Prominent writers craft ‘Sandman’ prose stories in ‘The Sandman: Book of Dreams’ anthology
First published in 1996 by HarperCollins, the prose anthology The Sandman: Book of Dreams contains short stories featuring characters and settings from the acclaimed DC Comics series The Sandman. Although Sandman co-creator Neil Gaiman co-edited the book, and a number of celebrated creators contributed content to Book of Dreams, compared to other Sandman works there is a dearth of commentary regarding the anthology, its literary quality, and its significance as the first depiction of the Sandman mythos in the prose medium. Book of Dreams is arguably an underappreciated curio of the Sandman library.
The Sandman debuted in 1989, co-created by writer Gaiman in collaboration with a variety of artists; the series’ protagonist is Dream, one of the seven Endless, cosmic beings that embody universal concepts. Dream has dominion over dreams and stories, and rules the metaphysical dream realm known as “The Dreaming.” Dream’s Endless siblings include Destiny, Death, Destruction, Desire, Despair, and Delirium; Sandman features a myriad cast of humans, mythic beings, and dreams, and the series ran for 75 issues, concluding in 1996.
Sandman garnered critical acclaim and commercial success, winning numerous awards and generating spin-off comics series like Sandman Mystery Theatre (1993), The Dreaming (1996), and Lucifer (2000). Published the same year Sandman ended, Book of Dreams was the first prose exploration of the Sandman mythos, and its contributors include noteworthy science fiction and fantasy writers.
Edited by Gaiman and Edward E. Kramer, Book of Dreams contains 17 short stories, one poem, an afterward that focuses on the character Death by singer Tori Amos (who, interestingly, Gaiman has acknowledged as a source of inspiration for the visual look of another Sandman character, Delirium), and a frontispiece illustration of Death by horror writer Clive Barker; the book’s dustjacket cover is illustrated by Sandman cover artist Dave McKean. Literary critic Frank McConnell writes the preface, and Gaiman provides short introductions to each piece.
Most of the stories focus on human beings impacted by the machinations of the Endless, with sometimes small, sometimes significant, results. Award-winning science fiction writer Colin Greenland’s “Masquerade and High Water” is a sweet mortal love story counterbalanced by Dream and Desire’s interactions in the Dreaming, while Desire’s actions in “Stronger than Desire” by Lisa Goldstein and Dream’s presence in “The Birth Day” by B. W. Clough have big effects on human culture.
The Endless are not seen in John M. Ford’s “Chain Home, Low,” although their presence is felt by the human characters that serve as pawns in their manipulations. Ford’s story, set in World War II, is impressive; it explores the personal and societal implications of the global “sleepy sickness” (in Sandman continuity, this mysterious illness results from Dream’s captivity by a nefarious English mystic) while serving as a riveting military thriller grounded with interesting protagonists.
Comics aficionados will likely enjoy “Seven Nights in Slumberland,” as author George Alec Effinger imagines the young hero of Winsor McCay’s classic comic strip Little Nemo in Slumberland encountering the Endless. Fans of the “Collectors” story in The Sandman #14 will appreciate Will Shetterly’s “Splatter,” in which an acclaimed horror writer meets his frightening fans at a “cereal convention.”
Preoperative transsexual character Wanda, née Alvin, Mann, who appears in the Sandman story arc A Game of You, is featured in two stories. Caitlín R. Kiernan’s “Escape Artist” is a poignant view of Wanda’s upbringing in rural Kansas, while Robert Rodi’s “An Extra Smidgeon of Eternity” humorously shows the power of a compelling story.
The Dreaming and its denizens are also explored in various stories. Barbara Hambly’s “Each Damp Thing” features Sandman characters Cain and Abel, the Fashion Thing, the gargoyle Goldie, and Dream’s librarian, Lucien, among others. “The Mender of Broken Dreams” by Nancy A. Collins provides a fascinating glimpse of the Dreaming’s workforce, but also an interesting mystery with an affecting ending.
Two stories showcase the toy dreams of children. In Tad Williams’ “The Writer’s Child,” a young girl’s teddy bear pleads with Dream to save the girl from the dangerous sexual fantasies of her father. In Mark Kreighbaum’s “The Gate of Gold,” a girl’s doll risks everything to invoke Dream’s protection of the girl from her abusive father.
Both stories are powerful tales of dreams working to protect children from harmful adults. It should be noted that the anthology’s co-editor, Kramer, was later convicted as a child molester, and modern readers with this knowledge may feel disgust regarding Kramer’s involvement with Book of Dreams. A new 2022 edition of Book of Dreams lists Gaiman as editor on the cover, with no reference to Kramer.
The last story in Book of Dreams is one of its finest. In “Stopp’t-Clock Yard,” Hugo Award-winning fantasy author Susanna Clarke crafts a compelling story set in Restoration England, in which Dream is vexed by the charming, roguish conjuror John Paramore. The characters are well-written and faithful to previous depictions in Sandman, and readers will find this tale engrossing.
Although Book of Dreams is the first publication to explore the world of Sandman via prose fiction, it would not be the last. Three years later, DC published The Sandman: The Dream Hunters, a novella written by Gaiman, with illustrations by artist Yoshitaka Amano.
In 1997, Book of Dreams was a British Fantasy Award nominee for best anthology. But despite the book’s quality stories, its prominent contributors, and its significance as the first prose fiction to explore the Sandman narrative, there appears to be a lack of commentary about the anthology.
In The Sandman Companion: A Dreamer’s Guide to the Award-winning Comics Series, in a short paragraph, author Hy Bender judges the anthology as “far from great, but nonetheless offers an interesting look at Sandman in another medium.”
In its ten-page summary of The Sandman series, The Vertigo Encyclopedia devotes one sentence to the anthology: “The Sandman series also inspired The Sandman: Book of Dreams, a collection of prose short stories from SF and fantasy luminaries, with an afterword by singer-songwriter Tori Amos.”
Unlike other Sandman publications, Book of Dreams has been out of print for decades, with a new edition issued just this year. This new edition gives readers the opportunity to read quality stories written by great authors, and to discover the first prose fiction depicting the Sandman mythos.
NOTES AND FURTHER READING:
DISCLOSURE: As works published by DC Comics are referenced in the above article, it should be disclosed that the article’s author is a former DC Comics contributor. There are no current financial arrangements between the author and DC Comics.
The Sandman: Book of Dreams (edited by Neil Gaiman & Edward E. Kramer; HarperPrism, 1996). A new paperback edition was published in May 2022 by William Morrow. Kramer is not listed as a co-editor on the new edition’s cover.
British Fantasy Awards (1997) (https://www.sfadb.com/British_Fantasy_Awards_1997)
The Sandman: The Dream Hunters (written by Neil Gaiman, illustrated by Yoshitaka Amano; DC Comics, 1999)
The Sandman Companion: A Dreamer’s Guide to the Award-winning Comics Series (Hy Bender; DC Comics, 1999). In an interview with Bender, Gaiman acknowledges that Tori Amos was one source of inspiration, among others, for the look of Sandman character Delirium.
The Vertigo Encyclopedia (Alex Irvine; DK Publishing, 2008)
“Convicted sex offender, DragonCon co-founder Ed Kramer back in jail” (Isabel Hughes; Gwinnett Daily Post, February 26, 2019)
The Sandman: The Deluxe Edition Book Book Three (written by Neil Gaiman, art by Jill Thompson, Shawn McManus, et al.; DC Comics, 2021) — among other issues, this edition collects issues 32–37 (the A Game of You story arc in Sandman).
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