Read All About It: American Gods

Since "American Gods" was released on TV yesterday, I figured it was time to reveal my own opinion on the genius that is Gaiman's universe of gods, to set up my reviews of the show itself! I know I'm a bit late to the starting line, but I hope this review helps you decide to read Gaiman's book before you watch the show!

Image source: Bookriot.com

I only recently discovered American Gods--I'm more familiar with Terry Pratchett than I am with Gaiman--and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I loved the characters, their faults, their voice. I've always been a fan of mythological figures, and I'm even doing my capstone research on mythology in modern media, so this book was definitely an interesting take on how modern society has created their own gods out of ever-changing technology.

American Gods follows Shadow, recently released from prison, as he serves the mysterious Mr. Wednesday and meets a host of strange characters, gods, and dead people. Shadow struggles to find his place in the world after his wife dies and he's left without a job, and by taking up with Wednesday, we can see how Shadow's boring life has been changed and tangled up with the fates of the old gods themselves.

Overall, the twists and turns of this novel kept me guessing about the real powers at play, and I hope the TV show is able to capture the powerful mythology that is behind the pages of the novel. I can't wait to watch the TV show, and I'm really looking forward to comparing the book and the show because it looked like Gaiman was heavily involved in the production of the show. I'm interested in seeing how they dealt with the heavy moments of the novel, and all the death (this is not a book for the faint of heart).

I definitely don't want to go any further into a summary here, because American Gods speaks for itself and I highly encourage you to read and watch it (really, no matter the order)! I'll be catching up on the first episode tonight, and I'll let you know what I thought about it in a few days!