I don't normally read modern literature. It's not that I'm a snob, but my personal experience has not been pleasant, not to mention the fact that the classics more often than not come at a cheaper price. 
 I first read Gaiman when I was twenty-two, I think. It was Stardust, and I adored it. I've considered myself a fan ever since, but have put off reading anything else by him. That all changed a couple of days ago when I saw this at Powell's and thought it would be right up my wife's alley (I usually pick up something for her when I go book shopping). I leafed through it and found myself intrigued and sat down to read about half of it that day. Because of work and the holiday, I did not finish it as soon as I had planned, but once I did, I added all of Gaiman's books to my Amazon wish list. This was simply one of the best fairy tales I've read in a long time. I won't go into details because my wife follows me, and I don't want to spoil anything for her. I will say that the Hempstocks were the perfect encapsulation of the faerie concept. Just fantastic. Now I need a copy of my own.