Tolog Review: American Gods

American Gods
by Neil Gaiman
reviewed by Kysa Hayashi

American Gods, by Neil Gaiman, is a fiction fantasy story about Shadow the protagonist who has been in jail for 3 years. Shadow is freed from jail because of the sudden death of his wife. At his wife’s funeral, he encounters Mr. Wednesday who mysteriously knows a lot about him. Mr. Wednesday offers him a job that he cannot pass up, to be Mr. Wednesday guard and messenger. Shadows messenger job throws him in the middle of the war between the old gods vs. the new gods. Shadow realizes what he really lives for. Throughout the story Mr. Wednesday warns Shadow of a big storm. Will Shadow survive the storm? 

The story is about what it is means to be an American. It looks at America’s cultural origins and how the mythology origins from all around the world have evolved through the years in America. “Nobody’s American. Not originally.” (Gaiman 105) Different people came to America a long time ago and are still coming. They don’t bring much to America but their beliefs and stories that have been passed on to them from generations. Once they come to America, the beliefs and stories get lost in time. That is why the old Gods are weak because their believers have forgotten them. “The old gods are ignored. The new gods are as quickly take up as they are abandoned, case aside for the next big thing.”(538) The new gods are modernization, such as media, phones, shopping malls, etc. People sacrifice their time and concentration to worship these gods. People's culture is changing from myths, beliefs, and stories to technology, social media, and money. 

I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in mythology origin and stories. In the beginning, the book is not an eye catcher until the middle. If you like a tad bit of mystery this would also be a great book to read. However, my opinion is the book was too long. The author provides too much information and it is difficult to remember all the details in the book.