Rating: 
Summary: amazing
Review: This is the first in a series of graphic novels that is, in my opinion, one of the most incredible stories written in the 20th century. I often tell people that reading the Sandman series changed me as a person because it made me re-think the limits of human creativity. That may sound over the top, but my god, in a series of about 75 comic books, Neil Gaiman created a new mythology, one that speaks to the modern, western world.
In this collection of the first eight comic books, Dream sets out to reclaim tools he lost during a 75 year captivity, and to rebuild his disintegrating kingdom. Though not my favorite story arc in the entire series, it is the beginning, and to fully appreciate the story it is definitely the place to start.
Rating:
Summary: Whatever you do, don't buy this book...
Review: ... at least not if you're only getting started in comics. I say this because the Sandman series is among the finest comics you will ever find.In fact, "comic" is too small a word. So is "graphic novel," which is most often used by adults who are trying not to feel silly about reading comics. Sandman is one of those rare comics that transcend the medium. This is no mere comic book. This is fiction, with artwork. This is visual storytelling, a modern descendent of humanity's earliest art forms. Don't let the "comic book" label fool you. This is a full-fledged book. The entire 10 volume Sandman series centers around Morpheus, the Dream King. One of The Endless, he is one of seven eternal beings who are the embodiments of abstracts. Dream's older sister Death makes an appearance in the final chapter in this volume. Other reviewers have criticized this volume for not being very representative of the series on the whole, and that is true. But this volume is a supremely important one becuase it lays the groundwork for everything that follows. Not only that, it's very entertaining in it's own right. Chapters like A Hope In Hell, The Sound of Her Wings, or 24 Hours are extraordinary examples of comics at their best. Any one of those stories makes this volume worth owning, but you get all three of them, plus five more chapters as well. If you already read comics, then by all means buy this book (and the other nine volumes, too). But if you're just getting started in comics, you should seriously think about starting somewhere else. Because once you've read Sandman, you're going to be spending a lot of time in a mostly fruitless search for more books that are as good as this series. Seriously. It's that good. 10 out of 10
Rating: 
Summary: The weakest of the Sandman series, but...
Review: ...even then that's saying a lot. A bad Sandman trade is still better than 90 percent of the drek that's being published today. I guess the reason that so many of us consider this the weakest of the lot is because we read it after we had read books such as "A Season of Mists" or "A Game of You" and we knew of the majesty, of the mythology and the granduer that this series was capable of.
But you can't fault the book on those grounds, since it is bascially a set up for the rest of the series. Reading "Preludes and Nocturnes" and then later volumes, you see just how much "Preludes" sets up. For example, in "A Season of Mists," Lucifer makes a very dire decision, one that would impact not only the Sandman series, but the DC Universe as a whole. Someone reading it without having read "Preludes" might be at a bit of a loss as to why Lucifier did what he did, but if you've read "Preludes," then you know why. If you started reading The Sandman with "Preludes" and wonder if gets any better, then let me tell you: boy does it ever.
Rating:
Summary: amazing story
Review: all in all the entire series is a masterpiece of masterpieces. there was so many great parts of each of the books. the first one just barely touched on the overwhelming collection. it also gives you a somewhat different feel to morpheus. the stories. the "24 hours" portion of the story was one of the most unusual and creative ways to show what a psycho would do with powers not of this world. the introduction of alot of people's favorite character death was a pleasant ending. the mythology gradually gets better as the series progresses, but it is great how they introduce the dream king as a prisoner due to rules made in the world of reality. this was the first serious graphic novel i read and i wish that the series would never end, but as it stands i am reading the books again because there is so much to put together.
Rating:
Summary: Disturbing, And Awesome!
Review: Gaiman's incredible Sandman series starts with this collection. While trying to capture the personification of Death (a tried and true fantasy convention) a magician captures instead the King of
Dreams, who remains his prisoner for seven decades until he (Dream) is finally given an opportunity to escape. Comic book conventions come into play at the beginning with guest appearances by John Constantine and Etrigan as Dream pursues his lost tools of office. But when Dream finally confronts the man,(a minor DC villain,Dr. Destiny)who possesses the last of these tools the series enters a different realm far from the typical comic book. Taking his lead from Alan Moore's work on Swamp Thing, Gaiman creates an atmosphere of real horror as Dr. Destiny warps the lives of a few unlucky diner patrons, driving them to madness before he is finally stopped by Dream. It is in the scenes at the diner Gamain's talent really comes to the forefront and you realize that this is no typical comic book experience. By showing the gradual destruction of these characters Gaiman give the reader a peak at what becomes the theme of the entire series; the power of dreams in our lives.
Rating: 
Summary: Good series, slow start
Review: I'm a late-comer to the Sandman series, but it's become one of my favorites. I read these collections of the original comics out of order, as I encounter them, and started with some of the later collections. That's why I found this Sandman such a surprise. I really didn't like it that much. I think it suffered from two big problems. First was a problem of the comics business: there's nearly no such thing as a new series. The big publishers, at least when Sandman first came out, felt the need to graft new characters onto old story lines, perhaps to spark initial sales. Sandman really didn't benefit from that surgery. Second and more understandable is that a new series, esp. something so different from DC's usual, needs a little time to find itself. The good news is that, by the end of this collection, the Sandman story line really did seem to come into its own. The last piece in this book, 'The Sound of Her Wings,' is the Sandman I've come to enjoy. I'm just worried that new readers might be disappointed by this book and not come back to the later, better work. This isn't bad by any means, it's just a fitful start to an exceptional series. After this, it just gets better.
Rating:
Summary: LET HIM COME INTO YOUR DREAMS
Review: So far I have read 1 to 6 in this series.And each time I have found a connection with my life.Each time I read ,I forget my existence in this world, find myself one of the dreams.Each time I learn something,I remember something,I dream something...
Neil is really good,he combines his knowledge of history,myths,art,language with his imagination so well.I like most of the comics,but this is special ,you can enjoy X-men or Spiderman,but you can never ever compare it with sandman.Let the lord of dreams welcome you.Let him come in to your dreams :)
Rating: 
Summary: Most Over-rated Comic Writer To Date.
Review: Trite, pointlessly inane stories written for folks too hip to read any other artist in the medium. Go read some Alan Moore or Mark Waid.
Rating:
Summary: When Dream and Day unite
Review: What happens when a group of mystics ensnare the King of Dreams and keep him imprisoned for over seventy years?
So begins Neil Gaiman's epic, sweeping vision that constitutes the Sandman series. The first book concerns itself with Morpheus's eventual escape and quest to find the accoutrements with which he used to rule his dream kingdom. This is no ordinary comic series; Gaiman brilliantly exploits the sequential art medium to provide us with provocative- and often disturbing- images that underline the thrust of the words. "24 Hours," for example, just wouldn't be the same if it was produced as your normal, everyday novel. Actually seeing, in Dr. Dee's eyes, the products of his warped fantasies in graphic form adds a layer to the narrative Gaiman wouldn't ordinarily have. And these are visual characters; Morpheus and the celebrated Death, with their Gothic, ultra cool look are so easily identifiable and indelibly imprint themselves in the reader's mind. Their visual representation also reinforces their uniqueness; Death's Ankh talisman, for example, perfectly enscapulates the paradoxical nature of the wearer, where death is a positive, life-affirming state.
Notwithstanding the consistent high quality quality of the art (I especially love that astounding, two-page image in "A Hope in Hell," where Dream, Lucifer, Azazel and Beezelbub stand atop a summit overlooking all of Hell's denizens, and Lucifer, with the slightest touch of humour, asks Morpheus if he can pick out the creature that stole his helm) and some very good stories("24 Hours" and "The Sound of Her Wings"), I can't help but get the impression that, as a whole, _Preludes_ is a forced effort. As Gaiman himself later acknowledged, and many are quick to critique, Gaiman's attempts at intertextuality fall flat. The bringing in of characters from other storylines (Cain and Abel, John Constantine, Scott Free, J'onn, etc.) gives the narrative a campy, tawdry look. It's a ridiculous marketing ploy that really robs the narrative of its uniqueness. Gaiman is at his best when the tenor of _Sandman_ matches that of its protagonist; dark, brooding, enigmatic. To Gaiman's credit, this "failed experiment" never went beyond _Preludes_ and helps to explain why subsequent titles are so much better than this one.
I think that it's necessary to start with this title, however. The summary of _Preludes_ at the beginning of _The Doll's House_ robs the reader of some important contextualizations and impressions that can only be made by actually reading the book. Despite its faults, _Preludes_ is better than 95% of graphic novels and comic books out there. And it only gets better....
Rating:
Summary: This Is Where It Begins and Also Ends For Some Comic Readers
Review: What I meant by the title of this review is simple:
You are either going to like this book or you're going to dislike this book.....there is NO inbetween here!
Anyway, back to my review. I have almost finished reading this book. I'm more than half way done, and I think I can form a valid opinion of this book as well as anyone who has read the entire book.
That being said, Preludes and Nocturnes' story revolves around Morpheus (aka the Sandman or Dream). Morpheus is a being called an Endless. He was once the ruler of the dream world until he was captured by a religious cult, which had all thought they captured one of his sisters, Death.
Sound confusing, well.....it gets better. Morpheus was imprisioned for an entire human lifetime, which is roughly 60 or 70 years. This imprisionment also has caused thousands of people to either die from staying awake or die by being in an eternal slumber. He finally finds a way out and escapes. The people who were asleep have finally awaken, but what Morpheus doesn't realize is that everything in his world has changed. He also realizes that he has to find his tools that gave him power, so he can get things back in order. The main storyline is the quest Morpheus goes on to get his tools back.
This is a very complex storyline, but it's great fun to read, and is really unlike any comic book you'll ever read. This book has sparked enough interest for me to buy two more books, and that doesn't happen too often. I once thought that nobody could come close to what Alan Moore did with "The Watchmen" or even what Frank Miller did with "Batman: The Dark Knight Returns," but I'm starting slowly realize that this Sandman series is coming pretty close.
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