ABOUT: Fat Charlie Nancy is a man who is easily embarrassed. Despite this, he has managed to achieve something resembling a normal life. A Job with a boss he thinks he doesn’t really like and a fiancée with a mother he knows he definitely doesn’t like.
Fat Charlie’s greatest source of embarrassment though is his father, even more so when he dies of a heart attack at the beginning of a karaoke performance.
After the funeral, Fat Charlie learns that his father was in fact, the trickster God Anansi, and that he has a brother he knew nothing about, Spider.
His brother Spider inherited his father’s abilities, and when Spider turns up at Fat Charlie’s place in London, Fat Charlie’s life quickly spins totally out of control.
FOR: - The strongest attraction of Anansi Boys is a story that sparkles with charm, imagination and character. It is well structured and paced and Gaiman has inserted more than a few twists along the way to surprise and shock the reader.
- Gaiman’s characters are engaging and for the most part, likeable (except for Grahame Coats, who at times is downright creepy!). Fat Charlie is the nervous everyman that we can all relate too, and his brother Spider is like the cool kid at highschool we all wanted to be like. The supporting cast of characters are equally well realised and a clear evolution can be seen in every character’s path throughout the novel.
- The portrayal of families and relationships lies at the heart of Anansi Boys and it is something that Gaiman has done very well. I had to wince at some of the embarrassing memories of my own family that the novel evoked!
- Anansi Boys brims with humour. From gentle word plays and slapstick to laugh out loud moments (the line about the menopausal mafia comes to mind). More often, laugh out loud moments than anything else, as Fat Charlie tries to fix the mess he finds himself in.
AGAINST: - At times the humour could get a tad excessive and I was left hoping that there would be a little bit more meat on the bones (A cliché to make Grahame Coats proud!). At other times the humour could be a little hit and miss.
- Will I be the only one who felt a little disappointed by the ending? It seemed to tie things together a little too well. After all the mayhem that Fat Charlie and Spider endure, I guess I was expecting it to be a little bit more of a mess. Then again, the ending definitely suited the tone of the book.
VERDICT: A highly entertaining, intelligent, imaginative and witty book. It is well worth looking out for.
SCORE: 8 out of 10.
OTHER OPINIONS: Sf Reviews.net, Emerald City and Sf Site.
AUTHOR’S WEBSITE: Neil Gaiman's website (including an excellent web journal), can be found here.
No comments:
Post a Comment