Neil Gaiman's The Anansi Boys was an enjoyable novel. I am a fan of stories that mix modern reality with fantasy elements . It reminded me of a book I read when I was a kid called Kingdom for Sale, SOLD! by Terry Brooks. Both of these novels take a modern day individual who have ordinary lives and throws them into a new reality they were totally unaware of. This seems like an alternative way of taking the reader into another world and it works fairly well I would say. I have always been a fan of tall-tales and The Anansi Boys is a great new adaptation of one.
I really enjoy the manner in which the story is told. I think I can see some influence from Tolkein in this. He delivers the story as a storyteller would: as if he were sitting in front of you presenting his own creative narrative spun around a modern urban setting. He would sidetrack from the main narrative and explain any details that the reader may not know about just in the manner Tolkein would. This appeals to me. I like being told a story versus simply reading words on a page that create a story.
The imagery presented for the Gods' caves at the beginning and end of the world was quite imaginative. This was a new and imaginative vision for me, so it was refreshing to picture their caves and appearances in my mind. I thought maybe their home would be much grander than it was. I would imagine something such as an endless expanse of land with areas designed specifically for each type of animal God. However I can see the justification for what was given for the sake of continuing the story.
On a random note, I was not a fan of Rosie as a person, but I do not hold any contempt for the writer because it helps the story. If she were truly in love with Charlie, I would feel she could see past the guise of Spider and see him for the imposter he was. This helps develop the connection, or lack-there-of, between Charlie and Rosie. This gives Charlie more of an opportunity to put his old life behind him and assume his rightful position his father once held as well as get a girl who actually loves him. The fact she cannot see past Spider's falsity helps to create the tension needed to separate Rosie and place Spider in a sticky situation one would expect him to fall into.
The whole fiasco between Grahame Coats and Maeve Livingstone is a great device used in the book to link many things together. This was almost a whole story on its own that was interwoven with the main narrative and kept my interest throughout the book. Maeve's murder seemed to be chalked up to fate due to the fact she played a pivotal part in the finale and Anansi knew of her arrival. Her wandering ghost was a unique element to the story that really sells the tall-tale nature of the story. Her character was great. The fact she was essentially unaware, or rather, in denial of her own death at first and claims she has unfinished business was really cool.
On the topic of appealing characters, I would say the the character I visioned as the grandest was the bird woman. If this book were to be adapted to film, her character would have an awesome screen presence. Her involvement with the Anansi bloodline and her ultimate role in the end was very compelling. Not to mention tiger's involvement with Grahame Coats. This incarnation of the tiger was definitely foreseeable as soon as Grahame committed his first murder and he goes on to say it felt good and primal.
I would definitely recommend this to friends who are fans of this genre.
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