The SandmanVol 1: Preludes and Nocturnes
Written by Neil Gaiman
Art by Sam Kieth, Mike Dringenberg, and Malcolm Jones III
1989
Available now from Islington Libraries
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The SandmanVol 2: The Doll's House
Written by Neil Gaiman
Art by Mike Dringenberg, Malcolm Jones III, Chris Bachalo, Michael Zulli and Steve Parkhouse
1990
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The SandmanVol 3: Dream Country
Written by Neil Gaiman
Art by Kelley Jones, Charles Vess, Colleen Doran and Malcolm Jones III
1990
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The SandmanVol 4: Season of Mists
Written by Neil Gaiman
Art by Kelley Jones, Mike Dringenberg, Matt Wagner
1991
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The SandmanVol 5: A Game of You
Written by Neil Gaiman
Art by Shawn McManus, Colleen Doran, Bryan Talbot, George Pratt, Stan Woch, and Dick Giordano
1992
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The SandmanVol 6: Fables and Reflections
Written by Neil Gaiman
Art by P. Craig Russell, Bryan Talbot, Shawn McManus, Jill Thompson
1992
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The SandmanVol 7: Brief Lives
Written by Neil Gaiman
Art by Jill Thompson and Vince Locke
1993
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The SandmanVol 8: World's End
Written by Neil Gaiman
Art by Michael Allred, Gary Amaro, Mark Buckingham, Dick Giordano
1993
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The SandmanVol 9: The Kindly Ones
Written by Neil Gaiman
Art by Marc Hempel, Richard Case, d'Israeli, Teddy Kristiansen, Glyn Dillon, Charles Vess, Dean Ormston, and Kevin Nowlan
1995
Available now from Islington Libraries
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The SandmanVol 10: The Wake
Written by Neil Gaiman
Art by Michael Zulli, Jon J. Muth, and Charles Vess
1996
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Watchmen and Batman: The Dark Knight Returns both broke new ground by showing mainstream western readers that comic books could be "taken seriously" and hit the same sorts of artistic sweet spots as other mediums (and find a few new sweet spots of it's very own) - but - ultimately both (by necessity) were still in thrall to superheroes - and however much deconstructing they did - they were still both about guys in costumes running around fighting evil. Neil Gaiman's The Sandman (and however great some of the artists who worked on this title may have been - The Sandman is very much Neil Gaiman's thing - hell - just compare and contrast his author photo to the main character) was the first and most notable major and successful series to show readers everywhere that comics could be "grown up" without the need for superheroes/superpowers/superstuff and that there was an audience out there ready and waiting for it. That's why it's "important."
But forget all that - and let me try and explain why it's very much worth reading: Firstly it's the first comic I read as a teenager with the "suggested for mature readers" tag which didn't leave me feeling bored and listless. And while maybe that's more about me than about The Sandman I'm going to use it to make the following point: it has got lots of 'clever-clever' stuff going on and plenty of hardcore references to classic tomes and legends and myths of old to send shivers of delight up the shine of English Literature students (which is a cool - and something I learnt to appreciate as I grew up): but it's still got enough drama and interest and - hell - cool things (off the top of the head: Gods bidding against each other for the key to Hell, a 14th Century solider who decides that he's not going to die and the (mostly true) history of Joshua Abraham Norton, first, last and only Emperor of the United States of America) to keep people unaware of all that stuff hooked on reading it (ie my sullen teenage self) - which is a roundabout way of saying that the one thing that The Sandman is and the thing it does best: is stories and the stories are good.
Which brings us to the second point - which is: not only are the stories good - but they're also wide and far-reaching. So you get stories from Africa, Arabia, The Far East, Legends, Shakespeare, Faerie, The World of The Dead, Cats, Cities, etc and so on - all combining together to form a patchwork that covers pretty much as much as you could hope for. With enough variety to make sure you're always freshly entranced and never giving you a chance to be - well - bored.
The third thing is what ties it altogether: as I realise that I haven't really said what The Sandman is 'about.' The central character, the Sandman himself: Dream, Lord Morpheus, Oneiroi etc - the (mostly) human personification of dreams and - yep - stories. Presiding over each instalment - sometimes as the guy leading the action and sometimes as a shadowy presence hovering at the edges. He's the one - along with his equally momentous brothers and sisters - who gives the series it's constant personality and while individual humans might flitter in and out and grab some time in the spotlight in the stories within The Sandman - the story of The Sandman is his. But it's only revealed slowly and in a way that means that - unlike most long-running comic series - there are plenty of books you can start from. If you want to be proper - you can start from the start and 'Preludes and Nocturnes.' You should know however that' it's the Pablo Honey of The Sandman books - in that it takes it's while to find it's feet - and features distracting cameos from some of the superbeings from the rest of the DC Universe (although that doesn't last for long). It does have some breakthrough hits in the shape of - "24 Hours" and "The Sound of Her Wings" (which is the point when the book finally comes into it's own). Better places to start - if you just want to try it out - are the anthology volumes: Dream Country, Fables and Reflections and Worlds' End. These books - whilst in some small subtle ways contribute to the overall arc - serve as short story collections that can be easily picked up and dipped into and feature the wide range of styles, moods and tones mentioned above. Then there are the Sandman stories that comprise the main meat of the epic: The Doll's House, Seasons of Mist and A Game of You. Each of these books contain their own big story - which can be enjoyed by themselves without any reference to the rest of the series - and can be pretty much read in any order (although they do have some tangential links). Brief Lives, The Kindly Ones and The Wake are the final stretch and really should be read in order (with World's End fitting in-between). Compulsory mention of the art (although the writing is really what it's about): it does vary quite a bit and the best thing to say about most of it is that it's functional. (Sorry people).
Summing up: I don't want to go overboard with the hyperbole because otherwises - if you're one of the ones approaching it for the first time - there's a risk it won't be able to live up to it. But - well - The Sandman is a magical series in all the best senses - it's heartfelt, wise and moving with a light touch that will slowly but surely break your heart and then fix it back together again. Recommended as much as I possibly can. The kind of book that (somehow) makes your life better just by the mere virtue of reading it. And (rubbish final sentence alert): it reads like a dream.
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Links: Grand Hotel Abyss Essay on The Sandman, Too Busy Thinking About My Comics Article Part 1 / Part 2, Comics Girl Revisiting The Sandman, NPR Dream Country Book Club Talk Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4, Weird Tales Sandman Article / Weird Tales Review Vol 1 / Vol 2 / Vol 3 / Vol 4 / Vol 5 / Vol 6 / Vol 7 / Vol 8 / Vol 9 / Vol 10, The M0vie Blog Review of Absolute Sandman Vol 1 / Vol 2 / Vol 3 / Vol 4, The Oncoming Hope: Re-Blogging The Sandman, The Hooded Utilitarian Sandman Articles, AV Club Back Issues Vol 1 / Vol 2 / Vol 3 / Vol 4 / Vol 5 / Vol 6 / Vol 7 / Vol 8 / Vol 9 / Vol 10.
Further reading: Death: The High Cost of Living, Death: The Time of Your Life, The Sandman: The Dream Hunters, The Sandman: Endless Nights, Cages, Habibi, Swamp Thing, Lucifer, Fables, Hellboy, I Kill Giants, Planetary, Watchmen, Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere.
Profiles: Neil Gaiman, Bryan Talbot.
All comments welcome.
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