"Neverwhere" by Neil Gaiman (published 2009)

"Neverwhere" is the first book I've read by Neil Gaiman and I thoroughly enjoyed following the main character, Richard Mayhew: a guy down on his luck a billion times over due to his naivety and weirdly optimistic nihilism (perhaps a more sufficient term would be: apathy). Admittedly, Gaiman's style is decidedly not literary (IMHO - at least not here), and I think "Neverwhere" could undoubtedly pass for a teen or YA novel. I couldn't tick off more than one star for that complaint, though. Part of that is because Richard is a genuinely special character. His whole problem within this story - which I found extremely relatable - is that he cannot seem to accept the fact that his old life, his "normal" life, his previous "reality" has been taken from him because of a chance meeting. His choice, to basically help a dying creature on the streets of London (her name is Door, I believe she's an elf), completely changes his entire notion of the world, opening it into a larger, more violent, more menacing, and dangerous place. But also more... just more. Than before. 

Richard kind of reminds me of an English version of The Matrix's "Neo". Except rather than taking the blue or the red pill, he decides to forgo the options completely and run away. But running away in "Neverwhere" is never quite fully possible. Richard ends up in London Below, where he meets criminal rat-looking men who have zero morals, an Elvish girl with a lot of family baggage, and an evil angel who wants to unlock Heaven but is in no way deserving of going there. He goes through tunnels of darkness which tend to steal away those who cannot handle their memories, a magical market that sells odd foods, trinkets, and gadgets, and still more places where water tastes like diamonds and wine like crystal elixirs. 

What I loved about following Richard is that he, like me, is not really sure about what is happening to him, around him, and with him, but continues on the journey anyway, kind of aimlessly following these really unique characters simply because he has nothing else to do, nowhere else to go, and nobody else to be with. And he ends up caring for them in a really nonchalant, yet still passionate, way that turns out to be kind of admirable. He is completely detached yet completely present. Have a psychologist read this book and I'm sure he'd be diagnosed with all kinds of symptoms. 

What I loved about the turn of the events in the story (which I still have no idea or clue as to what is actually going on except that a lot of it is ridiculously funny) is this: Richard finally decides to accept his version of reality, twisted and as unbelievable as it may be, as the one he must experience and be a part of. There are plenty of beautifully weird moments within this book (Richard holding and comforting Door in a dirty subway as she falls asleep drunkenly, or, Richard's reaction to the Velvet creature named Lamia who tries to seduce him, or, Richard realizing that he may in fact just be hallucinating everything while he actually lives as a dirty, scummy homeless man to everyone else) which make it a worthwhile read. The ultimate way to describe this book would be to say this: it is a story about those who end up surrendering completely to a narrative that they have no control over. It is about those who decide to take action, as small or large as those actions may be, as a defensive counteraction to the loss of all hope, and ultimately, to save all the sanity (however crazy) there is left to live for.