Rating: 
Summary: An intriguing concoction that never truly gels
Review: Neil Gaiman's "American Gods", an intentionally oxymoronic title, is about the impending battle between the old gods (pick your poison: Odin, Loki, Vishnu, etc.) and the "new" (junk culture: TV, advertising, gambling, etc.). Stuck in the middle waiting to find out his destiny is a mortal man named Shadow. Soon to be released from jail, Shadow looks forward to a reunion with his wife Laura. Sadly, this reunion is not to be (or, it is not to be in the way Shadow envisions it). Shadow, stricken by grief, is thus enlisted in a battle, one that may decide the fate of the world, by a mysterious man named Wednesday.Similar thematic territory was covered, with much more panache and verve, by Douglas Adams ("The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul") and by Neil's "Good Omens" writing partner, Terry Pratchett ("Small Gods"). Both books took a sidelong glance at the subject of modern deities and found an awful lot of humour there. Gaiman treats his subject with solemnity, and to my mind this is one of the reasons why the book suffers. Fortunately, the story begins with a dramatic bang. Gaiman sets up his characters well, and then proceeds to create the universe in which they will live. He never betrays the beginning, but at times he lets the narrative (or, to describe it more accurately, the loose assemblage of scenes) get away from him. "I feel like I'm in a world with its own sense of logic. It's own rules," Shadow notes at one point early on. "I'm just going along with it, you know?" This is true, and it begins as a wonderful creation in Gaiman's hands. But later Shadow becomes more frustrated with the direction his life has taken: "Nobody tells me what [the rules] are. You keep talking about the goddamn rules, I don't even know what game you people are playing." This kind of frustration seeps into the reader's thoughts as well. Gaiman takes great care in hiding his motivations from both his character and his audience. You keep expecting a payoff, where the rules are explained, at least implicitly. But that rarely happens, and when it does it is quite unsatisfactory. He also neglects to assemble a unifying narrative. What we have, instead, is an extended version of 'variations on a theme'. Shadow's adventures, although different and interesting every time, still follow the same basic formula. It becomes tiresome after a while. And what narrative it does have goes on for far too long. "Not only are there no happy endings," someone says near the end, "there aren't even any endings." Too true in this case. Further complicating things is the fact that this book has both an epilogue and a postscript. Gaiman may not have wanted to leave the world he's created, but the reader can't wait for it to finally be over. All that being said, there are moments here that carry a tremendous amount of stark weight. One scene, at an odd boarding house, has Shadow losing a game of checkers only to face a frightening punishment: a sledgehammer to the head. Thankfully, he's able to put it off. Or is he? Later, we see Shadow in a moment of extreme sacrifice. Gaiman's descriptions of the broken man's thoughts in this chapter are heartbreaking, and believably authentic. The scenes in Lakeside, a small-town safe haven, if taken on their own (with some obvious re-working) might have made a wonderful self-contained short story. I just wish that Gaiman had found a way to string these events together in a unifying manner. Out of nowhere, you find Shadow talking to Lucille Ball, as Lucy Ricardo, on an old black-and-white TV. Or, apropos of nothing, Gaiman's narrator barges in to admit to the fictionality of the story he is telling: "None of this can actually be happening. If it makes you more comfortable, you could simply think of it as a metaphor." These are all great bits of writing, but they don't fit together to make a cohesive whole. "American Gods", for me, is a very frustrating read, for just these reasons. It has boundless potential, but at every turn Gaiman fails to reach the high levels he's aiming for. It makes for a powerful work, one that's often boring, at times quite frustrating, but in moments quite exhilarating. At nearly 600 pages, anything is going to be hit or miss. I was just hoping for a few more hits from Gaiman, a writer I've admired in the past. I admire him here, too. I just didn't enjoy him that much.
Rating: 
Summary: Literature of the Gods
Review: Having read Neil Gaiman's Sandman graphic novel series, along with his novels _Stardust_ and _Neverwhere_, how could I resist snatching _American Gods_ from the library shelf the moment I spotted it? Of course I couldn't. And now that I've stayed up far, far too late for two nights in a row to finish this dark and lingering masterpiece, I'm ready to say without reservation that it's thus far my favorite of all Gaiman's text novel-format works. This is truly an ambitious story: like Sandman, it deals with issues vital to humanity, and though the natures of religion and belief are its gist it's by no means limited only to those things. It prompts one to consider what it really means to be alive, what price people might be willing to pay for peace in a chaotic world, whether anything in life is truly what it seems... and despite a number of historical (or faux-historical) anecdotes told as asides to the main story, it never really takes on the tone of a lecture. Gaiman's art and skill keep the novel compelling and alive, and it can be appreciated both as a philosophical text and as a sheerly entertaining work of modern fantasy. Its size may also work in its favor. While I've enjoyed the other Gaiman novels I've read, neither of them seemed quite as epic or grand as the Sandman series--of course, neither of them were likely meant to. _American Gods_ isn't quite on Sandman's scale, but it has a very satisfying sense of depth and weight to it. Its conclusion was relatively satisfying and for once didn't leave me wishing Gaiman had gone just a little while longer. I would absolutely recommend this book, particularly to those who've read and enjoyed Sandman; however, familiarity with that unrelated series is by no means necessary to understand _American Gods_. I feel obliged to caution, however, that it does contain scenes with explicit sex, explicit gore, and occasionally explicit disgustingness. Though such passages generally contribute to the atmosphere of the novel and serve the purpose of the plot, those who are particularly repelled by such things might wish to choose a different Gaiman tale.
Rating: 
Summary: Doesn't draw reader in
Review: The basic flaw of this book was that the inherent disinterest that the protaganist, Shadow, has in the events happening around him gives the reader the impression that this aren't really amazing events and sho There's a plethora of fascinating characters in this book, but there's no glue that binds the whole story together because the main character doesn't give a damn about anything. I was more interested in when the clunker was going to fall through the ice than anything else. If the protaganist doesn't find interest in anything else in the book, why should I?
Rating:
Summary: Rich, Clever, Captivating
Review: Neil Gaimon has interested me since I first bumped into him as co-author (with Terry Pratchett) of Good Omens. I awaited this novel with a great deal of anticipation.
It was nothing at all that I expected and a great deal more. Rich with cultural references, mythology, symbol, and signifiers, the novel doesn't just hold your attention. It grabs you by the frontal lobes and shouts PAY ATTENTION! Do. If you blink you'll miss something vital.
His prose is like a blending of Sherman Alexie and Terry Pratchett with a dash of Douglas Adams, but make no mistakes: Gaimon is anything but an imitator. What many authors waste 200 pages on he snaps into being with a turn of phrase or a seemingly casual reference.
I loved the landmine references to various mythologies. The characters are rich, well developed, and different. His understanding of America and Americans was a delightful surprise. READ IT!
Rating: 
Summary: Would have been an interesting short story....
Review: I think Gaiman's story concept was interesting, but lacked real character development, and the flow of the story was mired in clunky plot twists. Had this been written as a short story it could have potentially held my interest, but as a novel? I couldn't even finish it. Why was Shadow never surprised, shocked, or at all emotional in response to the numerous surreal circumstances he encountered? I never felt engaged me in the story... who the hell cares what happens to Shadow?
Rating:
Summary: I know you're not supposed to do this...
Review: ...but I had never read Gaiman before and judged this book on the cover (and, of course, the excerpt I read here). Needless to say, the cliche was wrong! Putting aside all bells and whistles, this book was wonderful. Even if you don't necessarily enjoy it, you'll find something to enjoy in this novel. I heartly recommend "American Gods" to anyone who enjoys the English language, as Mr. Gaiman has a wonderful command over it. The only problem with this book is finding a prominent enough space on my bookshelf for it.
Rating:
Summary: Road Side Attraction Masterpiece
Review: Gaiman pulls off a near perfect mixture of American road-trip, kitch, mythology, and fascinating characterization in this novel. This book is witty with a wry sensability and above all a really likeable character who just happens to be an ex-con on-the-run who really just wants to be left alone. I loved this book and can't wait to read other Gaiman novels.
Rating: 
Summary: Not that it wasn't great...
Review: Don't get me wrong. American Gods was a GREAT BOOK, the like of which has been seldom seen for the last decade. I don't doubt that it shall spawn a few graphic novels, a film, several volumes of short stories by other major authors in that field, etc. But, when you get right down to it, I didn't like it as much as most of Gaiman's other works. It wasn't as dark or as fantastic as Neverwhere, it lacked the atomic punch of most of his better short stories, like Snow, Glass, Apples or Murder Mysteries, and it didn't really have the mythological intricacy of the Sandman series. I suppose that this is because there wasn't enough TIME in which to develop the story as it deserved to be developed. So many little storylines seemed broken off. Others were just completely unneccesary. Overall, I just got the impression that this might have worked a bit better if it was done as a series, or as a couple of graphic novels. (Imagine the illustration of the scene where all those dieties gather!) Still, it was written by Gaiman, and and he is unquestionably the master of modern mythology. So...enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Fantastic
Review: I read a lot of books, but still it is rare to come across a gem as fine as this one. Even as a longtime Gaiman fan, I was impressed with how good American Gods turned out to be. Mr. Gaiman has proven once again his deserved reputation as a master craftsman in the art of storytelling. To say I couldn't put this book down is a pale and inadequate compliment. To experience American Gods felt less like reading a book, than stumbling across a canteen of pure, cold water when dying of thirst in the desert - I gulped it down in great, greedy gulps, and at the end felt satisfied, yet still craved for more. I heartily recommend this book to anyone who feels that storytelling is a kind of magic, who enjoys exploring the dark side of good things and the good side of dark things, and who, on top of all that, wants a rollicking good read. Thank you, Mr. Gaiman.
Rating:
Summary: Better Than Stephen King?
Review: Even though American Gods contains sections which are a bit clumsy, and some of the plot twists are not too well-handled, I can't help but give five stars to such an inventive, complex piece of dark fantasy. The cliches of "page-turner" and "believable characters" really apply here, and Gaiman is to be congratulated on doing such a good job with such a huge task. The "historical sections" are absolutely mesmerizing and show us that, despite his flaws, Gaiman really is a born storyteller. If his next novel is better than this one, Mr. King's career is over!
|
