The Day I Swapped My Dad for Two Goldfish
words by Neil Gaiman, Pictures by Dave McKean
HarperCollins, $17.99, ISBN: 0060587016
reviewed by Barry Hunter

Here we have what is cleverly disguised as a child’s picture book or primer but turns out to be that and more for the child in all of us. It’s a colorful, fun volume with the classic Gaiman and McKean touches that distinguish them from the normal story tellers.

Nathan comes over with his bowl of goldfish and our main character tries to trade toys for the goldfish, but the only thing Nathan will take is "Dad". Since all he seems to do is sit around reading the paper, it seems like a good trade. When Mother gets home and finds out what happened, she sends our main character and his sister to retrieve "Dad". This leads to some other interesting trades that must be undone in order to get "Dad" back.

While not as cerebral as Gaiman’s Sandman, it is a good read for the adults and will be a good bedtime story for the little ones. This edition comes with a cd of the story read by Gaiman which would make for a wonderful way to enjoy the book on a car trip. Be on the look out for this new edition of a classic. A special note to the dad’s and grand-dads, don’t pass up a chance to read this to the little ones, I can’t think of a better time to spend with them.