Neil Gaiman's American Gods
The idea behind American Gods isn't as inventive as we're used to with Gaiman. Gods are real, and they are more dependant on us than we are on them. They exist solely because we believe they do. Their health, well-being, strenght, and influence, are based entirely on how many people believe in them.
This is not a new concept. I Think that's what the new season of Stargate is about.
However, the real Gaiman Touch comes in how the story unfolds over this backdrop.
An ex-con who calls himself "Shadow" is hired to be an everyday thug for a man calling himself "Mr. Wednesday." It's no surprise to the reader that Mr. Wednesday is in fact a god. An old god that nobody beleives in anymore.
Wednesday takes Shadow around the country with him to try and rally the forces of all the old gods. African and Native American animal spirits, Norse Gods, European faeries...basically everybody but Jesus and Bhudda.
Wednesday seems to think that war is at hand. Old forgotten gods versus the new, more powerful gods that wish to solidify their place in the American faith. Not Jehova, or Krishna, or whoever the hell the Latter Day Saints are. No, Wednesday and Shadow are rallying against the new gods of Media, Technology, Highways, Fast Food, Automobiles, etc.
Most of the story is a bit satiracal, such as introducing you to a pair of washed up Egyptian Gods of death as a pair of aging morticians in a small midwestern town, or presenting the God of Technology as a fat teenager.
The climax of the story (the war) is not as one would expect right away. It is not an epic battle that shakes the earth to it's core. In fact, it is little more than a whisper on the wind. But that whisper is what makes the story.
I suggest this book to anyone looking to take a vacation from any heavy literature. It's light, fun, and inventive. It's also fun to try and figure out which gods the little old men are suppose to be before Gaiman let's you in on the secret.
posted by JonTheDoc @ 3:04 AM
2 Comments:
i liked american gods.
anansi boys was cute, but not as intriguing as american gods.
i have only read one or two other neil gaiman books otherwise, and i'm not sure which one to read next. time to play catch up. :)
I loved this book. Here's something to think about, though, as you try to identify the various gods. Who is the Forgotten God?
What we know:
1.He is in Las Vegas when Wednesday meets with him
2.He is wearing a charcoal suit
3."In his mind the movement of money forms a fine latticework, a three dimensional cat's cradle of light and motion."
4.He drinks Laphroaig (an expensive Scottish whisky) and water, and he appreciates its "marshy" taste
5.He is looking for a "she" who, according to Wednesday, has "not been seen for two hundred years. If she isn't dead she's taken herself out of the picture."
5.His deal with Wednesday is sealed with a bottle of Soma, which is a divine drink of Hindu mythology. (However, Wednesday describes soma to Shadow in more general terms, as "concentrated belief and prayer" which perhaps implies that it, currently at least, crosses mythologies.)
6.And, of course, no one seems to be able to remember talking to him, or even hearing about him, moments after it happens. (Except for Wednesday, who has the charm of knowing the names of all the gods)
7.He takes pity on the waitress (whom Wednesday didn't pay) and tells her about the oncologist who will win $40,000
8.The first appearance of the god is at the House on the Rock, in the car with Allvis and Kali. Shadow finds himself unable to remember anything but an impression of wealth.
For a complete spoiler list of all gods appearing in American Gods (sans the Forgotten god, whos name Neil has not revealed or confirmed)go here: http://www.frowl.org/gods/gods.html
Post a Comment
<< Home