American Gods starts off when the main character, Shadow, gets out of jail to receive news that his wife has passed away. He meets an enigmatic figure named Wednesday, who asks Shadow to work for him. (Run errands with him.) Through most of the book, Wednesday has the both of them run errands for no good reason, conversations during which are about nothing. Neil Gaiman describes things, but fails to make a story out of them. Following every item/person introduced, (eg. “The man was holding a mallet.”) Gaiman insists on describing it/them in excruciating detail. (eg.”It was shaped like a tree without roots, with an honest smile in its handle, etc.”) This is nonsensical and is used as a diversion from the lack of substance in this book. Another example of this is the side stories in-between the chapters. They have no bearing on the story (Though they have “America” in the title, so apparently that makes them related.) and give the reader more crap to sift through.

He is funny at times, but I am here to read a book; not listen to a comedian. There are many points that the book fails to resolve. . In the Acknowledgments section at the back of the book, you get the general idea that Gaiman has no expertise in writing fiction. He notes that the ideas for this book were taken from consulting friends, doctors, and even Terry Pratchett! “Terry helped me unlock a knotty plot point for me on the train to Gothenburg.” Uh….

I’ll end the review with some media outlets RAVING about this book. It has to be seen to be believed.

“IMMENSELY REWARDING…
Suffused with…powerful imagery and deftly-painted characters…A finely-crafted novel of weight and criticism, and first rate storytelling. “
-The moron at Cleveland Plain Dealer.


“THIS NOVEL DISTILLS THE ESSENCE OF AMERICA…
Gaiman’s books don’t fit a comfortable niche like horror or fantasy, though American Gods contains elements of both, as well as aspects of a thriller, a road trip, and vignettes of Midwestern life, all elegantly tied together in an adventure that uses myths to define what makes America.”
-The jack-off at the Seattle Post-Intelligencer


I actually believed this next quote prior to reading.
“IF JACK KEROUAC HAD WRITTEN LORD OF THE RINGS, IT MIGHT HAVE RESEMBLED NEIL GAIMAN’S NEW NOVEL.”
-Orlando Sentinel


And the only one worth it’s salt,
“WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF J.R.R. TOLKIEN OBTAINED A CONCUSSION AND TRIED TO WRITE A BOOK ABOUT AMERICA? PROBABLY SOMETHING LIKE THIS BOOK.”
-Me