American Gods

(I didn't understand the summary of the book when I picked it up from the shelves, I don't think it is doing a good job of selling the book...)

Shadow is about to be released from prison when he learns his wife died in a car crash together with his best friend. When flying home, he meets an old man who goes by the name of Wednesday that offers him a job as his bodyguard. Since Shadow has no life to return to, he accepts the job. Wednesday is an old god (Odin) and even though America is filled with gods, they don't prosper because people no longer believe in them. Nowadays people believe in TV, Internet or fast food and those are the new gods. Wednesday wants to gather the old gods so they can fight the new ones in an epic battle. In order to do that, he takes Shadow in an extraordinary journey through America visiting old and new gods from all over the world that came to America inside people's hearts a very long time ago.

I couldn't help but find a parallel between Shadow's story and Hercules' labours as they both undertake long journeys meeting mythical creatures and overcoming perils, whilst learning about themselves and the world surrounding them. It's amazing how many different gods and cultures Gaiman squeezed into this book, all the while maintaining a bit of suspense and mystery about what really is going on. There are also some witty moments that brought a smile to my face when I least expected it, which made me enjoy this book immensely. Advice: even though this book is long, don't make big pauses while reading it so you don't lose track of the many names and respective stories.