American Gods by Neil Gaiman

Neil Gaiman is one of those writers who I should have read more of by this time, but never have. I have dabbled in Sandman (I read the first trade anyway) and some of his other comic book work, but somehow I just never got around to reading any of his books. Now, I am quite happy, that situation has been rectified!

On one hand, this is a rather simple review - and I’ll lay it out plainly - you should read American Gods. Being equal parts wonder and horror, with some road trip adventure thrown in for good measure, American Gods is a god's honest great American novel (no, no, not "the" great American novel, but a damned good one for sure). Populated with interesting characters that you actually care about, it is a wild ride through America. More than all that, it touches upon what America is... although, here I am slightly perplexed - somehow we have left it to a Brit to write such a quality piece American fiction? Sure, Gaiman now calls Minnesota home, but wow, this book actually "gets" a lot about what I think America is.

Then again (here’s my “on the other hand”) this is an incredibly tough review - there is so much to like, that it often seemed while reading it, I wanted this book to be multiple books. Gaiman does an admirable job of pulling it all together (and he does pull it all off as well), but I very much wish he could have spent more time exploring some of the more esoteric ideas (as with much of Speculative Fiction, ideas are important), places (the real and imaginary), and gods (oh boy, the gods make this book fun). So for me to get into one of the many many aspects (yep, there is a bunch I am not mentioning) of this book, I feel I should give equal time discussing too many things... this, to me, seems like such a monumental prospect that I am just going to leave it by saying - this is a book that will leave readers dreaming of more (and very likely different readers will find themselves wanting more of different elements present in this book), and that is a good thing.

OK, so here you are saying “great, but what’s the book about”? No? Good, because this is a very good book - it is about a lot, and it deserves you pick it up for gander and not let some book blogger tell you what it is all about.

A Lazy Blogger Weekend

Yep, your friendly lazy book blogger is back at the controls to share some other people’s posts with you... sure, after a busy week of work, I could sit down to write out an in-depth review of a good book, or possibly some well thought out commentary on a recent book news tidbit, but instead I think I will just let the unlazy shine. So here is some good reading I think you should check out...

First and foremost, I hope everyone got to read last weekend’s wonderful New York Times’ article on Jack Vance - great stuff.

It started a little while ago, but has everyone been keeping up with Cory Doctorow’s Makers? Me? I’m waiting for the book.

Here’s a good article on upcoming books.

Want to watch a book blogger pull an author out of hiding? Check out Library Dad’s S.M. Stirling post (makes sure to read the comments).

A non-book blogger chimes in on the Kindle/1984 controversy... the funny thing is that I agree with just about everything thing this natural health dude has got to say (and I am NOT a natural health kind of guy).

I highly recommend you read this fabulous Author Profile of Tad Williams - damn, I have to hand it to Adam of The Wertzone... he writes some in-depth posts that are always enlightening.

I am still continuously amused by bad book covers, thank you Judge a Book by its Cover! Yeah, I know the link is over there on my blogroll (which desperately needs to be updated and expanded), but maybe you missed it.

And lastly, in honor of San Diego Comic Con - I just saw a new way to read comic books on the iPhone thanks to Comixology... although I am actually a fan of the ComicZeal app by Bitolithic, I think this new app with its in app purchase ability is a nice step forward for digital comics (yep, I am a contradiction waiting to happen - I believe ebooks should be ignored, yet I do support digital comics - the difference between the two being... well, that’s more writing than I can handle right now).

OK, that’ll be it for now; this lazy book blogger is off to spend some quality time on the couch with a book...

The Fires of Heaven by Robert Jordan

Being the Tenth Post of my Project Reread...
This is the longest I have taken to read a book in quite some time... in many aspects it was an exhausting, yet rewarding and entertaining, reread. Part of the problem with this reread is that during the process of reading this book I read three other books, returning to the Fires of Heaven at different times, generally making a mess of reading mind - I typically only read one book at a time limiting the confusion that comes along with reading multiple books at once, but over the past month I have been bouncing back and forth between books as if it were a contest of sorts. Oh well, my reading habits seem to be back to normal now and I do have a few words to share about The Fires of Heaven now...

The Fires of Heaven is a fine middle book to a series - stuff happens that matters to the story as a whole, it expands the world, adds complexity, and entertains - but it does also drag a bit in parts. The Fires of Heaven is sometimes the book (but definitely not the most frequent) that readers who give up on the series point to as the last book they read. There were certain sections that were slow, so I can understand that point of view, but for me, I just really enjoying spending time in Robert Jordan’s world, so these slower parts are pleasant from that perspective.

It seems almost a shame for me to have spent so long rereading The Fires of Heaven that I now have so few words to share about it, but so be it, lots more rereading to go before this project ends. The Fires of Heaven adds to the series (both in the complexity level of the going-ons, and the scope) and I enjoyed it very much...

Was it worth a reread? Yes, to me The Fires of Heaven was almost as enjoyable the second time around as it was the first (OK, I admit, it is more like the fourth time around). For anyone reading the series for the first time, I highly recommend it. For those of you who may be preparing to read the final books of the series, well I guess it all depends on your feelings of this book the first time around.
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Collector’s note - if you look around the internet you will most likely see more than a few sellers trying to sell unsigned first editions of The Fires of Heaven for well over the cover the price - do not buy anything from these people... plan to spend no more than the cover price for a nice copy - and in my mind that is good purchase. In this portion of my previous Project Reread post, I mentioned I would be talking about the signed limited editions of the Wheel of Time books, but alas, I have slacked on this subject, and that must wait for a later post (hey, I got to keep readers coming back somehow).
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What’s next on my Project Reread - pretty sure I am sticking with RJ again, so on to the Lord of Chaos I will be shortly. I will likely be holding off on rereading the rest of A Song of Ice and Fire series until the fall - just too much going on this summer with work and whatnot to devote my mental energy to really paying attention to George R.R. Martin’s saga... yes, I know that sounds weak, but ASoIaF is a series that deserves my full attention, and considering my love of the series, I want to devote my full attention to, and get the most out of, my reread of it.

Booked to Die by John Dunning

For book lovers and mystery lovers alike, I’ve got a read for you... Booked to Die by John Dunning. Booked to Die is John Dunning’s first Cliff Janeway novel (currently up to 5 books so far) and, obviously, the place to get in on this wonderful mystery series. This book is a fast paced enjoyable mystery which should be of special interest to booksellers, book collectors, and bibliophiles of all sorts.

Cliff Janeway, a book collecting Denver cop, is out to solve the murder of a local book scout. In the process of having Janeway solve the mystery, the reader is treated to a nice assortment of book collecting/selling tidbits and lore (for example - if you don’t know what a book scout is, this series of books is worth the price of admission for the knowledge you will gain about the book biz alone). Additionally, as Dunning illustrates, the book trade world is populated by some unique and fascinating characters. The fact that all this book love is all rolled into an enjoyable mystery, with some truly unexpected twists and turns, just makes it that much better.

From identifying a first edition to opening a book store, this series of mysteries, when taken as whole, is a bibliophile’s treasury of information. At some point I would love to reread the entire series, taking notes as I go, just to be able to list the amount of book knowledge a reader can gain through reading John Dunning’s Cliff Janeway Bookman series. Of course, John Dunning isn’t just a bookman (yep, he is an actual bookseller) who writes mysteries, he is one that writes fabulous mysteries that would be enjoyable to even someone who doesn’t care about the side subject matter of books... I’d recommend this book to anyone who wants to read an entertaining high quality mystery. And it is a must read for book collectors/lovers/sellers. Read it!
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Collector’s note - the first edition of Booked to Die, due to a relatively small printing and the subject matter, is a rather collectible book. Currently, it seems, a fine first is going in the neighborhood of $500+ on up (some later printings even go for a fair bit of change as well). John Dunning, in the introduction to the most recent editions, even talks about his book in relation to the phenomenon of collecting hypermodern first editions - yes, an introduction to a book that is actually fascinating to read, hard to believe, but true.

My Life in and out of the Rough by John Daly

I must start off by saying I was raised on golf. Some of my earliest and fondest memories are of going out to the local course with my Dad on Saturdays and Sundays, not to mention all the afternoons at driving ranges, learning about the game (and life as well). Just thinking about tagging along with my Dad, toting my cut-down 7 iron, brings a smile to my face as I write this. I have never been able to break 80 (nowadays if hit in the low 90’s I feel good about my game), but that never bothered my father in the slightest, even though he was what I consider a true golfer (he had a respect, knowledge, and passion for the game that you don’t often see - plus he could play), he ultimately knew it was just a game. When he passed away, I inherited a nice little collection of golf books which I dip into from time to time - for what it’s worth; this is not one of those books...

Love him or hate him, if you are a golfer, you know him. Chances are, even if you are not a golfer, you know of him - a hard drinking, long driving, self described redneck, John Daly is to the golf world what... ah crap, I’ve got no comparisons here - John Daly is like no other figure in the sport that I can think of, and his autobiography, My Life in and out of the Rough: The Truth Behind All That Bull**** You Think You Know About Me, is a sports memoir of a different sorts - a professional athlete taking an actual honest-to-god honest look at his life, both in and out of the sport. I found the candor here to make for a truly unique reading experience... not only do you get the birdies and bogeys talk of a typical golf memoir, you get a truthful and frank glimpse behind the off course life of Daly.

In My Life in and out of the Rough, Daly delves into many of the stories that made headlines throughout his career, from winning the 1991 PGA Championship to his off course escapades. He holds nothing back as he talks about his drinking, weight problems, legal issues, multiple marriages, and gambling (among other topics)... in some ways this book can be considered a case study in excess and compulsive behavior (and it actually raises, maybe unintentionally, some good points on the makeup of bad behavior and poor decision making - let’s be honest, just because you drink too much it doesn’t mean you are an alcoholic).

For casual golf fans, I’d say this is a fun and fascinating look into one of the sport’s true characters. Coming clearly through all the off-course talk is Daly’s love of golf. It is written in a highly readable conversational style, often taking advantage of vernacular you don’t hear too often off of a golf course. On a rainy afternoon when you can’t make it out to the club for a round, it will entertain you - and an afternoon is all you will need to get through this book (even for this slow and easily distracted reader). It gives nice little insights into the sport (yeah, Tiger shows up a couple of times) and will most likely leave you rooting for a JD comeback. If you like John Daly, you’ll enjoy this book. If you don’t like John, chances are you won’t. I like John Daly.