial edition includes completely new material to give the full measure of a man whose genius continues to mesmerize audiences worldwide. Candid, authoritative, and absorbing, this is the biography of a man who dreamed of one day writing the Great American Novel, but ended up doing so much more-revolutionizing culture by creating new worlds and heroes that have entertained generations.

Stan Lee's How to Draw Superheroes by Lee, Stan

The third installment in comics icon Stan Lee's series showing readers how to draw some of the most exciting and dynamic superheroes of all time.

Spider-Man, the X-Men, the Fantastic Four, Iron Man, the Incredible Hulk, and the Avengers all share a common trait -- these hugely popular Marvel Comics superheroes were co-created by the legendary Stan Lee. Now, Lee shows readers everything they'll need to make their own mighty superheroes, just like his classic creations. Lee exposes his secret tools and techniques for bringing strong, inspiring heroes and heroines to life. He even shows aspiring creators how to expand their super-universes with evil villains, trusty sidekicks, brutes and monsters, super-pets, secret hideouts, and more! These invaluable insights from one of the greatest superhero creators of all time are must-haves for all fans of Lee's legendary superhero comic work.

With Great Power : The Marvelous Stan Lee: an unauthorized biography by Eriksen, Annie Hunter

Every superhero has their origin story: a radioactive spider bite turns ordinary teen Peter Parker into Spider-Man, wealthy Tony Stark escapes captivity by building his Iron Man suit, scientist Bruce Banner survives gamma rays only to transform into the Hulk. For Stan Lee, it was books of adventure, monsters, and magic that helped him transform from an ordinary boy to a superstar superhero creator. At first, reading these stories was a pathway to a world bigger than his family's tiny apartment in New York City, but it wasn't long until Stan was crafting his own stories, creating comics professionally when he was still just a teenager! Still, writing wasn't exciting when the heroes were always the same: strong, perfect, and boring. Stan had a revolutionary idea. What if anyone--even an ordinary kid--could be a superhero?Discover more about the life of the Cameo King, known to many for his appearances in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and how he revolutionized comics with this vibrant introduction bustling with action, humor, and references for fans new and old. 'Nuff said!

Amazing Fantastic Incredible: a marvelous memoir by Lee, Stan

"In this gorgeously illustrated, full-color graphic memoir, Stan Lee--comic book legend and cocreator of Spider-Man, the X-Men, the Avengers, the Incredible Hulk, and a legion of other Marvel superheroes--shares his iconic legacy and the story of how modern comics came to be. Stan Lee is a man who needs no introduction. The most legendary name in the history of comic books, he has been the leading creative force behind Marvel Comics, and has brought to life--and into the mainstream--some of the world's best-known heroes and most infamous villains throughout his career. His stories--filled with superheroes struggling with personal hang-ups and bad guys who possessed previously unseen psychological complexity--added wit and subtlety to a field previously locked into flat portrayals of good vs. evil. Lee put the human in superhuman and in doing so, created a new mythology for the twentieth century. In this beautifully illustrated graphic memoir--illustrated by celebrated artist Colleen Doran--Lee tells the story of his life with the same inimitable wit, energy, and offbeat spirit that he brought to the world of comics. Moving from his impoverished childhood in Manhattan to his early days writing comics, through his military training films during World War II and the rise of the Marvel empire in the 1960s to the current resurgence in movies, Amazing Fantastic Incredible documents the life of a man and the legacy of an industry and career" -- provided by publisher.

A Marvelous Life: The Amazing Story of Stan Lee by Fingeroth, Danny

"The definitive biography of the beloved-often controversial-co-creator of many legendary superheroes, A Marvelous Life: The Amazing Story of Stan Lee presents the origin of "Stan the Man," who spun a storytelling web of comic book heroic adventures into a pop culture phenomenon: the Marvel Universe. Stan Lee was the most famous American comic book creator who ever lived. Thanks, especially, to his many cameos in Marvel movies and TV shows, Lee was-and even after his 2018 death, still is-the voice and face of comics and popular culture in general, and Marvel Comics in particular. How he got to that place is a story that has never been fully told-until now. With creative partners including Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko-with whom he had tempestuous relationships that rivaled any superhero battle-Lee created world-famous characters including Spider-Man, Iron Man, the X-Men, the Avengers, and the Hulk! But Lee's career was haunted by conflict and controversy. Was he the most innovative creator to ever do comics? Was he a lucky no-talent whose only skill was taking credit for others' work? Or was he something else altogether? Danny Fingeroth's A Marvelous Life: The Amazing Story of Stan Lee attempts to answer some of those questions. It is the first comprehensive biography of this powerhouse of ideas who, with his invention of Marvel Comics, changed the world's ideas of what a hero is and how a story should be told. With exclusive interviews with Lee himself, as well as with colleagues, relatives, friends-and detractors-Fingeroth makes a doubly remarkable case for Lee's achievements, while not ignoring the controversies that dogged him his entire life-and even past his death. With unique access to Lee's personal archives at the University of Wyoming, Fingeroth explores never-before-examined aspects of Lee's life and career, and digs under the surface of what people thought they knew about him. Fingeroth, himself a longtime writer and editor at Marvel Comics, and now a lauded pop culture critic and historian, knew and worked with Stan Lee for over four decades. With his unique insights as a comics world insider, Fingeroth is able to put Lee's life and work in a unique context that makes events and actions come to life as no other writer could. Despite F. Scott Fitzgerald's famous warning that "There are no second acts in American lives," Stan Lee created a second act for himself that changed everything for him, his family, his industry, and ultimately for all of popular culture. How he did it-and what it cost him-is a larger-than-life tale of a man who helped create the modern superhero mythology that has become a part of all our lives"-- Provided by publisher.

A Trick of Light by Li, Tianshang

"From Stan Lee, the pop culture legend behind Marvel's The Avengers, Black Panther, X-Men, Spider-Man, The Fantastic Four, and Iron Man, comes a major literary event featuring two heroic teenagers-one born with extraordinary gifts, one unwillingly transformed. Together they can change the world . . . or put it in the destructive hands of a danger beyond imagination"-- Provided by publisher.

Fantastic Four. Lost adventures by Lee, Stan

The comic-book equivalent of a lost Beatles track! Together, Stan Lee and Jack Kirby produced 102 consecutive issues of Fantastic Four. But there was a 103rd story they'd begun in 1970, but never finished - until now! Working from copies of Jack's penciled pages, Stan Lee and Joe Sinnott reunite to complete the work they started almost four decades ago! Plus: The legendary writer and Fantastic Four co-creator joins forces with artist John Romita Jr. to tell his final story of the team that started the Marvel Age! Collects The Last Fantastic Four Story, Fantastic Four: Lost, and Fantastic Four #296, #543

Ant-man/Giant-man by Lee, Stan

Burned under the magnifying glass of overwhelming demand, Mighty Marvel has given in to bring you our smallest hero in his first big Masterwork. Lee and Kirby's second hero creation, scientist Hank Pym, invented an amazing growth serum and a cybernetic helmet making him the Astonishing Ant-Man. Teamed up with the winsome Wasp, the tiny twosome battle a sensational array of mini and maxi-sized menaces from the Scarlet Beetle to the Black Knight. Collecting: Tales to Astonish (1959) 27, 35-52

Marvel-verse: Spider-Man.

He's the most amazing, spectacular, sensational hero in all the Marvel-Verse -- your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man! And he's swinging into action in these incredible adventures! First, enjoy a modern spin on Spidey's classic origin tale of power and responsibility, as a spider bite transforms the life of unpopular teen Peter Parker -- for better and worse! Then, to save the life of his beloved Aunt May, Spidey must triumph against impossible odds and overcome an army of Doctor Octopus' goons in a character-defining classic from the legendary team of Stan Lee and Steve Ditko! And if that wasn't enough, the wallcrawler faces all his deadliest enemies -- Doc Ock, Kraven the Hunter, Mysterio, Sandman, Electro and Vulture -- banded together as the Sinister Six!

Captain America. Man out of time

When the Avengers pull a mysterious, tattered soldier from the sea, they unwittingly bring back to life the Living Legend of World War Two--a man whose memories of a life sixty years ago are as fresh as yesterday! How will Steve Rogers, frozen in suspended animation for half a century, adapt to the world of the 21st century?

Neil Gaiman

On November 10th Neil Gaiman, the craftsman of wonder and fantasy, turned 62.

Neverwhere: author's preferred text by Gaiman, Neil

Published in 1997, Neil Gaiman's darkly hypnotic first novel, Neverwhere, heralded the arrival of this major talent and became a touchstone of urban fantasy. Over the years, a number of versions were produced both in the U.S. and the U.K. Now, this author's preferred edition of his classic novel reconciles these versions and reinstates a number of scenes cut from the original published books.


Neverwhere is the story of Richard Mayhew, a young London businessman with a good heart and an ordinary life, which is changed forever when he is plunged through the cracks of reality into a world of shadows and darkness--the Neverwhere. If he is ever to return to the London Above, Richard must join the battle to save this strange underworld kingdom from the malevolence that means to destroy it.

Norse Mythology by Gaiman, Neil

"Introducing an instant classic--master storyteller Neil Gaiman presents a dazzling version of the great Norse myths. Neil Gaiman has long been inspired by ancient mythology in creating the fantastical realms of his fiction. Now he turns his attention back to the source, presenting a bravura rendition of the great northern tales. In Norse Mythology, Gaiman stays true to the myths in envisioning the major Norse pantheon: Odin, the highest of the high, wise, daring, and cunning; Thor, Odin's son, incredibly strong yet not the wisest of gods; and Loki--son of a giant--blood brother to Odin and a trickster and unsurpassable manipulator. Gaiman fashions these primeval stories into a novelistic arc that begins with the genesis of the legendary nine worlds and delves into the exploits of deities, dwarfs, and giants. Once, when Thor's hammer is stolen, Thor must disguise himself as a woman--difficult with his beard and huge appetite--to steal it back. More poignant is the tale in which the blood of Kvasir--the most sagacious of gods--is turned into a mead that infuses drinkers with poetry. The work culminates in Ragnarok, the twilight of the gods and rebirth of a new time and people. Through Gaiman's deft and witty prose emerge these gods with their fiercely competitive natures, their susceptibility to being duped and to duping others, and their tendency to let passion ignite their actions, making these long-ago myths breathe pungent life again."--Publisher's description.

Likely Stories by Gaiman, Neil

"These dark and imaginative tales feature an odd and subtly linked world of bizarre venereal diseases, a creepy old woman who feasts on raw meat, a man obsessed with a skin model from a magazine, and a story within a story about ghosts."-- Provided by publisher.

Violent Cases by Gaiman, Neil

"Before The Sandman, there was Violent Cases, the first teaming of multi award-winning writer Neil Gaiman and innovative artist Dave McKean. Now, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of this seminal work, Violent Cases is being re-issued in a hardcover edition of one of the most influential and groundbreaking graphic novels of all time. A sensitive and ingenious work, Violent Cases reveals the often murky nexus between memory and imagination through the narrator's cloudy childhood remembrance of a visit to Al Capone's osteopath — and the impact of his seedy stories on an impressionable youth." -- Amazon.com summary.

The Comical Tragedy or Tragical Comedy of Mr. Punch by Gaiman, Neil

In his grandmother's failing seaside arcade, a young boy encounters a mysterious punch and judy man with a dark past, and a woman who makes her living playing a mermaid. As their lives intertwine and their stories unfold, the boy is forced to confront family secrets, strange puppets, and a nightmarish world of violence and betrayal in a dark fable of childhood innocence and adult pain.

Trigger Warning: Short Fictions and Disturbances by Gaiman, Neil

This third collection of short fiction by Gaiman includes previously published pieces of short fiction -- stories, verse, and a Doctor Who story written for the series' fiftieth anniversary (Nothing o'clock). There is also "Black Dog," a new tale that revisits the world of his novel American Gods. The collection explores the masks we all wear and the people we are beneath them to reveal our vulnerabilities and our truest selves. Horror and ghosts stories, science fiction and fairy tales, fabulism and poetry explore the realm of experience and emotion. In Adventure Story -- a thematic companion to The Ocean at the End of the Lane -- Gaiman ponders death and the way people take their stories with them when they die. His social media experience A Calendar of Tales are short takes inspired by replies to fan tweets about the months of the year -- stories of pirates and the March winds, an igloo made of books, and a Mother's Day card that portends disturbances in the universe. Gaiman offers his own spin on Sherlock Holmes in his award-nominated mystery tale The Case of Death and Honey. And Click-Clack the Rattlebag explains the creaks and clatter we hear when we're all alone in the darkness.

The Ocean At the End of the Lane by Gaiman, Neil

It began for our narrator forty years ago when the family lodger stole their car and committed suicide in it, stirring up ancient powers best left undisturbed. Dark creatures from beyond the world are on the loose, and it will take everything our narrator has just to stay alive: there is primal horror here, and menace unleashed - within his family and from the forces that have gathered to destroy it. His only defense is three women, on a farm at the end of the lane. The youngest of them claims that her duckpond is ocean. The oldest can remember the Big Bang.

The Graveyard Book by Gaiman, Neil

Bod is an unusual boy who inhabits an unusual place--he's the only living resident of a graveyard. Raised from infancy by the ghosts, werewolves, and other cemetery denizens, Bod has learned the antiquated customs of his guardians' time as well as their ghostly teachings--such as the ability to Fade so mere mortals cannot see him.


Can a boy raised by ghosts face the wonders and terrors of the worlds of both the living and the dead?

Interworld by Gaiman, Neil

At nearly fifteen years of age, Joey Harker learns that he is a Walker, able to travel between dimensions, and soon joins a team of different versions of himself, each from another dimension, to fight the evil forces striving to conquer all the worlds.

Pirate Stew by Gaiman, Neil

Pirate stew! Pirate stew! Pirate stew for me and you! Pirate stew! Pirate stew! Eat it and you won't be blue. You can be a pirate too!