Neil Gaiman on Colbert Report

Here's Neil Gaiman on the Colbert Report last night, talking about his excellent YA novel, The Graveyard Book -- a retelling of The Jungle Book with ghosts instead of jungle animals.

Neil Gaiman On The Colbert Report, March 16, 2009. (Thanks, David!)

Previously:

I write books. My latest is a YA science fiction novel called Homeland (it's the sequel to Little Brother). More books: Rapture of the Nerds (a novel, with Charlie Stross); With a Little Help (short stories); and The Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow (novella and nonfic). I speak all over the place and I tweet and tumble, too.

MORE: Book • Happy Mutants • Kids

More at Boing Boing

Eurovision 2013: An American in London

The technology that links taxonomy and Star Trek

kc0bbq

Even Colbert reciting Tom Bombadil poetry didn’t make it at all worth hearing.

And why did he know it? He shouldn’t be admitting to something as low as reading. That’s like a cornerstone of the character.
toyg

Gaiman For Teh Win, as usual. Man might be a scientologist or whatever, but he’s simply the coolest person on earth.

(Now I wish Art Spiegelman would really do “F**k it, we’re all going to die”!)
Teresa Nielsen Hayden / Community Manager

We are not going to host a debate about Scientology itself. We are also not going to swap rumors about Neil Gaiman’s upbringing, personal finances, religious beliefs, or marital status.

It’s okay to say that Lorraine Garland is fabulous. That’s an objective fact.

5alo, Skullivan, Raj, Anonymous: I’m sorry about your vanished comments. I had to prune way back to get rid of the opportunistic infection.
adonai

Oh, that was awesome. NG went toe-to-toe with Stephen for a result of massive win :)
eustace

WoWz! Colbert throwing fast, fast pitches – and Gaiman hit every one out of the park. What a treat.
Stefan Jones

#19: ” . . was kicked out of Scientology . . .”

You might say that he was thrown clear.
Jimbo2K7

His father just died a few days ago.
Wonder if Colbert knew that?
noen

I saw this and thought it was pretty funny. Just goes to show how an intelligent person can hold their own where others fear to tread.
bililoquy

It was a bit strange seeing the two geek icons in one place.

I’m just relieved they didn’t turn their combined power to evil: those guys have enough cumulative fanpower to launch an orbital death ray. Toss the Whedonites in the mix and they could take the world in a few hours.
mdh

I wish that were five minutes longer.
hexcalibur

Stefan Jones, you are my new favourite person.
Daemon

Gaiman. Always awsome. Always.
Colbert gets bonus points for bringing up Lovecraft.
FoetusNail

GARMT, my wife read the book without realizing the connection too, and she’s glad she didn’t. She thinks it would have been too distracting.
Takuan

http://www.easypedia.gr/el/images/shared/6/6a/She-wolf_suckles_Romulus_and_Remus.jpg
misshallelujah

GARMT, I read the book and when I got to the last couple of chapters or so, I thought, “Heh, this reminds me a bit of the Jungle Book.” And then about a couple of minutes later… “OH WAIT.”

I think it’s actually written somewhere in the back in the acknowledgements… or he acknowledges Rudyard Kipling. Can’t remember which.

(Also, thanks to BB for this post. Gaiman + Colbert? Two of my favorite things in one post? And quoting Tolkien at each other? GEEK FACTOR OVERLOAD.)
Anonymous

Clip on colbertnation.com, since the youtube link is broken.
Anonymous

You left out the top of the show, where Colbert said he believed the book about a boy being raised by ghosts was “the tragic sequel to ‘Hop on Pop.’”
Garmt

OK. I feel just _too stupid_. I got the book as a present, read it, enjoyed it, as I have done with most of his books, and then I read this:

a retelling of The Jungle Book

and realised that I HAD NOT REALISED THIS.

Please, someone, absolve me from the notion of being the least insightful person in history by sharing your equal uninsightfullness. If that is even a word!
chezzo

brilliant!
Anonymous

Witty and graceful as usual. I adore Gaiman.
John Hudgens

I love how Neil almost gets Colbert to break character when he brings up “Fuqq It, We’re All Going to Die” from the segement a few weeks ago…
rikchik

What’s the over-under on “F**k it, We’re All Going To Die” by Stephen Colbert with art by Art Spiegelman actually being published within the next 2 years? I feel like there’s at least a 50% chance.
Adam_

Colbert showed his geek when talking about Tolkien. Awesome!
wylkyn

Thank God someone is finally mentioning this great struggling author. I’d hate to see his genius wither in obscurity! Nice find!
Architexas

This post made my day! I just read Graveyard a couple of days ago (after which I immediately went to the store and bought Coraline, which, admittedly, scared the ever-loving bejeezus out of me) and it was incredible. It’s good to know that Gaiman’s interview didn’t let me down as to how brilliant I imagined he’d be!