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When one looks in the box, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the cat.

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In honor of National Poetry Month, we are pleased to present “House,” an original poem by Neil Gaiman acquired for Tor.com by consulting editor Ellen Datlow—originally published on the site on April 2, 2013.

Tor.com is celebrating National Poetry Month by featuring science fiction and fantasy poetry from a variety of SFF authors. You’ll find classic works, hidden gems, and new commissions over at the Poetry Month index.

“House”

Sometimes I think it’s like I live in a big giant head on a hilltop
made of papier mache, a big giant head of my own head.
I polish the eyes which would be windows, or
mow the lawn, I mean this is my house we’re talking about here
even if it is a big giant papier mache head that looks just like mine.
And people who go past
in cars or buses or see the house the head on the hill from trains
they think the house is me.
I’ll be sleeping there, or polishing the eyes, or weeding the lawn,
but no-one will see me, no-one would look.
And no-one would ever come. And if I waved no-one even knows it was me waving.
They’d all be looking in the wrong place, at the head on the hill.

I can see your house from here.

“House” copyright © 2013 Neil Gaiman
Art copyright © 2013 Allen Williams

About the Author

About Author Mobile

Neil Gaiman

Author

Neil Gaiman is the bestselling author of DC's comic series Sandman; two books of short fiction, Smoke and Mirrors and Fragile Things; and several novels, including Neverwhere, Anansi Boys, the Mythopoeic Award-winning Stardust, and the awards-list punctuation minefield that is the Hugo, Nebula, Bram Stoker, SFW, and Locus Award-winning and World Fantasy and Minnesota Book Award-nominated American Gods.

For younger readers, he's written Coraline and the Newbury Award-winning The Graveyard Book, and for parents who like reading to their future readers, The Day I Swapped My Dad for Two Goldfish, The Wolves in the Walls, and Blueberry Girl.

Born and raised in England, Neil now lives in Minnesota.

Wikipedia | Author Page | Goodreads

 

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