Book 48: American Gods by Neil Gaiman.
2005 editionBook 48: American Gods.
Author: Neil Gaiman, 2001.
Genre: Contemporary Fantasy. Mythic.
Other Details: Author's preferred text 2005 edition, Softback, 672 pages.
"This is a bad land for gods," said Shadow. As an opening statement it wasn't Friends, Romans, countrymen, but it would do. - 'American Gods'.
In 2002 this epic contemporary fantasy won the Hugo, Nebula, Locus, SFX and Bram Stoker awards, all for Best Novel and was also nominated for a clutch of other awards. Given my love of mythology and long time conviction that the gods are not fixed in time but continually evolving this was a book that I leapt on with great enthusiasm when it was first published. Still that was over seven years ago and when it was recently selected for one of my reading groups I took the opportunity to re-read and chose the 'author's preferred text' edition. As I found with The Stand, time had blurred many of the details even if I recalled the broad plot.
original editionIts main protagonist is Shadow Moon, a man patiently serving out a three year prison sentence. A few days before his scheduled release he is called to the warden's office and told that his wife has been killed in a car accident. He is allowed to leave early to return home for the funeral. On the flight he encounters the enigmatic Mr. Wednesday, who offers him a job as his driver and assistant. It soon turns out that Mr. Wednesday is much more than he seems and Shadow finds himself caught up in an epic conflict between the old gods, who came to America with immigrants who settled the country, and the new gods of credit cards, cars, TV, the mass media and the internet. The prize for the winning side is the soul of America.
It's such a multi-layered work that I doubt I could do it justice in a few sentences. Gaiman examines the cultural melting pot of American society and also acknowledges the sacred land and beings of its original peoples. It is very dark is places becoming almost a horror novel and yet also has a great deal of humour. My edition included an interview with Neil Gaiman, reading group questions and the text of Neil's essay - How Dare You in which he addresses the question of how dare he, "an Englishman try and write a book about America, American myths and the American soul." I found myself appreciating this book even more than on my first reading. Just wonderful.
Neil Gaiman's Page on 'American Gods' - includes excerpt and bibliography of sources used for the book.
Only the gods are real - list of all the gods and other mythic beings featured in American Gods.