Gaiman, Neil - Anansi Boys
Fat Charlie's father would name things, and the names would stick. That's why Fat Charlie is Fat Charlie, and not Charles Nancy. But Fat Charlie's father has just died, leaving him to discover that his dad was a god -- not just any god, but Anansi the Trickster -- which may very well explain why he was so good at embarrassing Fat Charlie.
While discovering that he's the son of a god, Fat Charlie also finds a previously unknown brother, things about his employer that he probably didn't want to know, reasons why Hitchcock was right about birds, and the joys of karaoke. Or something of the sort.
I wasn't actually sure if I'd like this book to begin with, mostly because I wasn't too fond of American Gods (on the other hand, I may like American Gods better after a reread; I read it on an airplane, and that always messes up my reactions). But then I went to a Neil Gaiman signing, and he read bits out of chapter four, and it was really funny.
It feels a wee bit like Good Omens, where things keep going wrong for Fat Charlie, and then worse, and then even worse. And I found that I liked most of the characters, which I didn't in American Gods. I ended up really liking this book, although I didn't fall head-over-heels in love with it. It's wonderfully whimsical, and Gaiman weaves in Anansi stories and makes everything cohere.
I especially like how light it feels, which isn't something I'd think to say. It's frothy and fun and made me laugh a lot, and yet, there's a sense of underlying structure, so it's not just melt-away marshmallow fiction. Gaiman's spent time on the bones of the story; even under the humor and the fun, there are parallels and everything makes sense in the end in the cool "ah-ha!" way, not the ends-tied-up-much-too-neatly way.
And the best thing is that I suspect a reread will be even funnier.
Links:
- tenemet's review
While discovering that he's the son of a god, Fat Charlie also finds a previously unknown brother, things about his employer that he probably didn't want to know, reasons why Hitchcock was right about birds, and the joys of karaoke. Or something of the sort.
I wasn't actually sure if I'd like this book to begin with, mostly because I wasn't too fond of American Gods (on the other hand, I may like American Gods better after a reread; I read it on an airplane, and that always messes up my reactions). But then I went to a Neil Gaiman signing, and he read bits out of chapter four, and it was really funny.
It feels a wee bit like Good Omens, where things keep going wrong for Fat Charlie, and then worse, and then even worse. And I found that I liked most of the characters, which I didn't in American Gods. I ended up really liking this book, although I didn't fall head-over-heels in love with it. It's wonderfully whimsical, and Gaiman weaves in Anansi stories and makes everything cohere.
I especially like how light it feels, which isn't something I'd think to say. It's frothy and fun and made me laugh a lot, and yet, there's a sense of underlying structure, so it's not just melt-away marshmallow fiction. Gaiman's spent time on the bones of the story; even under the humor and the fun, there are parallels and everything makes sense in the end in the cool "ah-ha!" way, not the ends-tied-up-much-too-neatly way.
And the best thing is that I suspect a reread will be even funnier.
Links:
- tenemet's review