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Summary: Strange Truths
Review: There are a couple of writers out there that have a tendency to twist your imaginations. They make you see the world in a way that while totally consistant with what you've seen so far, illuminates it in a totally different way. Kinda like standing in one place and looking west at Noon and Sunset. The landscape is the same but the picture is totally different.American Gods is a look at a country that doesn't believe in very much, or at least not for very long. It's a place that doesn't really believe in it's own past, forgetting it for the sake of convenience. It encompases the Melting Pot of America and the sad truth to what becomes of the beliefs brought over to this country. Neil Gaiman does a marvelous job mixing and matching the past, the legends and the truths that have made this country what it is. An all around excellent read. Highly Recommended.
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Summary: Engaging and Smart - But Not the Triumph that was Neverwhere
Review: Neil Gaiman has been on my list of "must-buys" since before his Sandman days. His writing style has always been right on target and his lyrical myths have fascinated me from the word go. American Gods is another step on his way of becoming a household name -- however, he veers off course late in the game and never seems to get back on track. The characters stick with you but not quite in the same way as Door or the Marquis de Carabas did in Neverwhere. As far as stories go, the two books couldn't be more dissimilar, but American Gods take a hard right into Stephen King territory about 200 pages in and never veers back into Gaimanland. All in all, it's an excellent book by an excellent author, but compared to his other works, it falls short -- Sorry. But a mediocre book for Gaiman is heads and tails above the greatest book by most anyone else. Buy it - Enjoy it - Read Stardust - Read Neverwhere - Be Happy.
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Summary: none
Review: "American Gods" is a superior achievement in fantasy. At once, vivid and surreal, intense and inventive, mythological and technological, bold and engrossing. Powerfully haunting and hypnotizing, "American Gods" is a novel that rips the cover off America, for a look seldom seen, rarely looked for, and the Gods that reside there in this much darker version of Kerouac's "On The Road", and Gaiman at his imaginative and storytelling best... Gary S. Potter Author/Poet
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Summary: A VERY ORIGINAL DARK FANTASY/HORROR NOVEL
Review: Storm has spent three years in prison, the only thing keeping him sane is the thought of returning home to his wife. Days before his release from prison, Storm learns his wife has been killed in an accident. Alone, Storm ventures back into the world with the goal of making a better life for himself.
On the plane ride to the funeral, Storm will meet the mysterious Mr. Wednesday. Striking up conversation, Wednesday proposes that Storm come work for him. Storm, not knowing what to think about Wednesday, refuses, but after serious thinking, he takes Wednesday's offer, even though he doesn't really know what the job entails.
As the two men begin their working relationship, Storm comes to realize, Wednesday is a man with a lot to hide, and his schemes will lead the two men on a cross country road trip that will have them come in contact with many twisted individuals... individuals with knowledge about Storm's past.
As Storm becomes deeper involved with We!dnesday, he will come to find out that his past won't die, and even his beloved wife had secrets.
Storm struggles to understand everything that has happened to him, and at the same time a war is being fought, and losing the war will change the world as we know it.
'American Gods' is a very hard novel to describe; at once it is road novel, while having gothic overtones. It is a mystery, with an offbeat cast of characters, that of which would be found in an Elmore Leonard novel, and still Neil Gaiman has maintained a fast-paced, entertaining read.
Although not for everyone, 'American Gods' succeeds on being a highly original, readable tale, one that is filled with myth, magic, and mystery that will hit the bestseller list's, and introduce Mr. Gaiman to a whole new audience.
A very enjoyable read.
Nick Gonnella
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Summary: I'll tell you what's really cool about this book.
Review: To be honest, I don't appreciate this book's story. It's not as cool as it's made out to look like. The gods are just a bunch of weird people who have a pointless war, and the twist at the end is the oh-my-god revelation it should be. Also, the development of the main character, Shadow, is rather poor. We're told practically nothing about what kind of person he is, so his actions, which waver between petty thug and big softy, are rarely understandable. He seems to drift from motivation to motivation without real reason. But, fortunately, as the book progresses, this starts to matters less and less. Anyway, the REAL cool thing about this book is Neil Gaiman. Yes, Neil Gaiman is the coolest part. Every now and again you get one of these moments. Interludes, flashbacks, and little side stories are what makes this book, and makes it GOOD. The story may be weak, but the storyTELLING is flawless, managing to keep you focused on the single central character and keep you interested in the world picture constructed. Gaiman has remained, in my mind, superior as a short story writer, and it's these short stories inside the larger that are the really well written bits. That's what's really cool about this book.
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Summary: Got me through a tough week
Review: Earlier this week, I got hit with an unpleasant medical diagnosis. Serious surgery involving sharp knives in proximity to my spinal cord looms in my near-future. None of the writers who normally distract me from my troubles were of any use: not Stephen King, not Jack Finney; Garrison Keillor and Bill Bryson couldn't get a smile out of me. And then, American Gods showed up. I'd quite forgotten I pre-ordered it. For the past two months, I have been in too much pain to sit for any length of time, but when the book came I sat right down and started reading. And was feeling no pain. Just my old pals, Awe and Wonder. That's the best thing I know to say about a book. It helped me through my pain. Thanks, Neil.
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Summary: A book like an onion-- layers and layers the further you go.
Review: American Gods is about, well, american gods. And american myths, and the infinite variety of people and places that "america" encompasses. This is also Neil Gaiman, so along the way there are significant coincidences, and coincidences-that-aren't, and coincidences-that-REALLY-aren't, and plot twists that seem meaningless at the time but suddenly slot into place so seamlessly that you can't see how you missed the significance the first time around. Misdirection is a major theme of the book, from Shadow's coin tricks to Wednesday's con games and beyond-- another characteristic of America (and of course gods). And then just when you think Gaiman's exhausted his bag of tricks, the epilogue (set outside of the U.S.) throws a whole new light on the events of the book. If there's a problem with American Gods, it's that you'll have to read it three or four times to get everything-- and it will be a different book each time.
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Summary: Mythological Magic
Review: I read this book in 24 hours flat. I felt bad doing it too since I know it took Neil two years to write it...but how could I help myself? The story was engaging and the writing brilliant. In fact, I plan to read it again this weekend just to make sure I didn't miss anything the first time. Fans of Gaiman's other work will not be disappointed -- this is his largest body of work since The Sandman series. In fact, American Gods may just be the ticket to hooking friends and family members who are too jaded to read comic books. I have a literary pantheon of gods, and Neil is definitely one of the top deities.
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Summary: FANTASTIC!!!
Review: It all seems so simple:A man gets out of prison, only to find out that the one ray of hope that's kept him going is not going to be there when he gets out. But simple this story ain't! This book is a journey through America through the eyes of Neil Gaiman:The Master who gave us The Sandman. When reading this book, keep this in mind:Don't let any detail pass you by. Things have a way of relating to each other as the story progresses. I'm going to leave it at that, because to say any more would spoil the surprise...
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Summary: American Gods, simply wonderful.
Review: A story for those who want a story, rather than just a plot. Gaiman creates worlds and characters that are familiar, slightly off, and far more engaging than the "normal." As always with Gaiman, there is more than meets the eye and more than most would ever care to point out - thank heavens he thinks to let the rest of us in on his secrets. Gaiman fans will certainly love 'American Gods', as would fans of English humor, David Lynch, Chris Carter, and Penn and Teller. If you're unfamiliar with Gaiman's work, this is an excellent starting place.
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