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The Sandman Vol. 1: Preludes and Nocturnes | 
| Author: Neil Gaiman
Creators: Sam Kieth, Mike Dringenberg, Malcolm Jones Iii
Publisher: Vertigo
Category: Book
List Price: $19.99
Buy Used: $7.96
You Save: $12.03 (60%)
New (39) Used (33) Collectible (4) from $7.96
Rating:  129 reviews
Sales Rank: 4521
Media: Paperback
Edition: Pap/Cdr
Pages: 240
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 10 x 6.6 x 0.6
ISBN: 1563890119
Dewey Decimal Number: 741.5973
EAN: 9781563890116
ASIN: 1563890119
Publication Date: December 7, 1993
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Graphic novel with color and black and white plates. Discoloration on the top corner of the first 10 pages. Ships from Pennsylvania. International shipping available.
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com Review
"Wake up, sir. We're here." It's a simple enough opening line--although not many would have guessed back in 1991 that this would lead to one of the most popular and critically acclaimed comics of the second half of the century. In Preludes and Nocturnes, Neil Gaiman weaves the story of a man interested in capturing the physical manifestation of Death but who instead captures the King of Dreams. By Gaiman's own admission there's a lot in this first collection that is awkward and ungainly--which is not to say there are not frequent moments of greatness here. The chapter "24 Hours" is worth the price of the book alone; it stands as one of the most chilling examples of horror in comics. And let's not underestimate Gaiman's achievement of personifying Death as a perky, overly cheery, cute goth girl! All in all, I greatly prefer the roguish breaking of new ground in this book to the often dull precision of the concluding volumes of the Sandman series. --Jim Pascoe
Product Description
"Wake up, sir. We're here." It's a simple enough opening line--althoughnot many would have guessed back in 1991 thatthis would lead to one of the most popular and critically acclaimed comics of the second half of the century.In Preludes and Nocturnes, Neil Gaiman weaves the story of a man interested in capturing the physical manifestation of Death but who instead captures the King of Dreams. By Gaiman's own admission there's a lot in this first collection that is awkward and ungainly--which is not to say there are not frequent moments of greatness here. The chapter "24 Hours" is worth the price of the book alone; it stands as one of the most chilling examples of horror in comics. And let's not underestimate Gaiman's achievement of personifying Death as a perky, overly cheery, cute goth girl! All in all, I greatly prefer the roguish breaking of new ground in this book to the often dull precision of the concluding volumes of the Sandman series. --Jim Pascoe
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| Customer Reviews: Read 124 more reviews...
 5 Reason for 5 Stars September 18, 2008
James Nichol (West Fargo, ND)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This piece of fiction is one of my favorites of any genre, not just graphic novels or comics. Sandman is compelling and original in its characters especially in the way Neil Gaiman weaves myth and traditions into an unfolding scene. There are very few books I can read or movies I watch were I can't either predict what will happen next or predict the end. With Sandman Preludes I couldn't predict anything and it was great to be taken on a trip with dream.
Which brings me to the five reasons for 5 stars:
1) The showdown in between Chorozone, the High Duke of the Eighth Circle and the Dreamlord. This was a very, very interesting twist on the old "shoot out at the OK coral." I loved it.
2) The reaction John Constantine has to Dream and then their working together to find dust in the second quest. Very original.
3) Mr Burgess, the occult leader, wants to control death. (who doesn't) He ends up failing and ends up unintentionally bringing a sleep sickness onto the world. This is a twist in storytelling I hadn't seen before.
4) The return of Doctor Destiny, is very interesting. But be warned this is an extremely dark and disturbing place. He has the finally element the Dreamlord seeks to restore order and it gets all screwed up.
5) How weirdly indifferent, yet human the main character and his sister are. Even though they are not humans you will recognize them and their compassion, however, that side is juxtaposed against cold, unfeeling or maybe unknowing side of inhumanity. In the final chapter you meet her, the one none of us what to meet. Death.
This is not just a light reading comic book, this is a dark graphic novel. You get taken on a trip, an adventure worthy of a vivid Dreamlord. It has some humor but I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone feeling dark already.
The art work, ink colors and backgrounds are all fantastic and only serve to enhance the story. This is a great graphic novel!
 Great foundation for what appears to be an epic story. August 21, 2008
Steven P. Samuels (New Rochelle, NY)
After delving back into comics and graphic novels from a 15 year hiatus, I embarked on a quest to find books that would suit a mature reader in his 20s and lo and behold this is such a book! I had read the overwhelmingly positive reviews left for "Preludes and Nocturnes" and decide to give it a go, and boy am I glad I did! I have to say when I opened the book initially I was a bit put off by the art style but after going through the first two issues in the book I began to appreciate the beauty of the style because it suits the story so well.
As far as the story it is quite compelling for the most part but a couple aren't so exciting. My personal favorite stories are the ones involving the character, Dr. Destiny which are truly a twisted set of tales! I also really enjoyed how Gaiman (the writer) seamlessly intertwines several different mythologies together such as judeo-christian and some Dante and Milton stuff...very interesting. I am eagerly awaiting the arrival of the 2nd and 3rd volume of the series if they can capitalize on the great foundations left by "Preludes and Nocturnes" then I'll be hooked! Definitely pick this up if you like fantasy or literature!
Review for Volumes 1, 2 & 3 August 20, 2008
B.L.Morgan (Pacific Northwest)
Blood and Rain
Blood for the Masses
As originally published by SavageNight E-zine
The Sandman: Preludes & Nocturnes, Volume 1
The Sandman: The Dolls House, Volume 2
The Sandman: Dream Country, Volume 3
Written by
Neil Gaiman
Illustrated by
Sam Keith, Mike Drinzenberg, Malcolm Jones III, Chris Buchalo, Michael Zulli, Steve Parkhouse, Charles Vess, Colleen Doran
Reviewed By
B.L.Morgan
5 Stars
After reading Sandman 1, 2 & 3, I am now officially a fan of Neil Gaiman. I don't usually like to be a fan of anyone. Gaiman is an exception. he proved to me in these volumes that comic books can be elevated to a fine art form through inventive storytelling and dialogue that is both poetic and a perfect fit to the scene and action taking place.
The artwork in all three volumes was extremely consistent considering how many different artists work was on display. The illustration style reminded me of the Creepy and Eerie magazine that I grew up loving in the 1970's. One thing that was extremely impressive were the proportions of the people and creatures in these books. There were none of the enormous [...] for every female and huge muscles for every male that we see in most comic books. These people looked realistic. And whenever there were animals from the real world in a story, they looked like they came from the real world.
This gave the stories a lot of extra sting when something happened to that character. It's like when Spiderman gets knocked through a wall. Well, you see all those muscles and figure, if I was built like that, that wouldn't hurt me all that much.
But when you see The Sandman in the first story, looking all skinny and scrawny, locked up in a glass cage that he's been in for decades, you feel sorry for him. That's because he looks human. He looks like one of us.
The first book: Preludes And Nocturnes, tells us how The Sandman got to be who he is. It tells of how he lost all his magical powers and how he regained them. It was very interesting, very good reading.
The second book: The Dolls House, takes us farther into the mythos of who The Sandman is and how at different times he's affected history. A few of the stories do not directly feature The Sandman, but they are really fine stories anyway.
The third book: The Dream Country, takes the series in directions that no one can see coming. Some are set in the modern day. Others are in medieval Europe. One is even told through the eyes of a cat. All the stories are thought provoking.
If you've never read any of The Sandman books I'd highly recommend you find one and take a look. Neil Gaiman is a master storyteller. Let his Sandman take you on a guided tour through the Dark Land of Dreams.
LOVE August 3, 2008
Elizabeth M. Nieves (Miami, Florida)
I love the Sandman series. All of them are clever and well written. the art is beautiful... there's not just very much wrong with this series.
 Not quite what I expected July 18, 2008
J. D. Mason (Stillwater, OK)
After reading some reviews and being told this was in the Pantheon of graphic novelizations, I figured I would give it a shot.
I think what I have learned is that I like the idea of graphic novels, but when push comes to shove, I prefer to actually read a good book instead.
This collection (Vol 1) is OK, but I just couldn't justify spending close to $100 to get all of the rest of these and read the whole thing.
Thus, this review is a warning to those in my shoes who aren't familiar with the concept. Don't buy all of them at once... Get one, then decide.
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