Rating: 
Summary: Gaiman just gets better...
Review: In American Gods, Neil Gaiman continues to write what he does best--adult fairytales about the monsters, spirits and deities that hide in the corner of modern civilization. From the world dreams to the London subway system, he explores the various anthropomorphic facets of human existence with elegance and a dry wit.This time out, his playground is the United States of America. Like many of his tales, the protagonists are on a quest, but end up travelling farther in their own psyches than in the physical(?) world. In this case, atop the backdrop of a divine conflict--the old gods and demons immigrants brought to the American continent versus the new gods of money and telecommunications--Shadow comes to terms with who he is. I found this to be right up there with his other novel, Neverwhere, and probably surpassing that one in originality of concepts.
Rating:
Summary: a modern master storyteller
Review: well, if you want comic books ask neil, if you want screenplays ask neil, if you want short srories ask neil, if you want...you get the idea. a storyteller in every sense of the word, neil writes stories in whatever form the muse tells him to, and everyone of them is brillant in their own way. this one is perhaps his longest, aside from the sandman books. It is also one of his best. the characters are alive (even the dead ones) on the page. it is just plain good. read it and change your world view a bit.
Rating: 
Summary: More cheese than WI...
Review: I would have loved to give this a much higher rating. However, I was completely disappointed by the plot. Gaiman had a great idea going and could have done much better. Most of the "twists" turned out to taken from daytime soap operas. I guess the first red flag was when (and, trust me, I'm not giving away any of the plot here) Laura came back from the dead... And our main character was not even remotely suprised. Really now. I felt the characters were devoid of all... um... character... extremely flat. However, the idea behind the book was great. I just wish Gaiman made up his mind on wheather or not this was going to be humorous or serious (would have been much more enjoyable if he didn't try to be so serious). If you were disappointed as I was with this book, try Good Omens.
Rating:
Summary: '...a good place for men, but a bad place for gods'
Review: following in the same vain as his recent neverwhere, gaiman tackles similar themes on a grander scale.
neverwhere dealt with isolated legends of london, and their basis in actuality. how human perceptions miss what is within our grasps. american gods paints with large strokes, across the canvas of the usa. the reader follows shadow, a recently released convict, on a long strange trip through the powerful places of the country. his traveling companion, and new employer, is wednesday, a man who is more than he seems. the gods are real. gaiman has researched his material well, and inserts a hard sci-fi feel, to a more fantasy oriented narrative. there are gods from wherever people have come to america from. there are new gods that developed here. a storm brews between factions...the old gods, are dying, from being forgotten, and are on the verge of being replaced by newer gods, such as television, automobiles, wireless devices... shadow is still unsure of his role in all of this, and is brought through a number of interesting places...most of them visitable to the rest of us. gaiman does a wonderful job making this book readable. (yes, it is long...about as long as any other 608 page book, so don't complain about that) gaimans wit is inserted all through the book, creating a work which cuts between poingance, and hilarity within pages of itself. plot lines are entwined, new twists are added, and things do eventually resolve. the gods are real...
Rating: 
Summary: A Good Read
Review: And it was. A really good read. Yes it lacked characterization of the "new" gods, but the gist of the plot really didn't have anything to do with their personalities. Or even the personalities of the "old" gods for that matter. This wasn't a novel written for characters. It was written, like so many of Gaimans books, for the moral idea. It was a novel about how people's beliefs take form if they're strong enough, how society and life causes those beliefs to change and die, and how people casted off where they came from for where they went to. The war wasn't about a clash of gods, but a clash of ideals. And how one man gets to walk the path between the two. I understand several people didn't like the book. They felt it was contrived, lacked character development, that the plot was rushed, and the ending unfulfilling. (But don't you find the final chapter interesting to say the least?) For the what the book was meant to be about (ala Gullivers Travels), a reflection of the loss of native spirituality for the modern convinieces, I thought Gaiman did an admirable job. I would recommend this book to anyone who isn't into just reading for a fun story, but wants something to make them think as well.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: Gaiman is an intriguing talent. While the ideas which drive his writing remain inventive and interesting, his ability to capitalize on these ideas is lacking. This results in books which appear interesting in brief plot reviews and back covers, but are unsatisfying when read as books. American Gods suffers from poor characterizations, bad dialogue, and ideas which are never explored past the superficiality of the back cover. Indeed, the main plot consists mainly of creating a world which could be fairly interesting, but then spending the latter half of the book destroying it with slapdash plotting. The poor plotting makes it seem as though Gaiman was merely trying to get the book out on time by throwing things into the book and resolving any problems by deus ex machina. On the other hand, I found one of the subplots to be fairly compelling. In all, though American Gods is full of ideas which could be interesting if explored, this book never reaches its potential.
Rating:
Summary: Very disappointing
Review: I was very much looking forward to reading this book because I really enjoyed Neverwhere. The premise and beginning of American Gods were great but the second half was terrible. The "plot twist" and climax were very poorly thought out and not interesting in the least. It seems like Gaiman got tired of writing this book half way through and just scribbled down some nonsense to finish it. I'll think twice before reading another of his books.
Rating: 
Summary: The Domino's pizza of literature
Review: Large, apparently full of interesting bits, but ultimately completely unsatisfying. I was left with the feeling that I shouldn't have bothered, and would ultimately regret my decision to indulge.
An enormous disappointment after Gaiman's previous excellent "Neverwhere" Avoid
Rating:
Summary: A mess of mythic proportions
Review: Neil Gaiman's "American Gods" is a skewed, surreal and ultimately disappointing revival of the American Road Trip novel. Gaiman's writing is evocative enough to drag the reader from chapter to chapter, and he builds tension nicely, promising the reader a finale that will not only explain the thin-as-dishwater plot, but also resolve the dangling plot points he scatters along the way. In the end, Gaiman seems in a hurry to close the book, and rushes through conclusions quickly, dismissing a few as he goes.
The author does a nice job of introducing the "gods" of old into the modern American scene, but fails miserably to give any characterization to the "new" gods, and that comes off as a complete injustice to the reader. After all, the story is building to a climatic battle between the two forces, and yet the reader is not allowed a clear view of the purpose or intent of the "new" gods.
Some will find this novel brilliantly plotted and clever. I found it thin, weak in characterization, and lacking a satisfying conclusion. I skimmed the last 75 pages to finish book, and regret the impulse buy that made me pick it up in the first place.
Rating:
Summary: Unclear...but good..... :)
Review: I am still not sure whether I liked this book, I need to think about it some more, but right now my opinion is wavering toward "yes". This was my second reading, but it was almost like my first since I read it one year ago and I forgot many things. There is definitely a lot to digest here; it is impossible to pick up everything your first time through. I think that it helps to have a knowledge of mythology--the more the better, and not just Greek mythology. It encompasses Norse, Egyptian, some Eastern European mythology. Having read this book, I now want to learn more about the subject. American Gods is an interesting portrait of America, at times dark, at times humorous, but always clearly written and I would recommend it. Note that there is some adult material here.
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