American Gods

Rating:
Summary: Could Not Stop Reading....
Review: I loved this book. I read so many books that end up being so similar to each other in one way or another. This book just shattered that problem and did so within two pages. I have not had the pleasure of reading any of Mr. Gaiman's other books, so this was a first for me. A wonderful first. I will be purchasing all of his books in short order. Although, I may just sit back and read this one again, just to enjoy the ride one more time.

Rating:
Summary: Darkly Disturbing and Thought Provoking
Review: After serving three years in jail, Shadow's sentence is almost up. He is looking forward to returning to his old life: his wife, his best friend, and the job he has waiting for him in his old hometown. Suddenly his world is turned upside down. He is released several days early into a mind numbly void world, not at all the happy life he had expected. A chance meeting (or is it chance?) with the mysterious Mr. Wednesday sees him gainfully employed against his will, in a position he has learned to fill over the years all too well - driver, occasional heavy, companion. And why not? Everything else in his life is gone: wife, friend, job, and normalcy.

What Shadow does not realize is that he is now working for one of our oldest deities. These deities, these Gods, walk amongst us, live amongst us, and tragically, die amongst us. Their existence is the result of what people have imagined and believed since the beginnings of time. It is the old chicken and the egg paradox - which came first. People or Gods?

In American Gods there is a war coming, a war between the old gods and the new. A war which spurs a road-trip across America, delving deep into the myths and legends of this relatively new world. A war whose prize will be the "very soul of America." A war fought by those clinging to the last staunchly believing souls who keep them alive, and those who harbour the favor of almost all of humanity in our present time. To complicate matters, Shadow is not sure whose side he is on, much less, what he is expected to do.

Shadow learns much as he traverses the land with Mr. Wednesday, both from Mr. Wednesday and from Mr. Wednesday's odd friends. He learns as well from his own chance encounters. He learns about himself and about the world around him. The secrets, which were once carefully hidden from him, begin to come to take shape, and Shadow is left with a far greater understanding of the universe and his place within that universe. He learns of secrets that hurt, and of secrets that heal. However, Shadow's personal journey is perhaps the darkest one of all, and there is no help along the way.

Neil has provided me with the most thought provoking reading experience I think I have ever had. It has forever changed the way I look at things, how I perceive the world around me. Surely, there is room for all of these gods in our world? After all, we are the ones who created them. As is to be expected from Neil, this is a darkly disturbing work, which will hold you captive until you have reached the end of the book, and far beyond. This story will crawl into your subconscious and arouse thoughts you never before have entertained, and may never again. The characters are very strong and believable. They will live on in your memory long after you put the book down. The plot flows along smoothly and unconstrained, sweeping you up and over the waterfall you had no warning was awaiting you.

Review Originally Posted at LinearReflections.com

Rating:
Summary: A Grimm-ly modern fairy tale
Review: Like some twisted offspring of William S. Burroughs and Tom Robbins, Neil Gaiman takes the dark soul of america and lays it under the microscope. Our national fears are examined with the dispassionate care of a mortician sifting through the debris of a tragic accident. Echoes of Jim Thompson and G.K. Chesterton follow these spiritual grifters and wounded innocents down the highways and byways, past the roadside attractions all the way to the center of america. A dark yearning for a vanished purity that was only ever achieved by washing in the blood of innocents, and whose stain can only be covered with more sacrifice forms the animating principle of this powerful work.

Yes, our forefathers were genocidal (...), what of it, do you think that because you are rich and comfortable that you can escape the guilt as well? This book is the crawling worm-track of the american soul, if you want to understand this countries darkest nightmares and pettiest fears, read this book.