Retro Review: American Gods
/When I started this blog, I had been posting reviews on Goodreads for about 6 months. In the interest of having all of my book writing in one place, I will post one of these old reviews every Friday. They weren't written with a blog in mind, so please forgive the lack of summary and off-the-cuff tone.
4 stars. For a book that clearly has so much to say, I don't have a lot to say about it. It was enjoyable, entertaining, and epic, but I can't say that it was as life-changing as I expected. It reminds me of the books I was assigned in school - yeah, I can see why this is important, but I'm not really moved, you know? I'm just reading this cause it moved a bunch of other people with different preferences than I.
There are some specific things I really liked, though: I found the writing refreshing. Shadow isn't your typical "hero," but on top of that, he doesn't question every single little thing that happens to him. He's just along for the ride, and the absence of the whole "what is happening" thought process that most protagonists suffer from helped move things right along.
There are some specific things I didn't like, too. Laura, for example. I love a good redemption story, but I wasn't really rooting for her at all. Maybe that's the point, though - maybe everyone, including the folks you don't root for - deserve a second chance, a chance to do the right thing and make the right choice. She certainly sacrificed herself admirably. I guess.
Hmm. I'm just not sure. It didn't affect me that much. I liked it, though. I guess. I really, really liked the television adaptation, maybe better. It took color and style and striking visual elements to make this story glow, for me.
American Gods has its moments, but it's not momentous.