Review Detail

Being lactose intolerant, I’ve never gone gaga over anything focused on milk. Neil Gaiman’s “Fortunately, the Milk,” however, is the best time I’ve ever had reading about dairy products!

“Fortunately, the Milk” follows a caring father as he heads to the corner market to get his kids some milk for their cereal. The trip takes a bit longer than expected, however, as he’s abducted by aliens and then sent through the space-time continuum, resulting in time traveling adventures featuring an academic stegosaurus, hungry piranhas, and an ancient tribal deity. The milk keeps this father companion throughout his journey, and does way more than just wet his kids’ breakfast.

Despite being an outrageously quick read, “Fortunately, the Milk” does not skimp on fun. The story is so outlandish and pokes fun at multiple different genres. Gaiman finds the stereotypes of all these genres, makes a quick joke or comment, and moves on to the next, leaving you cracking up with each turn of the page. With angsty undead teens, aliens bent on world domination, and belligerent pirates who’ve never heard of a plank, the jokes abound. The random nature of this tale keeps you guessing what genre will come next, and each nonsensical genre twist leaves you wondering how in the time-traveling universe this could all come together and ultimately make sense. Gaiman doesn’t disappoint and finds a way to tie the craziness together, making this zany trip through time worthwhile. For all my lactose intolerant brethren out there, this “Milk” definitely doesn’t cause indigestion.