Anansi Boys
By Neil Gaiman
(William Morrow, Hardcover, 9780060515188, 352pp.)
Publication Date: September 20, 2005
Other Editions of This Title: Google eBook, Mass Market Paperback, Paperback
Categories: General
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One of fiction's most audaciously original talents, Neil Gaiman now gives us a mythology for a modern age -- complete with dark prophecy, family dysfunction, mystical deceptions, and killer birds. Not to mention a lime.
Anansi Boys
God is dead. Meet the kids.
When Fat Charlie's dad named something, it stuck. Like calling Fat Charlie "Fat Charlie." Even now, twenty years later, Charlie Nancy can't shake that name, one of the many embarrassing "gifts" his father bestowed -- before he dropped dead on a karaoke stage and ruined Fat Charlie's life.
Mr. Nancy left Fat Charlie things. Things like the tall, good-looking stranger who appears on Charlie's doorstep, who appears to be the brother he never knew. A brother as different from Charlie as night is from day, a brother who's going to show Charlie how to lighten up and have a little fun ... just like Dear Old Dad. And all of a sudden, life starts getting very interesting for Fat Charlie.
Because, you see, Charlie's dad wasn't just any dad. He was Anansi, a trickster god, the spider-god. Anansi is the spirit of rebellion, able to overturn the social order, create wealth out of thin air, and baffle the devil. Some said he could cheat even Death himself.
Returning to the territory he so brilliantly explored in his masterful New York Times bestseller, American Gods, the incomparable Neil Gaiman offers up a work of dazzling ingenuity, a kaleidoscopic journey deep into myth that is at once startling, terrifying, exhilarating, and fiercely funny -- a true wonder of a novel that confirms Stephen King's glowing assessment of the author as "a treasure-house of story, and we are lucky to have him."
Neil Gaiman’s bestselling novels include Neverwhere, American Gods, Coraline, Anansi Boys, and Good Omens (with Terry Pratchett). He is the creator of the Sandman series of graphic novels and author of the short-fiction collections Smoke and Mirrors and Fragile Things. The winner of numerous literary honors, Gaiman is originally from England but now lives in America.
“Ebullient . . . The Gaiman faithful will devour it gratefully.”
-Sacramento Bee
“A very accomplished comic novel.”
-Daily Telegraph (London)
“Gaiman at his best.”
-Rocky Mountain News
“A hybrid of folk tale and farce that freely partakes of the comic wealth in each.”
-Salon.com
“[Gaiman] gives his flair for comedy free rein without losing his appreciation for the darker aspects of world mythology.”
-San Francisco Chronicle
“Genre-busting . . . very creative and very funny. Grade: A-”
-Christian Science Monitor
“An off-kilter blend of reality and fantasy.”
-Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“Readers who enjoyed American Gods . . . will fall madly in love with ANANSI BOYS.”
-St. Louis Post-Dispatch
“Somehow manages to be both really scary and really funny at the same time.”
-Newsweek
“Funny and subversive . . . Gaiman’s mastery of language carries the reader through to a satisfying conclusion.”
-USA Today
“A clever, quick-witted book.”
-Oklahoma City Oklahoman
“Delightful, funny and affecting . . . the literary equivalent of a hole in one.”
-Washington Post Book World
“A welterweight boxer of a book -- light on its feet, but capable of delivering a punch.”
-Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“A remarkably funny book.”
-Toronto Star
“[Gaiman is] the folksy, witty, foolishly wise narrator to perfection.”
-Booklist (starred review)
“Gaiman at his best.”
-Rocky Mountain News
“A droll comedy of manners with elements of mystery, thriller and romance thrown in . . . Charming.”
-Vancouver Sun
“ANANSI BOYS makes an incredible read.”
-Times Leader
“The most accomplished of Gaiman’s novels . . . Urbane and sophisticated.”
-Time Out London
“Deliciously compulsive . . . Grade: A.”
-Washington Post
“Witty and engaging.”
-Minneapolis Star Tribune
“A thoughtful, atmospheric novel.”
-London Times
“Another lovely story as only Gaiman can tell it; necessary and recommended.”
-Library Journal
“Ebullient . . . ingenious . . . enormously entertaining throughout.”
-Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“Another great work from Neil Gaiman.”
-Toronto Star
“A madcap, screwball world that is partly absurd, occassionally humane and always entertaining.”
-Pittsburgh Tribune
“Gaiman hardwires his comedy of misrule with a crackpot energy that, when successfully channelled, lights up the imagination.”
-Sunday Times (London)
“Darkly funny and heartwarming to the end, this book is an addictive read not easily forgotten.”
-School Library Journal
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