Book Review: American Gods, by Neil Gaiman

Ragnarok, American style.



William Morrow, 2001, 480 pages

Publisher's Description:

Released from prison, Shadow finds his world turned upside down. His wife has been killed; a mysterious stranger offers him a job. But Mr. Wednesday, who knows more about Shadow than is possible, warns that a storm is coming -- a battle for the very soul of America . . . and they are in its direct path.

One of the most talked-about books of the new millennium, American Gods is a kaleidoscopic journey deep into myth and across an American landscape at once eerily familiar and utterly alien. It is, quite simply, a contemporary masterpiece.

( American Gods is as wide as North America and as deep as a two-lane highway. )

Verdict: I was expecting/hoping to love it, but I merely liked it; American Gods failed to recapture the epic sense of wonder of Gaiman's Sandman, and I wanted to kick the protagonist hard. Nonetheless, this treatment of gods in a contemporary American setting has flashes of brilliance, a few funny bits (also some skeevy bits) and a page-turning quality that made me glad I read it, but not hankering for a sequel as I would have had it lived up to expectations. Recommended for Gaiman fans and mythology buffs, and given all the accolades this book has received, my criticisms are probably very much of the YMMV variety.

Also by Neil Gaiman: My review of The Dream Hunters.

Book Review: American Gods, by Neil Gaiman

Ragnarok, American style.



William Morrow, 2001, 480 pages

Publisher's Description:

Released from prison, Shadow finds his world turned upside down. His wife has been killed; a mysterious stranger offers him a job. But Mr. Wednesday, who knows more about Shadow than is possible, warns that a storm is coming -- a battle for the very soul of America . . . and they are in its direct path.

One of the most talked-about books of the new millennium, American Gods is a kaleidoscopic journey deep into myth and across an American landscape at once eerily familiar and utterly alien. It is, quite simply, a contemporary masterpiece.

( American Gods is as wide as North America and as deep as a two-lane highway. )

Verdict: I was expecting/hoping to love it, but I merely liked it; American Gods failed to recapture the epic sense of wonder of Gaiman's Sandman, and I wanted to kick the protagonist hard. Nonetheless, this treatment of gods in a contemporary American setting has flashes of brilliance, a few funny bits (also some skeevy bits) and a page-turning quality that made me glad I read it, but not hankering for a sequel as I would have had it lived up to expectations. Recommended for Gaiman fans and mythology buffs, and given all the accolades this book has received, my criticisms are probably very much of the YMMV variety.

Also by Neil Gaiman: My review of The Dream Hunters.