Link and Gaiman

Although I struggled through Magic for Beginners and only felt slightly more competent while reading Stranger Things Happen, I must say that Link prepared me for reading American Gods. That Laura is dead/not dead and follows Shadow around didn't even cause me to bat an eyelid. I am much more comfortable with the worlds of zombies, the absurd, and the paranormal because of Link. Even though I did not like it at the time, I appreciate it now immensely (kind of like Wuthering Heights) because I was able to delve more easily into the world Gaiman created.

Why I Love American Gods

Not only is this book epic, ambitious, well-crafted and well-written, I find it contains many little details pertaining to my own life. For instance, my parents just bought a historic Queen Anne Victorian home (pg. 198) in a small town near Peru, IL (pg. 165) that boasts its own Culvers Frozen Custard and Butterburgers (pg. 159). My mother went to Illinois State Univ. in Bloomington-Normal, IL (pg. 172). I mean, holy shit! I feel like one of my comrade who has the same teeth dream described by Kelly Link in Stranger Things Happen.

gods..

The further I get into this book, the more I struggle with all the references to the "forgotten" gods. I understand that they are struggling to be remembered in a new world where few people still believe, but because they are not "popular" gods, and because I am weak in my mythology, I am struggling with what they represent/were gods of. I am still interested in the overall point of the book of old gods versus new gods (media, TV, etc), but because it is so long, I am getting stuck in the details. Plus, it takes way too long to try to stop and read up about every charcter! There is so much that the author has stored in this book that I fear we could spend an entire class on this one book and never come close to uncovering all the details and the meanings. Hard for me to keep going...

Thoughts on American Gods

I am really enjoying this book. I still have about a hundred pages left and am wondering where it's going beside the obvious war. I have a feeling that Shadow really is something special. If other gods can perceive his dreams, is it because he's just linked with Wednesday or because he himself has powers? In the dream he had with the firebirds, they told him that all of the skulls were his. Does that mean that he has been reincarnated? I feel that unlike the Link stories, this will tie up the loose ends and it will all come together in one large bomb-like revelation at the end. I guess I'll just keep reading.