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!
Rating:
Summary: Best book I have read this year
Review: I think I'm not prone to hype anything and I've used the 5 stars sparsely in the past, but I can't understand the negative reviews I found here. I haven't been a particular rabid fan of Mr Gaiman in the past, actually not having read the Sandman comics, but I loved Good Omens. I tried his two fairy tales and these were the ones that felt not as imaginative as one could have hoped for. American Gods, on the other hand, is an epic novel of wonderful proportions. Anyone with an interest in fantastic, mystic stories and all fans of classic Americana should love it. I especially loved the way not everything is explained here, how small hints are given out, understandable maybe only to people from a certain culture (Hinzelman comes to mind). I sure didn't understand everything, but then again, I'm quite sure I wasn't supposed to. It's a book I longed to finish, the book I looked most forward to return to of all the books I read this year which have been plenty. The kind of book for which you will your daily travel to work to be just a bit longer. So what if the main premise is clearly lifted from Terry Pratchett's Small Gods, so what if I could have done without a few detours (some Coming to America parts). Overall this is a wonderful, a great, imaginative and sometimes very funny (loved the I Love Lucy scene) book, the kind of book for which Amazon's review system has been (or shoud have been)invented, to celebrate it. Do yourself a favor. Read it.
Rating:
Summary: Where Else Can I Put My General Rant?
Review: Okay, I have to say that I have indeed read this book, am a dedicated Gaiman fan, and thought it was excellent. Now on to what I really want to talk about. I don't understand how anyone can rate any book as 1 star. Maybe they put so much into their reading that they expect a ton out of it, but I find that I learn something from everything I read (even if it's what not to do in a book). Maybe it's because I can read over 1000 pages in a day (I have read all of the Wheel Of Time books in a day each), but I don't understand how "fluff" is a bad thing. I've read a great number of the "classics" and liked a few of them (Crime and Punishment is still one of my favorite books) but I think that people who only read classics are missing out on a lot of things. The only books I can say I truly disliked were the Sword of Truth series after Wizard's First Rule (which is one of my favorite books - go figure). While I may may gotten tired of some books (and who isn't tired of Drizzt books or The Wheel Of Time?) that doesn't make them bad. You wouldn't think being an English major I would think this way, since they teach you to hate everything but the classics and "serious" fiction, still, I can't give up on my love of reading. While I admit some books may be more age appropriate that others (Xanth good at 10, poor at 20) I think most good books can be appreciated at most any age, differently each time. Forgive me my rambling, it's 4:30 AM and I'm just frustrated at reading 1 star reviews of good books. I realize this is terribly written, but I can't really edit to well in this little window, and these thoughts were only half-formed when I sat down to write. I apologize.
Rating:
Summary: Gaiman does it again...
Review: There are very few contemporary novelists that are capable of creating such imaginative parallel worlds as Neil Gaiman. His ability to interweave gods, faeries, and other-worldy creatures into modern life is unparalleled. We saw this in Stardust and in his Sandman series of comic books and we see it again in American Gods. This story plays out like a dream... you find yourself wandering through the American landscape with the Gods brought here by our immigrating and exploring ancestors. The characters are well-developed and the plot twist is virtually unexpected (though close, contemplative readers may disagree with me on that point). I devoured this novel 100 pages at a time and came out on the other side of it with a greater interest in mythology and American cultural history than I had before. Still thinking about the story, over a week later. Definitely signs of a good novel. I won't give away too much more about the story, suffice to say that if you're a fan of Gaiman or the fantasy genre that he inhabits, you're bound to enjoy this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Boring as King in his worst moments
Review: I can't remember another time I got so bored reading a book. I don't know why Gaiman had to try to be "as good as Stephen King or your money back". I wish it were true, the "money back" part.. Remember "Insomnia"? "American gods" is just as boring. The story just never grips you: in the first 150 pages (the total length of some masterpieces) NOTHING happens, absolutely nothing, nada! I don't think I'll buy Gaiman again in the future. And BTW "Neverwhere" was not bad at all!
Rating: 
Summary: Too depressing, with an anticlimactic ending
Review: I really like Neil Gaiman. However, I think he was trying too hard to write a Big Literary Novel with this one, and lost some of his usual touch of enchantment along the way. Mostly, this is a depressing novel. The humans are jerks to each other, the gods are jerks to the humans and to each other. I won't summarize the plot, since the editorial review covers that. I'll just say that this book, while well-written and occasionally funny, is essentially made up of gloom-n-doom punctuated by cruelty and violence. I read chapter after chapter of misery, and then reached the anticlimactic ending. In addition, the gods don't, for the most part, seem very *magical*. That seems to be the point--they've been reduced to almost human lows--but I guess I expected more mystery and magic out of a story about the wars among the gods. Zorya Vechernaya, the lady of the Evening Star, is an exception--her character just oozes the mystery lacking in many of the others. Another good touch is the small town in which Shadow lives during the story; its surface placidity and dark secrets are wonderfully done. Overall, though, this is a very well-written book, but leaves you with a very "down" feeling.
Rating:
Summary: Travelling Mythology
Review: One way to describe this novel would be to list the ingredients that went in the recipe. Here they are: 1) Throw in a good chunk of Joseph Campbell, 2) Stir in a good measure of Ann Rice, 3) Spice up and mix the whole lot with some Jack Kerouac, and 4)Add Neil Gaiman's special sauce and let it marinate. Cook it and serve steaming hot.
Rating:
Summary: Imaginative and intriguing - Gaiman is a storyteller!
Review: Neil Gaiman's AMERICAN GODS is a first-rate yarn, a tall tale in the tradition of the best American mythology. It is a paradoxical, creative journey of revelation and self-discovery. AMERICAN GODS' main character, Shadow, is swept into a conflict raging between gods who moved to America with their worshippers and were promptly forgotten. Apparently, gods do not do well in America, finding it difficult to inspire worship and sacrifice in a land so diverse and filled with such rich blessings and horrible curses. As Shadow interacts with the gods, he travels the country and deals with his own past, his dead-yet-walking wife, and future prospects that seem uncertain at best. If this were, as some have suggested, an exercise of an over-active imagination, I would have been much less appreciative of this novel. However, the wandering storyline of this novel was, for me, one of its most appealing aspects. As Shadow is a rambler, so is this story - the best American mythology does the same, moving about this vast country and discovering riches in the most unlikely places. I think that, rather than being unfocused, AMERICAN GODS is in fact a reflection of America as seen from an outsider's viewpoint (Gaiman is British-born). As the center of the story begins to shift (and that shift is one of the most unexpected pleasures of the book), readers will, I believe, appreciate Gaiman's gifts as a writer: seamless integration of research into interesting plotlines, with vibrant character development to boot. A word to readers: THIS IS NOT REALLY FANTASY/SCIENCE FICTION. At least, it is not F/SF in the vein of Asimov or the Pern series, where technology or fantasy drive the story. AMERICAN GODS is, in my opinion, fiction, plain and simple, with some elements of F/SF thrown in. I would compare it to the works of Orson Scott Card or Ray Bradbury's longer stories and novels. Neil Gaiman, I think, will continue to be a major voice in literature, if AMERICAN GODS is any indication of the quality of his writing and his creative vision.
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