A review by mynameismarines
American Gods by Neil Gaiman

5.0

4.5 stars

This book is probably 5 stars for me on enjoyment alone, but it isn't without its faults. It doesn't always treat its women characters well and some of its characters feel dated and some of its concepts on the shallow side. Those are things I can "objectively" stand back and see, but they are flaws that didn't outweigh all of the positive I found in this weird, wandering tale.

I love journey books and this wanders and meanders at just the right speed for me. I love journeys whose stops are more for people and places than anything that has to do specifically with the plot. I also had a good entry point into the story with Shadow. That's kind of a crapshoot because he is, by design, a stoic sort of character. He's committed to letting the plot and characters take him along, again by design. That's just the sort of thing that might bother certain readers, but I found his stoicism endearing. Having him in the middle of this strange story, accepting, sort of checked out after great loss, provided an even greater dreamlike quality.

There's a lot to say about themes here, about American from the view of America as a patchwork created by immigrants, about the ideas of belief deep in the out of the way places across the country. It was always interesting, whether I agreed with the underlying hot take or not. It made me think and when I didn't want to think, it was just a good story.

I'm so happy I read this and I have an adaptation to watch now I'M SO EXCITED.