American Gods, a meandering tale of a book, took me at least two tries to get through, despite my gravitation towards urban fantasy.. The concept of "old versus modern" gods is an intriguing one, and I can always get involved in themes of belief, stories and myth. It didn't always work, however, and was completed at stuttering pace. Transitions can be rough, and it's not always clear where a particular chunk of narrative is heading. I feel like part of it is that we have indeed lost the old gods, and many people need a little background on Gaiman's creatures in order to appreciate the tale he's telling. Often it's well done, but at times it interrupts the flow of the narrative.

I often enjoy Gaiman's imagery, although occasionally it's self indulgent, seemingly for the sake of being shocking, like the woman that swallows a man through her vagina during sex, and a dead person vomiting maggots.

A few loose ends don't particularly seem pertinent, such as the leprechaun that gives Shadow a gold piece, which Shadow then is moved to throw it into Laura's grave. I'm not sure of the point of that subplot either--the power of belief?

I'm never particularly moved by Gaiman's use of language, but he has a deft hand at characterization. Characters and ideas are clearly his strengths. I loved some of the old gods, and thought Mr. Nancy and the Chicago family particularly well done. The new gods were less well done, though the concept is a fascinating one. Most of the time is spent on the internet/tech and media gods, and they are done well enough to be immediately annoying. However, the pantheon gets a little fuzzy at this point, particularly in Gaiman's decision to largely leave out "modern" organized religion--as Anubis and Bast and such were worshipped by Egyptians, it seems fair to acknowledge Jesus as more than a hitchhiker in Afganistan. I wonder if he avoided it for complexity? Controversy?

The voice and tone is narrator is emotionally removed from the story, but I felt it suited the tone and scope of the novel well. I liked Shadow and felt he was a very believable character for a while. Emphasizing his numbness and distance helped explained how he could be so blase about the return of his dead wife and Mr. Wednesday's abilities. It's interesting that after his initial questioning and challenging of Mr. Wednesday and the leprechaun, he accepts the rest of the magic at face value.

I have mixed feelings about the ending. I'm a little disappointed that Shadow chose to "rest," and wonder if it's inconsistent, as all along he's been Wednesday's man, paid to work and protect him. And the fact that the plot of the novel is a double con--well, I too feel more than a little betrayed. It seemed weak that both old and new gods took Shadow's announcement and popped back to reality, ready to abandon the fight then and there. Certainly their animosity had to be based on something, and removal of primary motivation doesn't remove built up antagonism.

Worth noting that I sold my copy to Half Price Books, because it's space on the shelf was worth more than the slim chance of re-read. Two-and-a-half stars, rounding down because my memory assures me I don't want to touch it again. ( )

It was weird, but I liked it. I think. If I don’t think too hard about it. ( )

Usually I like Neil Gaiman's morbid sense of humor and his ability to suggest the dark other-world lingering about the edges of our own. I have enjoyed several of his books, but this was just not the book for me.

From the scene at the end of the first chapter in which some kind of prostitute goddess sucks a man into her vagina to the autopsy scene in which an Egyptian-god-turned-medical-examiner cuts open a teenage girl who had been stabbed to death by her boyfriend, and all the tits in between, I felt like Gaiman had turned just a tad misogynist. Or he has just become obsessed with tits.

I can take the sexual content and some violence, but I'm learning that I have to draw the line at graphic mutilation of persons and/or animals, living or dead. Just not something that I want to read. So I stopped.

Plus, the story didn't really seem to be going anywhere. Clever turns of phrase, but "look at this guy Shadow he is working for some gods who are from the Old Countries but there are these new techno-gods who are newer and more awesomer and trying to crush the old gods and Shadow's dead wife is sort of alive and keeps saving him and look how much I know about rural Midwest America and look at all these tits and listen to my funny story about balls!" wasn't really keeping me interested. I get it. Americans have lost their roots and we don't know who we are. Technology is our new god.

Point taken. Time to move on.

If you also didn't like this book and it's the only Gaiman book you've read, I'd really encourage you to try [b:Stardust|474037|Stardust|Neil Gaiman|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1266563852s/474037.jpg|3166179] (excellent), [b:Neverwhere|474072|Neverwhere|Neil Gaiman|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1255657765s/474072.jpg|16534] (good), or [b:Smoke and Mirrors|16790|Smoke and Mirrors|Neil Gaiman|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1166759020s/16790.jpg|6277491] (short stories, also good). ( )

Have read over 1/3 of the book and have completly lost interest in the Novel, this book starts with a great story in the first couple of chapters but after that I cant warm to the characters and therefore am struggling with the read, also think would have been a good idea to do a little research on mythology before i started the book and may have helped me get into it more. I dont read fantasy novels so this is just not my cup of tea and looking at the ratings on Goodreads you either love it or hate it. I am throwing in the towel on this one as life too short to read what dont interest you, but can see why other readers will go mad for it. ( )

Ik heb 'm dan ook (eindelijk) eens gelezen en ik vond het niet echt een geweldig boek. Het duurde heel lang voordat ik een beetje gevoel kreeg waar het allemaal heen moest en het bleef voornamelijk erg vaag. Ik vond de hoofdpersoon maar vlak en dat maakte dat het niet zo interessant was allemaal. ( )