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Seth T.'s Reviews > Anansi Boys
Anansi Boys
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I laughed out loud. While reading. In a Japanese rice bowl joint. Okay, so maybe it was more of a chortle, but it was definitely out loud. And more than just the once. Patrons quietly minding their own business while slogging through their Number Three Specials With Extra Tokyo Beef would be startled into wakefulness to see me - chopsticks in one hand, book in the other - as my grizzled maw broke forth with guffaws and irrepressible smiles.
Really, Anansi Boys may be the first thing I've read from Neil Gaiman that I liked. I never got into Sandman (though I'm told I should have persevered). I never finished American Gods (though I'm told I should have persevered). I never finished 1602 (despite guessing that I should have persevered).
Still, not only did I like it but I loved it. Enough that I gave my copy to someone else to read and purchased a second copy for another friend. And I'm certain they'll want to do similar things with the book.
Anansi Boys is at all times funny, adventurous, and charming. And several other over-used adjectives. In fact, Anansi Boys may be the prototype from which overused adjectives should have come - before they were overused. I'm not sure that Anansi Boys is great literature and I'm not sure that it isn't. What I am certain of beyond any shadow of doubtfulness is that Anansi Boys may be the most fun I have ever had reading a novel.
There may be others that I enjoyed more but my experience of this book was such that it pushed (if even momentarily) all other books from my mind. Someone on the back suggests that the book will make you love and be grateful for spiders. Critics and the things they say, huh? Well, I don't love spiders, but dang was this book good.
The end.
p.s. Anyone thinking of reading Blue like Jazz or Against Christianity or something by Karl Barth should definitely read this first. 'Cuz I mean what if you died after finishing the next book on your queue? It would be an all time tragedy to have wasted hours reading Donald Miller when there is something like Anansi Boys out there. Plus, it's just as spiritual.
Really, Anansi Boys may be the first thing I've read from Neil Gaiman that I liked. I never got into Sandman (though I'm told I should have persevered). I never finished American Gods (though I'm told I should have persevered). I never finished 1602 (despite guessing that I should have persevered).
Still, not only did I like it but I loved it. Enough that I gave my copy to someone else to read and purchased a second copy for another friend. And I'm certain they'll want to do similar things with the book.
Anansi Boys is at all times funny, adventurous, and charming. And several other over-used adjectives. In fact, Anansi Boys may be the prototype from which overused adjectives should have come - before they were overused. I'm not sure that Anansi Boys is great literature and I'm not sure that it isn't. What I am certain of beyond any shadow of doubtfulness is that Anansi Boys may be the most fun I have ever had reading a novel.
There may be others that I enjoyed more but my experience of this book was such that it pushed (if even momentarily) all other books from my mind. Someone on the back suggests that the book will make you love and be grateful for spiders. Critics and the things they say, huh? Well, I don't love spiders, but dang was this book good.
The end.
p.s. Anyone thinking of reading Blue like Jazz or Against Christianity or something by Karl Barth should definitely read this first. 'Cuz I mean what if you died after finishing the next book on your queue? It would be an all time tragedy to have wasted hours reading Donald Miller when there is something like Anansi Boys out there. Plus, it's just as spiritual.
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Finished Reading
June 28, 2007
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Seth
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rated it 5 stars
Jan 23, 2008 05:36PM
I just read Coraline a couple months back and I got my wife Wolves in the Walls for Christmas, so we'll be reading that very soon!
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Yay, I'm halfway through this and this review reassured me that I'm not going to be let down (as I was with The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay, which reminds me of this book). Yay! So great. And extra credit for the p.s. :)
Show me de lime!I laughed out loud, too! (Mostly in the privacy of my own car, with the Audio CD format...)
I haven't read the graphic novels, either. If you get a chance to go back to "American Gods," do consider it. I was glad to have stuck through it to the end.
Since writing the review of Anansi Boys, I did end up re-reading American Gods—this time persevering to the end. While I didn't adore the book like I did some of Gaiman's other works (Anansi, Coraline, and the awesome Graveyard Book), I will say it was definitely worth the read. The book is more understated, I think, than some of his more adventurous, more humourous works (though it certainly has its moments). American Gods held an almost perpetual sense of foreboding to me; and I think that was appropriate to its subject matter.Though it wasn't my favourite, I'll probably end up reading it another time or two in the next decade. And that right there says something about its value as a book. My own review of the book, though rather slight, is here: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...
Great review! I completely agree. I loved this book. Can you think of any other books you've read that you would give such high ratings for?
I'm going to read this book just because you're one of two people I know of that uses the word chortle correctly.
And if that's not reason enough to trust a stranger's judgment, I don't know what is! ^_^ Hope you have as much fun with the book as I did.
Hey Colleen, there are other books that I've liked as much or more, but none that are really all that much like Anansi Boys. I loved The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle and Savage Detectives and Never Let Me Go, though they're each very different books. It's been awhile but in my faded memory, Victor LaValle's Big Machine might be in similar territory—even though it too is a very different book.
Thanks, I really appreciate the suggestions.
:) I'm only almost a year late! Apologies for not seeing your comment earlier.
No problem, it happens :) A couple suggestions I'd give are "The Gargoyle" by Andrew Davidson.Also, a new book that just came out relatively recently called "The soul trapper" by FJ Lennon. The story line is interesting and unique. It's about a guy who traps souls with a device (there's a whole history about how the device was created) and sends the souls on to wherever they are supposed to go.
Interesting, I'll have to check those out. Thanks for the recommendation!
I laughed hysterically while reading this book. Then, when I read this review I laughed again! It really was a great book and your review does it justice!
Try "American Gods" again. It's the best of Neil Gaiman, I read so far (as of finishing "Stardust" and "Neverwhere"). It somehow all made sense in the end. ;)
I loved your review! I definitely plan on reading this very soon! thanks!
I suggest Good Omens, by Gaiman and Terry Pratchett. Funniest book I've ever read, by far.
if you haven't, you should read Neverwhere. it bare similiarity to Anansi Boys, but then again also very different.
I'm looking at picking this up on audio, but I /barely/ remember American Gods - did you find it stood alone since you said you didn't finish A.G?
@Sarah - Someday soon, I hope to have the time for Good Omens. I hear it's nothing but worthwhile.@Eva - Thanks for the recommendation, but for whatever reason, I never found Neverwhere to much suit my taste. I liked how much imagination Gaiman put into the effort but I don't think I was ever able to feel much for his characters. It's actually one of my least favourite Gaiman novels :)
@Lara - I've since finished American Gods (although it's been several years now—old review ^_^) and can say that having read it will give you no better appreciation for Anansi Boys. Anansi is never more than a small supporting character in American Gods and while American Gods is a kind of meta-mythos melodrama, Anansi boys is more of a comic-mischief adventure. You won't need any memory of American Gods in order to enjoy this book.
@Lara -- I hadn't read American Gods, and it stands alone just fine. @Seth -- OK, this might be one of my favorite review lines in a while, "In fact, Anansi Boys may be the prototype from which overused adjectives should have come - before they were overused." I couldn't agree more. Nicely put. I haven't read American Gods, as I said, but thanks to your review, I'll pick it up, and persevere.
have you read "fortunately the milk" by neil geiman?
Thanks for sharing your review. I felt the same way - loved this book!
I did the same, although not while eating Japanese food. One of the many reasons why I love Neil Gaiman.
Seth I love your review! Can't wait to read this one.
You should persevere with the others. Gaiman is a rewarding fellow, but you do have to put in a bit of effort. There is a cameo or two...
What an amazing review. Makes me want to read every book you reccomend. Ha ha
