Rating: 
Summary: Ho-hum or Blah, take your pick.
Review: AMERICAN GODS wasn't a really bad book. It was just bad in a plain sort of way. Built on an interesting, if not new, theory, it started out strong, but didn't have the gas to bring it home. Midway through the book, I found myself alternately bored, tired and disinterested. I sighed a lot. It was hard to finish.I suspect Gaiman threw all the pieces and characters together with no real ties to bind them. Many, if not most, of the characters had no real purpose except to provide clever dialogue. I counted thirty-six pages of what were essentially short stories places throughout the book. Only one of them had a character that showed up again'only to be run down by a limo. Throughout the book Gaiman builds our expectations of a great war between the old gods and the new. The storm is coming, is constantly repeated. The Storm Is Coming. And when the storm finally comes, nothing much happens. It's like a balloon that goes whooopthpthpth, instead of POP! And it's not so much that the war never happened, as it was the way it never happened. Gaiman pulls the proverbial rabbit of his hat. And it's a stupid-looking rabbit, too. Ho-hum ... or blah. I don't know which. I might have given it 2 stars if it were shorter, but I'm mad because of all the time wasted.
Rating:
Summary: How did this book win a Hugo?
Review: I picked up this book on the recommendation from a friend who raved about it. Sorry, but I don't see the appeal. The first couple of chapters were interesting, but then the book just petered out and become dull. I usually read books fairly quickly, but I found little motivation to return to this story. I forced myself to finish the book only to see if it was ever going somewhere. Sadly, it did not. Just when I thought Gaiman was going somewhere with the plot, he would consistently muse about nothing. Must have been very slim pickings for the judges to have picked this one for a Hugo.
Rating: 
Summary: Dark, Scarry and Unbelievebly good
Review: Simply put this was one of the BEST books that ive ever read. The premise is inspired and Gaiman pulls it off butifully. Simply a must read.
Rating:
Summary: Not my cup of tea
Review: As a teacher I should have known better but my impulse to buy and read got the better of me. I have to agree with a previous reviewer who said the writing is clumsy and the characters are skeletel, ie 1 dimensional. Scenes were thrown together nonsensically at times. Gaiman adds 2 sex scenes to the book just so they are there - they add no value and serve no purpose to the story whatsowever. I guess they are meant to shock. Without those two scenes however the book might have been approriate reading for my middle school readers - it is written at that level.
Rating: 
Summary: proof of the advent of illiteracy
Review: I love the premise, but the writing here is clumsy. The characters are all skeletons--the cool hippie hitchiker, the small town old man who talks in shaggy-dog tale stories, the drunken irishman. It almost seems like Gaiman is unintentionally spoofing himself. And the characters break so far out of character that it made me want to throw the book away on several occaisions. Example: "Lives are like snowflakes--forming patterns we have seen before, as like on another as peas in a pod (and have you ever looked at peas in a pod? I mean, really LOOKED at them? There's not a chance you'd mistake one for another, after a minute's close inspection)..." The voice is that of Ibis, but the parenthetical statement here sounds like Gaiman himself. I find it hard to believe that Ibis, a god who writes the stories of all living beings, would either use italics (capitalized above as "LOOKED"), or ask the reader such a casual question. Stephen King, maybe. A god, no. I find it very hard to believe that American reading public has overlooked Gaiman's poor skills as a writer in deference to his very interesting premise. But it seems they have. If you like Everybody loves Raymond, Khakis with Pleats, and McGriddles then buy this book. If you have slightly higher standards then skip it. It is trash, pure and simple, and not even the good kind.
Rating: 
Summary: All-American Fun
Review: This is an enjoyable book that crosses back and forth over the line between reality and "this couldn't possibly be true...but is." The cultural observations are astute if not acerbic and the "gods" with their ordinaryness and powers are excellently. The author excels in sustaining suspicion throughout the novel as we wonder if what we dare think could be true really is. This is a tale that shimmers just beneath the surface where most of the action lies. The only problem is the main character. He never becomes as real as the other characters, perhaps due to his utterly boring persona. Still, the story of Americans who just happened to be ancient gods who play scrabble, bowl and argue is captivating. The earth-shaking finale has parallels with many others - Buffy the Vampire, Mortal Combat, X-Men - all, by the way, as American as apple pie.
Rating:
Summary: Simply great
Review: Many people will overlook this book only because it is in the fantasy genre section of the store or library. And they will miss a lot. With many fantastic elements and a fantastic plot premise, the book rightly belongs there, but it is also great fiction. As the main character Shadow is getting out of prison, he suddenly finds himself the assistant of a strange man, surrounded by strange associates. His boss, Wednesday, is mobilizing his associates for a fight against the modern idols. Struggle for power, love, betrayal, loyalty--the book has everything. Many reviewers compared American Gods to Terry Pratchett's Small Gods. And obviously Gaiman and Pratchett have cooperated onm the book (Pratchett is mentioned in the acknowledgements). However, what the book reminded me a lot of is The Master and Margarita, another great novel about religion, love and man's mission.
Rating:
Summary: Original, Nice Execution, Quirky Writing
Review: This is an enjoyable book that crosses back and forth over the line between reality and "this couldn't possibly be true...but is." The cultural observations are astute if not acerbic and the "gods" with their ordinaryness and powers are excellently. The author excels in sustaining suspicion throughout the novel as we wonder if what we dare think could be true really is. This is a tale that shimmers just beneath the surface where most of the action lies. The only problem is the main character. He never becomes as real as the other characters, perhaps due to his utterly boring persona. Still, the story of Americans who just happened to be ancient gods who play scrabble, bowl and argue is captivating. The earth-shaking finale has parallels with many others - Buffy the Vampire, Mortal Combat, X-Men - all, by the way, as American as apple pie.
Rating:
Summary: One of the better books I have read..........
Review: This book will not disappoint, I great novel overall. As in most of Neil Gaiman's novel He doesnt give everything up until the end. (I hate reading a novel and know the ending by chapter 4) Some aspects were completely hidden until the end. If you liked neverwhere you will love this! Very addictive, I wanted to finish it just so I could move on with my life. Definately a book you wont put down!!!!!!
Rating:
Summary: For me, a lesson that everything in fiction isn't equal.
Review: American Gods is a seminal novel. It's importance to me as a reader and a writer is indescribable; reading it, I realized that everything in fiction hasn't been done, that even while exploring explored themes new things can be uncovered. It's a (literally) magical trip through America, an unforgettable, funny, touching novel that weighs much more than its volume would indicate. I never read novels twice; I feel that it's a waste of time I could be using to read a new novel, to create the feeling of reading a new great work rather than rehash a feeling I've already had. I will read American Gods several times more, I think. It's that good. Gaiman's other work is good as well, but this is THAT good, the kind of good you only find in brief snippets. Except this one's a few hundred pages worth.
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