Neil Gaiman made his name writing
the Sandman series for Vertigo comics through most of the '90s. That
series followed the adventures of Morpheus, the god of dreams, and wove
together a wide variety of myths and legends to create a really fascinating
setting for some innovative-yet-archetypal storytelling. Gaiman continued
along the same lines with his novels, and he really broke through with this,
his fifth, which dominated the major sf awards (and helped start the trend of
fantasy's dominance in the '00s).
Gaiman usually comes off as the
quintessential Brit in his writing, but he moved to the US (actually to my current neck of the woods) before this
novel. Perhaps as a result, American Gods actually feels a lot like good
Stephen King to me. Gaiman's works are usually about normal people thrust
into magical worlds and given a destiny (In King's works, the people are a bit
more blue collar, and they're less likely to get a destiny and more likely just
to be trying to survive). In American Gods, the central character is a
Minnesotan named Shadow, who begins the novel in prison. His wife dies,
leading to a slightly early release, and Shadow ends up employed as the
bodyguard of a strange man named Wednesday. From Wednesday, Shadow
learns that gods are real, but they are created by human beliefs - America is overcrowded
with gods because of its immigrant past, and the gods from the Norse, Greek,
Hindu, and Egyptian pantheons (among others) must compete with modern
technology for their survival. Shadow has all sorts of surreal encounters
with these beings (both friend and foe) and most of them are extremely
interesting. There are also a few very nice twists along the way (the
best twists are the sort that make you exclaim "of course!" but that
you still never see coming - the identity of the central villain here fits that
description perfectly).
Gaiman does dodge Christianity for the most part, which seems odd considering the book's conceit and the nature of faith in the United States. I don't particularly blame him for dodging that can of worms, but it could have added another layer to the novel.
So, it's a fun novel, and just
enough of a departure from his previous work to explain (and, I'd say, to
warrant) his sudden wide recognition and mainstream success. Neverwhere
is my personal favorite, but I'd still recommend American Gods first,
especially to a fellow American. Great stuff, and a worthy winner from
the fantasy side of the tracks.
Grade: A-
Hejsa!
ReplyDeleteI have know idea why this would be. But when I view your blog through google reader, some of the words blend together:
"So, it's a fun novel, and justenough of a departure from his previous work to explain (and, I'd say, towarrant) his sudden wide recognition and mainstream success. Neverwhereis my personal favorite, but I'd still recommend American Gods first,especially to a fellow American. Great stuff, and a worthy winner fromthe fantasy side of the tracks."
Maybe I fixed it? If not, I'm stumped.
ReplyDeleteI should know better than to cut/paste from Office.
Thanks for pointing out the problem, and thanks for reading! Let me know if it keeps happening.