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Kimber Silver's Reviews > American Gods
American Gods
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“What I say is, a town isn’t a town without a bookstore. It may call itself a town, but unless it’s got a bookstore, it knows it’s not foolin� a soul.�
� Neil Gaiman, American Gods
I picked up the extended tenth-anniversary edition of American Gods. At 742 pages it was more a marathon than a sprint, so bring a snack!
Shadow Moon’s journey is interwoven with flashback stories of the old gods coming to the new world. In the midst of it all is a war between the old gods and the new ones, and Gaiman did a good job of fashioning the magical realism needed to carry the story. The book started off with a bang, but in the middle I found my mind wandering, then the pacing would pick up and propel me further along. Shadow Moon, the primary protagonist, is a well-developed character, but then the character evolution of the gods stalled until they seemed little more than a side note by the end of the story. The wrap-up, too, was somewhat anti-climactic for me, I wanted so much more.
All that being said, the book is a decent read and Gaiman is clearly a good writer; just not my cup of tea, sadly. I wouldn’t recommend this tenth anniversary extended edition to any but the most die-hard Gaiman fan, since it is extremely long.
I was initially excited to read this novel and, despite not holding my interest at times, it was good overall.
Is it worth reading? Definitely!
� Neil Gaiman, American Gods
I picked up the extended tenth-anniversary edition of American Gods. At 742 pages it was more a marathon than a sprint, so bring a snack!
Shadow Moon’s journey is interwoven with flashback stories of the old gods coming to the new world. In the midst of it all is a war between the old gods and the new ones, and Gaiman did a good job of fashioning the magical realism needed to carry the story. The book started off with a bang, but in the middle I found my mind wandering, then the pacing would pick up and propel me further along. Shadow Moon, the primary protagonist, is a well-developed character, but then the character evolution of the gods stalled until they seemed little more than a side note by the end of the story. The wrap-up, too, was somewhat anti-climactic for me, I wanted so much more.
All that being said, the book is a decent read and Gaiman is clearly a good writer; just not my cup of tea, sadly. I wouldn’t recommend this tenth anniversary extended edition to any but the most die-hard Gaiman fan, since it is extremely long.
I was initially excited to read this novel and, despite not holding my interest at times, it was good overall.
Is it worth reading? Definitely!
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American Gods.
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Reading Progress
November, 2017
–
Started Reading
November, 2017
–
Finished Reading
February 21, 2019
– Shelved
February 21, 2019
– Shelved as:
family-drama
February 21, 2019
– Shelved as:
fantasy
Comments Showing 1-34 of 34 (34 new)
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Jennifer ~ TarHeelReader
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rated it 4 stars
Feb 22, 2019 03:26AM
I listened to this on audio and put it down. I liked my other experiences with Gaiman, but not this one. Thoughtful review, Kimber. I hope you love your next read!
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Fabulous review, Kimber! Good to know that this is worth reading!
Terrific, insightful review, Kimber. : )I love Gaiman's creativity, but he's a bit tame for my taste. The guy has a wonderful imagination though.
A very helpful review, Kimber, I'm not in any hurry to get to this one, but it is on my list to read. Someday!
Jennifer ~ TarHeelReader wrote: "I listened to this on audio and put it down. I liked my other experiences with Gaiman, but not this one. Thoughtful review, Kimber. I hope you love your next read!"Thank you, Jennifer! :-) I should try another book by Gaiman. I'm glad I'm not the only one that struggled with it.
Meredith wrote: "Fabulous review, Kimber! Good to know that this is worth reading!"You're welcome, Meredith! I hope you like it. Perhaps the shorter version would be a better option.
Kevin wrote: "Terrific, insightful review, Kimber. : )I love Gaiman's creativity, but he's a bit tame for my taste. The guy has a wonderful imagination though."
Thank you so much, Kevin! :-) The man does have a mysterious mind. ;-)
Cheri wrote: "A very helpful review, Kimber, I'm not in any hurry to get to this one, but it is on my list to read. Someday!"Thank you, Cheri! :-) I wanted to love this book. I just couldn't get in the groove. I hope you have an easier time with it.
Susanne wrote: "Awesome review Kimber!"Thank you, Susanne!
i think Gaiman is a very talented writer, and you've underscored that, but not everything he tackles is of interest to the general reading population. i think your evaluation was spot on. especially with long novels, unless i'm in prison or on a one palm tree desert island alone, i'd much rather take my literature in more measured bites. thank you for another superb review. john
Haha, Kimber - bring a snack - that was funny. True too. For some reason, I remember it being a long read, but forgot much of what happened, except liking it quite a bit. And Gaiman's good writing of course.
Grand review, Kimber :)) Bringing a snack was a perfect idea regarding this long read :))
Excellent review, Kimber! I may the only person alive who hasn't read this one. 😁😁
Excellent review Kimber. I've only read one book by this author and although I respect him and his work, he just isn't for me. Magical realism doesn't always work for me. And this is a chunkster - wow. I do love your opening quote though 💕
Nice honest review Kimber!
Maureen wrote: "Terrific review Kimber! 🌸"Thank you, Maureen!😊
John wrote: "i think Gaiman is a very talented writer, and you've underscored that, but not everything he tackles is of interest to the general reading population. i think your evaluation was spot on. especiall..."I agree, John. Gaiman can write, perhaps this one just wasn't for me. I will try another by him someday. Thank you for your kind words. 😊
Jaline wrote: "Superb review, Kimber! 😊"Thank you, Jaline!😃
Ron wrote: "Haha, Kimber - bring a snack - that was funny. True too. For some reason, I remember it being a long read, but forgot much of what happened, except liking it quite a bit. And Gaiman's good writing ..."Thank you, Ron!😃 Gaiman is a talented writer. I'm glad you enjoyed this read. I'll definitely try him again. I love the show based on this book. 😊
Beata wrote: "Grand review, Kimber :)) Bringing a snack was a perfect idea regarding this long read :))"Thank you, Beata! It was undoubtedly a marathon of a book. 😉
Julie wrote: "Excellent review, Kimber! I may the only person alive who hasn't read this one. 😁😁"Thank you kindly, Julie!🌹 It is a very popular read. 😁
JanB wrote: "Excellent review Kimber. I've only read one book by this author and although I respect him and his work, he just isn't for me. Magical realism doesn't always work for me. And this is a chunkster - ..."Thank you so much, Jan! 😊Every book isn't for everyone. I was afraid I would be alone in not loving this particular book. I will try another of his works. He's a good writer.
Susanne wrote: "Nice honest review Kimber!"Thank you, Susanne! 😊
I have read quite a few of Neil's books Kimber, but not this one. I really should before making any comments I guess. Loved your review which is honest and very fair. Thank you my friend.
Terrific review, Kimber! I attempted to read this once and put it down, maybe I need to give it a second chance
Amazing review as always Kimber! Wow I just can't do 742 pages..I would definitely need a snack or two.
Leila wrote: "I have read quite a few of Neil's books Kimber, but not this one. I really should before making any comments I guess. Loved your review which is honest and very fair. Thank you my friend."Oh my gosh, Leila! I missed seeing this and I'm so sorry! Thank you for the lovely comment! :-)
Debra wrote: "Terrific review, Kimber! I attempted to read this once and put it down, maybe I need to give it a second chance"Thank you, Debra! I can understand putting this one down. ;-) It was well written, but a very long book.
Kim ~ It’s All About the Thrill wrote: "Amazing review as always Kimber! Wow I just can't do 742 pages..I would definitely need a snack or two."Thank you very much, Kim! Ha! Yes, stock up on nibbles. ;-)
Tina (with a book on the beach in the Sunny South) wrote: "A wonderful review Kimber!"I'm so sorry I missed your comment, Tina. Thank you very much! : )
