How to Talk to Girls at Parties Review: One of Gaiman’s Best

“How to Talk to Girls at Parties” sounds like any “how to” book for guys who need help getting gals. Surprise, it’s a short story written by Neil Gaiman. His short story has now been released as a comic book with art by Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá and it’s on par with Gaiman’s best.

Enn is an awkward teenager who has no luck with women. One day his friend, Vic, takes him to a party that has a ton of girls. Here he does manage to strike up a conversation with a few girls, but all of the girls come off as a bit too odd.

This story hits right home to those guys who failed at talking to girls and when they do it was super awkward. The only difference here is that there are other forces involved. Even with that, we see feel Enn’s frustration with the situation. He really does want to strike up a conversation, but things keep on interfering.

Now, the plot of a guy just talking to girls is a bit boring. Since this is Neil Gaiman, he has something weird in store and weird we get. From the very first conversation the reader becomes uncomfortable with what’s being said. All the girls are way too weird even for most guys. Finding out if what you think is the reason why these girls act like this is part of the mystery.

Of course, some people may take this as a story where nothing happens. While it is just a minor detail in what may be a bigger story, that’s not the point. The point is, to do some literary analysis, to show people who have it easy talking to the opposite sex what it’s like for those who aren’t so skilled. Gaiman does a perfect job here.

Moon and Ba do a fabulous job of drawing this comic. They did everything to make this comic look weird. From the not so normal way the characters look to the different colors and just the general hectic nature of it all the art brings out the story wonderfully. Some may criticize the art as too artsy, but there really is no other way to draw this comic.

“How to Talk to Girls at Parties” is a great weird story that does one job perfectly with art that will give anyone a trip. The big problem is that it leaves the reader wanting more. Maybe even a sequel or a full-length novel.