Graphic novel
English language
Published Feb. 13, 2020
Very good book. Very neil gaiman. It reminded me of the sandman comics. I did find it a little difficult to follow along because occasionally perspective shifts without any explicit indication
This tale is not for the feint of heart. Having said that, I truly enjoyed both it's premise and telling. Although there are a few sections that are rather disturbing, and they are probably appropriate, they remain a tad disturbing.
A book about religion, believes, history and identity. Wrapped up in a highly entertaining plot, with great characters and black humor. I'm looking forward to watching the series :)
One of the best modern life mythos imho, bought the paper version
Sigma
Alpha : The Hobbit
Beta : Harry Potter
Gamma : Old Man and the Sea
Delta : The Martian
Zeta : Charlotte's Web
Theta : Ringworld
Kapa : The Road
Lambda : The Shining
Sigma : Dune
Sigma
Alpha : The Hobbit
Beta : Harry Potter
Gamma : Old Man and the Sea
Delta : The Martian
Zeta : Charlotte's Web
Theta : Ringworld
Kapa : The Road
Lambda : The Shining
Sigma : Dune
I read the author's "preferred" cut of the book (the Tenth Anniversary edition?). Gaiman said he added a ton more words to it and it seems like it did drag on in spots, particularly near the end, which basically winds down in extended epilogues. But I read the book in order to watch the TV adaptation, and I think my experience of the show is richer for it.
Gaiman can be so hit & miss. I love love love Sandman & The Graveyard Book but Neverwhere was virtually unreadable. He's like Tim Burton, pretty good all said, but often heavy-handed in his desperation to keep it whimsical & always a bit samey. Buuut it's a theme that has worked thusfar & they certainly have the cash to prove it.
Throughout the entire book I just couldn't get over the protagonists deeply silly name. I mean...
Anyway, it's not bad - decently paced, even if minor characters' elaborate backstories fail to elicit the desired sympathy when they're immediately bumped off. There are plenty of excellent ideas & any plot holes can be deus ex deus'd or explained away by magic, which wraps things up for a squeaky clean (if a tad unsatisfying) ending.
Not that it's particularly relevant, but since finishing the book I've watched a couple episodes of …
Gaiman can be so hit & miss. I love love love Sandman & The Graveyard Book but Neverwhere was virtually unreadable. He's like Tim Burton, pretty good all said, but often heavy-handed in his desperation to keep it whimsical & always a bit samey. Buuut it's a theme that has worked thusfar & they certainly have the cash to prove it.
Throughout the entire book I just couldn't get over the protagonists deeply silly name. I mean...
Anyway, it's not bad - decently paced, even if minor characters' elaborate backstories fail to elicit the desired sympathy when they're immediately bumped off. There are plenty of excellent ideas & any plot holes can be deus ex deus'd or explained away by magic, which wraps things up for a squeaky clean (if a tad unsatisfying) ending.
Not that it's particularly relevant, but since finishing the book I've watched a couple episodes of the show, & I like that a lot.
I think Gaiman said it himself in the essay at the end of the edition I just finished. How dare he write about America. How very dare he.
Really enjoyed this. I've been meaning to read it for quite a while, and it did not disappoint. Interesting premise, and of course Gaiman's writing is a joy. Some lines made me laugh out loud, which is rare for a book. For example: “The house smelled musty and damp, and a little sweet, as if it were haunted by the ghosts of long-dead cookies.”
I listened to the full-cast audiobook, which is read from the "author's preferred text." Highly recommend.
Despite how much I love this book, I realized this was only my second readthrough. I think I might have enjoyed the second read even more than the first, but it doesn't really matter.
After the postscript, the author included a snippet he'd written for, then removed from, the original book. It dealt with an unexplored facet of the story that I'd felt was glaringly absent the first time I'd read American Gods, but now I feel the author was right to remove it. It's not bad, it just doesn't...fit. The story was better without it.
This book is wonderful, and I can't wait for the show. :)
Despite how much I love this book, I realized this was only my second readthrough. I think I might have enjoyed the second read even more than the first, but it doesn't really matter.
After the postscript, the author included a snippet he'd written for, then removed from, the original book. It dealt with an unexplored facet of the story that I'd felt was glaringly absent the first time I'd read American Gods, but now I feel the author was right to remove it. It's not bad, it just doesn't...fit. The story was better without it.
This book is wonderful, and I can't wait for the show. :)
Every hours wounds. The last one kills.
I have a questionable track record with Neil Gaiman books and I don't think what he writes is up my alley. I have read three books and haven't enjoyed them at all. I appreciate what Gaiman does, with his distinctive voice, unique take on fantasy novels and brilliant characters are exceptional but I find the read to be more challenging than refreshing.
American Gods was a drag for me. I had little enthusiasm to pick it up and read. The story felt random for the sake of being random and yet I felt that there was some hidden meaning to it all that was just going over my head.
It's about the soul of America, really. What people brought to America, what found them when they came; and the things that lie sleeping beneath it all.
Reading the journal entries at the end …
Every hours wounds. The last one kills.
I have a questionable track record with Neil Gaiman books and I don't think what he writes is up my alley. I have read three books and haven't enjoyed them at all. I appreciate what Gaiman does, with his distinctive voice, unique take on fantasy novels and brilliant characters are exceptional but I find the read to be more challenging than refreshing.
American Gods was a drag for me. I had little enthusiasm to pick it up and read. The story felt random for the sake of being random and yet I felt that there was some hidden meaning to it all that was just going over my head.
It's about the soul of America, really. What people brought to America, what found them when they came; and the things that lie sleeping beneath it all.
Reading the journal entries at the end of the book made me wish I enjoyed the book more because it was an ambitious tale to tell, and what ever was sleeping beneath it all was lost on me.
4 sterren, voordeel van de twijfel. Goed, maar niet intens meeslepend. Maar wel goed.
About 10 years ago I read this for the first time. I still remember that I didn't like it at all (originally I gave this a 2-star rating). It was the first book by Neil Gaiman I ever read and it was to be the last for quite some time. Re-reading it 10 years later, I still understand what I didn't like about the book. I expected some nice urban fantasy and this book is everything but nice or pretty. Instead of a "nice" protagonist I met Shadow, this convict non-hero without name or heart or special powers, and Wednesday the god of con-men. I expected an easy genre read and instead found an episodic, meandering plot with long detours through psychedelic dream-scapes that left me wondering more than once what was going on. It all finished with an ending that I found highly unsatisfying back then. I felt cheated …
About 10 years ago I read this for the first time. I still remember that I didn't like it at all (originally I gave this a 2-star rating). It was the first book by Neil Gaiman I ever read and it was to be the last for quite some time. Re-reading it 10 years later, I still understand what I didn't like about the book. I expected some nice urban fantasy and this book is everything but nice or pretty. Instead of a "nice" protagonist I met Shadow, this convict non-hero without name or heart or special powers, and Wednesday the god of con-men. I expected an easy genre read and instead found an episodic, meandering plot with long detours through psychedelic dream-scapes that left me wondering more than once what was going on. It all finished with an ending that I found highly unsatisfying back then. I felt cheated out of the grand showdown.
This time, I was following Shadow's travels with much more enjoyment. Yes, the unfolding of the plot is somewhat slow, the complexity of the big con/heist/plot needs a long set-up. And the writing is beautiful. The images of places and people that Gaiman conjures are memorable and impressive. I liked the amount god references everywhere in the book, some of which may be too subtle to notice on the first read. I enjoy the language and I appreciate how Gaiman's writing manages to transport so much with so few words. And this time around, the slow reveals of the final truths make for a fitting ending to the story, that just feels right.
Listening to the 10th anniv. audio edition.
