I attest that Mr Gaiman has a problem with endings in books. They tend to be the weakest part of his writing as far as I'm concerned. Does anyone agree.

I think you mean "weak" endings. Well, IMHO, they are good in that bittersweet anticlimatic sort of way which may not be some people's cup of tea but I think is totally appropriate.

I love the Endings best, they make me think of something I learned in a dream and then forgot and now I'm reading it and learning it again.

I aggree with you on this one robbiez, the reason is that for the most part, Neil always ends his stories in the same sort of way. The main character in some way, shape or form ends up a lil' screwed, or the ending is kind of lacking in some respects. And yes i know that you cant always have a happy ending to a story. But that doesnt mean there always has to be a sad one either.

Actually, I don't think Neil finishes everything the same way.

SPOILER WARNING. (Although if you don't want spoilers, why the hell are you reading a topic about endings?)

The ending to Stardust is that, after his quest is over, the protagonist (can't remember if he was Tristan or if that was his father) realises that he doesn't really belong in our world at all. Sad/melancholy? Not really. He goes off, with the star, his love, and they explore the realm of Faerie before returning to the castle where he is King. Yes, he dies, and yes, his wife mourns... but I like that ending. I like the idea that Stardust, a fairy story, doesn't just end with 'Happily Ever After.' It doesn't end on a particularly bad down-note. The point is, he was happy for many years with his wife.
Neverwhere doesn't end with Richard having made a change for the worse, wither. He too realises that he can't go back to the way things were, that his life in London Above is boring and that he was truly LIVING when with Door and the Marquis de Carabas. It ends on an upnote: full of hope for the future, that Richard's starting a brand new life in a place away from the boring security of his desk job and upper-class fiancée.
American Gods is a modern myth. Shadow is half-god, and we're left with the idea that he's going to be journeying around, finding out his heritage and learning anew. Sure, his wife died. But the point is transition. From the bad to a new experience. It doesn't end with sadness, it ends with hope.
Sandman could well be titled 'The Tragedy of Morpheus', but we wonder how things will turn out for everyone. Morpheus had been struggling for the entire series to come to terms with how changed he was, and could not. In dying, he achieved release, and Daniel will be much more suited to the role. The other Endless, when talking before he enters the room, are saying how they will treat him openly and not be close-minded (except Desire, but Desire's... well, Desire's Desire.) Lyta Hall is pardoned by Daniel. Alex Burgess wakes up from his torment. Hob Gadling has a conversation with Death that helps him sort things through in his mind. Sandman might not be a return to the status quo, but it's a happy ending.

Besides, is the journey not as important as the destination?

-SLASH-

MAJOR SPOILER BELOW (sorry) *********

Neil always seems to go for the quiet ending. I knew this when I started American Gods, so obviously I guessed that the predicted war between the gods wasn't going to happen.
Nevertheless, when it didn't happen I felt a bit cheated. "Dammit!" I wanted to say "Just once can't he give us a big battle scene to end with?"

But if Neil's endings ARE too weak (and I'm not saying they are, mind) how would you have done them instead?

[This message has been edited by Worldsend (edited 04-08-2002).]

MAJOR SPOILER ABOVE***********************