Fat Charlie Nancy's normal life ended
the moment his father dropped dead on a Florida karaoke stage. Charlie didn't
know his dad was a god. And he never knew he had a brother. In Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman Charlie's nickname comes from his father—Mr. Nancy had a way of
leaving an impact. Mr. Nancy was Anansi, a trickster god, the spider god. He
spun webs of chaos and lived life to the fullest. Now he is dead, and Charlie
is saddled with Spider, his handsome, magical, and lawless brother. Spider and
Fat Charlie are polar opposites, and the wild, confused ride they have upends
everything in Fat Charlie’s life—his relationship with his fiancé, his job
security, what he knows about his family and the crazy old ladies who knew his
dad.
Originality: 10. This truly is a mythology for the modern age. It combines
African-American folklore, fables, and a sort of everyday magic with a killer
sense of humor. Cool!
Absurdity: 2. Magical realism. Suspend disbelief. The mythology vignets about Mr. Nancy and his tricks
helped root the story as well. (This book is an offshoot of Gaiman’s American Gods, so if you had read
that—we had not—then it would also help orientate the reader).
Level of Paranormal Romance: 3. I don’t want to spoil anything, but
it is hilarious how Spider convinces everyone he is Fat Charlie, and poor Rosie,
his fiancé, never had a chance. Spider = charm. The romantic pairings
were understated but sweet and crucial to the plot.
Level of Harry-Potter-ness: 8. Have you experienced the awesome of
Gaiman’s prose and the intricate plot yet? The world loved The Graveyard Book (YAF & WS loved it too). Anansi Boys is also excellent and intricately plotted.
This grade also reflects the stellar audio narration. The voices were great and
the accents for the little old ladies in particular. Not to mention audiobooks
narrated by Brits are just more fun.
My boyfriend
and I are BAD road-trippers because of our differing opinions on volume
control/Glee songs /the proper way to close a car door. But this audiobook made
our road trip to Montreal a breeze. SUCCESS! Thanks, Mr. Gaiman, for being awesome and
making vacations fun again.
I've heard SUCH good things about this and am dying to read it. I hadn't realized it was in the same world as American Gods. I have that one on my kindle.
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