Review of “Troll Bridge” by Neil Gaiman
You can read the story for free here or buy the graphic novel here.
Neil Gaiman is a prolific author that spans multiple mediums of storytelling, from comic books, to novels, to television and short stories. A popular writer in the pop culture fandom, I personally have not read anything by Gaiman, until I read this story. Known for writing amazing science fiction and fantasy worlds, I was surprised by the realistic nature of this short story that is a twist on fairy tales.
Troll Bridge is a short story about a boy who encounters a troll, and convinces the troll to spare his life until he is older. When the boy returns as a teenager and encounters the troll, he convinces him yet again to spare his life until he is older. It's not until the man returns after having his wife leave him, that he allows the troll to take his life. The twist is that the troll does not kill the man, but merely steals his life, and the man becomes the troll under the bridge.
The story is set in a small village surrounded by fields and woods. There used to be a train station, with a railroad passing through the town. The setting reflects the growth that the man goes through in his life. As a child the village was small, with older building and the woods were wild and vast. As he grows older, more and more of the fields and woods were removed and newer houses built up the town. This change reflects the loss of innocence in the man. As a child, he still had the rest of his life to live. As a teenager he thought he was in love, but faced with the troll he offered up that love, and realized he could not love her. As an adult who had lost his wife because he committed adultery, he realizes that he is not that small boy anymore who had his whole life ahead of him.
Other than the troll, there are no other elements of fantasy. Instead focuses on the modern world, being built up around this magic troll bridge. Troll Bridge is an interesting take on the fairy-tale genre. It deals with certain themes of fairy-tales, such as tricking a troll, making choices that affect your life, the idea of youth having infinite potential and the old being wasted. There is a good line from the troll, that feels like a fairy-tale. The troll says: “Trolls can smell the rainbows, trolls can smell the stars”... “Trolls can smell the dreams you dreamed before you were ever born.” This stands out more, knowing that the troll is passed from person to person.
Another recurring element is the rocks that the man picks up along the side of the railway tracks. I assumed maybe they were coal, but I don't know if coal has a rainbow sheen. If it is coal, then the metaphor could be that they once had a purpose to fuel the steam engine, but have been used up and discarded, no longer of value. That could be a metaphor applied to the man's life. That's my best guess, otherwise I'm not sure what the strange rocks are, or represent.
This is a delightful yet disturbing modern fairy tale to read. I read it in print, but it was published as a picture book, or graphic novel. I can only imagine how the images could help tell the story. I don't know if I'll be reading anymore stories by Neil Gaiman, but now I have a sample of his work, I'm intrigued. If you are someone who enjoys fairy tales or short fantasy stories, give this one a read.
Starting this Friday I'll be diving into the wizarding world of Harry Potter reviewing all 7 books and other stories from the PotterVerse, such as Fantastic Beasts (not the screenplay) and The Tales of Beedle the Bard. So stay tuned to the blog for new posts every week until Christmas! Thanks for reading and be sure to follow the blog on social media for all the updates.
If you like to read stories on WattPad, then you're in luck! Because I have recently posted some short stories on WattPad! Get ready for Halloween by reading my spooky/thriller inspired stories.
No comments:
Post a Comment