Anansi Boys

[hells_half_acre]

I hope everyone is enjoying the east coast feed of Supernatural! I'm about to take off to my friend's place to watch the west feed (or the PVRed, east feed)...so, I'll be posting my quick reaction later, as usual, yay!

Anyway, I just finished Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman. Since I posted about American Gods, I figured I should post about this one too.

I liked it. It's hard to say whether I liked it more or less than American Gods, because the two books were very different. Anansi Boys is far less dense and far more traditionally-novelly (if that makes any sense). American Gods, I thought, had a bit of a wonky format, but Anansi Boys didn't feel that way...it was more story and less world-building perhaps.

(Oh, when I posted about American Gods, I forgot to say how much I loved the little short stories between chapters sometimes...especially the New York Cabbie one...that one was so deliciously perfect and creepy).

It occurred to me, while reading Anansi Boys, that I usually only read books about white people...I had never noticed this until now. I'm trying to figure out if this is the first time I ever read a story that had non-white protagonists. Way to live in a bubble of Caucasian-ness, me.

The other thing I thought I would mention is that the narrator of my audiobook was fantastic. The book was read by Lenny Henry, and I know nothing about him, except that his reading of this book was one of the best readings of a book I've ever heard. I'd put him right up there with Jim Dale (is that right?) - the dude who reads the Harry Potter books. Actually, I'd go so far as to rank him even slightly above that...I especially liked his voice to Tiger, it was PURRRRFECT...and really, he had everyone perfect. It was really well done. I wonder if you can search audiobooks by narrator? 

So, yes, Anansi Boys was a good book...and I'm really glad I decided that Dean was a fan of this book in that drabble I wrote the other week. It fits him perfectly. 

Comments

[msninacat.livejournal.com]

Glad you enjoyed!

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

Me too!

I haven't read the book that your icon quote comes from...but I've seen the quote before and I love it.

[msninacat.livejournal.com]

It's very weird humor, i.e. strange British humor, lol. Good Omens is awesome cause you have two styles woven together and it's just full of win.

I went on a Gaiman kick after reading that. It was the gateway book for me. ;D

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

I like British humour. Well...I'm assuming I like British humour, because I was introduced to reading through Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and Red Dwarf (the books).

It was the one he wrote with Pratchett right? I've read a Pratchett book before...I remember devouring it pretty quickly, but I can't actually remember much about it. Alas, my local library does not have Good Omens or any Pratchett in audiobook form.

For me, Supernatural was the gateway to Gaiman...since I really wanted to know what people were complaining about with Hammer of the Gods. Turns out, in my opinion, they had nothing to complain about...though I do thank them for recommending the books.

[msninacat.livejournal.com]

It depends with me. I actually do like a lot of British humor and then I get flogged because quite a bit of Monty Python is just NOT funny to me. idk

He did write Good Omens with Pratchett. Sorry about the library but it is definitely worth the buy in paperback. The stories about how many people have bought multiple paperbacks alone are worth it. lol

Supernatural is great thing to open new areas of research. I knew of Gaiman but I hadn't read anything but when Kripke was talking influences and we got to Crowley, I HAD to check it out.

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

Well, maybe I'll see how much it costs...in paperback or audiobook. If it's anything like the Pratchett book I read, I could probably devour it in paperback pretty quickly. Though, that wouldn't solve my need for audiobooks...but audiobooks tend to be more expensive, so I try to stick with what the library has for those. I was lucky they had Anansi Boys.

Makes me wonder what blind people do...they're library selections are so limited.

But yeah, Supernatural really opens up a of new research...at least, once you become enough of a fan to be interested in influences...it almost made me want to read Milton's Paradise Lost :P (but I'm not that crazy, thankfully)

[ramblin_rosie]

My mom was a part-time companion to an elderly lady with macular degeneration for a few years, and one of her jobs was ordering audiobooks, so I know that there are several free audiobook programs for the visually impaired here in the States--the Library of Congress has one, and so does the state of Texas. And there's always Interlibrary Loan, and LibriVox for the technically savvy. But yes, if one is limited to only the local public library, the pickings can be slim. :P

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

Oh good...I'm glad people are looking out for the blind. I'm just a busy sighted-person, so I really shouldn't complain. :P

[msninacat.livejournal.com]

The paperback shouldn't be more than $6-8 US. Idk about the audiobook. I imagine they would be quite a bit more though.

I'm currently awaiting the time and money to go get Paradise Lost and I think Dante's Inferno is on that list as well. ;D

Thanks for the book chat!

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

Ooo, well, have fun with Paradise Lost! Tell me how it is. I've only heard about it through my Mum who took a university course on it on a dare. :P