From Publishers Weekly
Now that he's a bestselling fantasy novelist, Gaiman returns to the comics series that made his reputation with this new volume of seven gorgeously illustrated stories. Gaiman specializes in inventing fantastic allegories for the quotidian, in a voice that casually shifts between uneasy realism and Borgesian grandeur. In Sandman cosmology, "The Endless" are seven immortal siblings who personify abstract concepts: Dream, Death, Destiny and so on. This work devotes a story to each of them, drawn in distinctly different styles by an all-star lineup of American, British and European cartoonists and fine artists. Gaiman is famous for writing to his artists' strengths, and he does so here. P. Craig Russell draws the surreal fantasia "Death and Venice" with the opulent brio of his opera adaptations. "What I've Tasted of Desire" is a darkly sexual fable, painted by Milo Manara in the style of his more X-rated work. A couple of the stories find Gaiman working in a more experimental mode than usual, notably "Fifteen Portraits of Despair," a set of anecdotes and prose poems accompanied by Barron Storey's tormented, abstract drawings and paintings. Longtime comics fans will notice plenty of inside jokes in "The Heart of a Star," but most of this book is a red carpet-or perhaps a Persian rug-rolled out for Gaiman's prose readers to see his visions turned into lush, dramatic images. Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
When Gaiman ended his phenomenally popular comic-book series The Sandman in 1996, he promised to eventually revisit the characters. Now he keeps that promise, with results that are everything his fans could have hoped for. The series centered on the brooding title character, also known as Dream, who rules over the realm humans visit when they sleep, and also dealt with his godlike siblings Death, Desire, Despair, Delirium, Destruction, and Destiny, collectively known as the Endless. In this book, each of them is the focus of a separate story, illustrated by one of an array of world-class comics artists whose approaches range from the relative straightforwardness of P. Craig Russell (see Isolation and Illusion [BKL Ap 15 03]) to the wildly disturbing work of Barron Storey. The stories themselves vary, too, from accounts of mortals' encounters with the Endless to depictions of those demigods' lofty existence. Gaiman's eagerly awaited return to his most successful creation shows his mastery of the characters and their world to be intact, and if these shorter stories don't allow for the complexity of the original series, they still demonstrate the brilliance of his concept and the elegance of his storytelling. Gordon Flagg
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

FROM OUR EDITORS

For the first time since 1996, Destiny, Death, Dream, Despair, and all the other denizens of bestselling author Neil Gaiman's Endless world are back! This beautiful, haunting hardcover finds Gaiman's dark visions illuminated by a battalion of graphic art legends: P. Craig Russell, Barron Storey, Milo Manara, Frank Quitely, Miguelanxo Prado, and Bill Sienkiewicz. It's a dream lineup, filled with collaborators who add an extra element of the macabre to Gaiman's uniquely chilling vision.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Featuring the popular characters from the award-winning Sandman series, THE SANDMAN: ENDLESS NIGHTS reveals the legend of the Endless, a family of magical and mythical beings who exist and interact in the real world. Born at the beginning of time, Destiny, Death, Dream, Desire, Despair, Delirium and Destruction are seven brothers and sisters who each lord over their respective realms. In this highly imaginative book that boasts diverse styles of breathtaking art, these seven peculiar and powerful siblings each reveal more about their true-being as they star in their own tales of curiosity and wonder.

FROM THE CRITICS

The Washington Post

What makes Gaiman's "Despair" so haunting is the disturbed quality of the author's vignettes -- oscillating between courthouse cogency and madhouse incoherence -- and Barron Storey's phenomenal artwork. Storey commands multiple styles to render human misery: pencil, charcoal, watercolors, humanistic and geometric, the kind of works Amnesty International exhibits as evidence of mental and physical torture, with the same scary impact. Rest assured, the Sandman is back -- and he will rob you of sleep, not deliver it! — James Rosen

Publishers Weekly

Now that he's a bestselling fantasy novelist, Gaiman returns to the comics series that made his reputation with this new volume of seven gorgeously illustrated stories. Gaiman specializes in inventing fantastic allegories for the quotidian, in a voice that casually shifts between uneasy realism and Borgesian grandeur. In Sandman cosmology, "The Endless" are seven immortal siblings who personify abstract concepts: Dream, Death, Destiny and so on. This work devotes a story to each of them, drawn in distinctly different styles by an all-star lineup of American, British and European cartoonists and fine artists. Gaiman is famous for writing to his artists' strengths, and he does so here. P. Craig Russell draws the surreal fantasia "Death and Venice" with the opulent brio of his opera adaptations. "What I've Tasted of Desire" is a darkly sexual fable, painted by Milo Manara in the style of his more X-rated work. A couple of the stories find Gaiman working in a more experimental mode than usual, notably "Fifteen Portraits of Despair," a set of anecdotes and prose poems accompanied by Barron Storey's tormented, abstract drawings and paintings. Longtime comics fans will notice plenty of inside jokes in "The Heart of a Star," but most of this book is a red carpet-or perhaps a Persian rug-rolled out for Gaiman's prose readers to see his visions turned into lush, dramatic images. (Oct.) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

VOYA - Kat Kan

With a new collection of seven stories, Gaiman returns to the world of Sandman (Dream) and his Endless siblings-Death, Desire, Despair, Delirium, Destruction, and Destiny . A young army soldier returns to Venice, where, as a boy, he had encountered Death, whom he meets once more as she deals with a Count who had cheated death. Kara bargains with Desire to ensnare the chief's son, using the gifts from Desire for revenge when her love is taken from her. Dream brings his love, Killala, to meet his family at a cosmic conference before Time-and suffers his first betrayal. Chapter 4, subtitled "Fifteen Portraits of Despair," uses art and words to describe despair in various formats ranging from vignettes to descriptive statements such as "It is a writer, with nothing left that he knows how to say." Delirium rounds up a rescue squad of crazy people to help a catatonic girl recover. A young woman who works on an archeological dig off the coast of Sardinia, which has uncovered long-buried artifacts from the future, meets Joe and his kooky sister (Destruction and Delirium), who warn her away. And blind Destiny walks always in his garden, holding a book that is the Universe. Most stories include more overt and graphically portrayed sex than in previous Sandman volumes. The story of Kara and Desire shows people engaged in sexual acts throughout, and because of it, most libraries will most likely want to keep it in their adult collections, where older teen fans will find it. This collection is not one to introduce new fans to the series, but it will appeal to those fans who have read all the volumes and want more. Libraries that already own previous volumes will want this striking book as well. VOYACodes: 4Q 2P S A/YA G (Better than most, marred only by occasional lapses; For the YA with a special interest in the subject; Senior High, defined as grades 10 to 12; Adult-marketed book recommended for Young Adults; Graphic Novel Format). 2003, Vertigo/DC Comics, 160p., Ages 15 to Adult.

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