In the back of my copy of American Gods, it says "We think this book is as good as Steven King... if you disagree you can claim your money back" (or words to that effect).

What kind of marketing is that? Neil Gaiman is tons better than Steven King, he is connected to the zeitgeist, taps into mythology and stuff, and is completely ace. (OK so I've only read about 2 paragraphs of a Steven King novel, and about a chapter of the Dark Tower, which was AWFUL, but even Steven King practically admitted that American Gods is better than his stuff - see reviews).

Anyway I think American Gods is great, I couldn't put it down (in fact that was the only problem, I wanted to spin it out because it is so well-written, but I couldn't put it down).

Yvonne
http://www.geocities.com/godgifu.geo

Hello, I'm new to the forums and relatively new to Gaiman. Several years ago, an old friend, long since moved on but not forgotten, tried to get me to read the Sandman Series of Graphic novels. I didn't know what a "graphic novel" was, and when she showed me her collection, I had to bite my tongue to keep from bursting out in hysterical laughter. The books I read are for grown ups - they don't have pictures (I thought with an elitist snort!).

About a year later, I forgot to send in my response form for my Book Club, and an advance copy of Gaiman's "American Gods" arrived at my doorstep. Since it was the second time this particular Author had been tossed in my face, I decided to keep the book and give it a try.

I have to agree with the statement of this thread. Being a Stephen King Fan, and since giving up the ghost on *ever* having the Dark Tower Series finished, I have been searching for a new Author to occupy my mind.

It was only thru sheer force of will that put American Gods down in order to extend the experience. It became my guilty pleasure. A few chapters while soaking in a hot tub, a few before bed, it was like having extraordinary chocolate that was mine alone to savor. I have pushed this book on just about everyone I know, surely becoming quite the pest!

I have since sought out and purchased Neverwhere and Stardust. And then I did the unthinkable.... I went to my local Commercial Book Store and ordered the entire Sandman Series. I got them in an odd order, so I have ended up reading them in all scattered - First "The Dream Hunters", then "The Wake" (not realizing until half way thru this was the last in the series), then "Preludes and Nocturens" arrived and I am currently in the first quarter of "A Game of You".

I had no idea how challenging a graphic novel is to read - being new to the genre.

And to think, all of this journey began because of an accidental delivery of "American Gods."

Definately better than King, and defiantely a *keeper*.

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What kind of marketing is that?

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Umm.. the good kind? Gaiman is obviously on par with King in quality at the very least. King is much better known however and sells an order of magnitude more books. Telling all the people that buy King's books that Gaiman is a safe buy or your money back is a good thing.

Oh, and welcome to the fold BeachWitch. Let me take a moment to highly recommend www.comicbookgalaxy.com as a place to look to expand your new found medium in some good directions. They are a bit harsh at times (there is much I like that Alan and his site mates don't) I have yet to be let down by anything they recommended at more than $400 (and at 30% off to boot usually) worth and counting.

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jello.
aka aron.

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Originally posted by BeachWitch:
Hello, I'm new to the forums and relatively new to Gaiman. Several years ago, an old friend, long since moved on but not forgotten, tried to get me to read the Sandman Series of Graphic novels. I didn't know what a "graphic novel" was, and when she showed me her collection, I had to bite my tongue to keep from bursting out in hysterical laughter. The books I read are for grown ups - they don't have pictures (I thought with an elitist snort!).

About a year later, I forgot to send in my response form for my Book Club, and an advance copy of Gaiman's "American Gods" arrived at my doorstep. Since it was the second time this particular Author had been tossed in my face, I decided to keep the book and give it a try.

I have to agree with the statement of this thread. Being a Stephen King Fan, and since giving up the ghost on *ever* having the Dark Tower Series finished, I have been searching for a new Author to occupy my mind.

It was only thru sheer force of will that put American Gods down in order to extend the experience. It became my guilty pleasure. A few chapters while soaking in a hot tub, a few before bed, it was like having extraordinary chocolate that was mine alone to savor. I have pushed this book on just about everyone I know, surely becoming quite the pest!

I have since sought out and purchased Neverwhere and Stardust. And then I did the unthinkable.... I went to my local Commercial Book Store and ordered the entire Sandman Series. I got them in an odd order, so I have ended up reading them in all scattered - First "The Dream Hunters", then "The Wake" (not realizing until half way thru this was the last in the series), then "Preludes and Nocturens" arrived and I am currently in the first quarter of "A Game of You".

I had no idea how challenging a graphic novel is to read - being new to the genre.

And to think, all of this journey began because of an accidental delivery of "American Gods."

Definately better than King, and defiantely a *keeper*.

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Now that's a nice magical way to discover Neil Gaiman. Thanks for sharing it beachwitch.

"All~this~world~is~but~a~play.Be~thou~a~joyful~player!"

If i'd bought the book and it had that offer, i would have taken them up on it.... there's nothing in "American Gods" that approaches the awesomeness of the Dark Tower series, and no characters who are fit to shine Roland's guns.

Did you read the same Dark Tower as me? I started the first book last week and I really am not seeing the point. Maybe its just the start of it but it seems to be quite badly written, apart from anything else. If I handed up stuff that quality I'd be chucked off my course. I know he can write better than that, having read a lot of his stuff over the past two summers. I'm also pretty sure that Neil Gaiman has, apart from anything else, a lot better grasp of the language and narrative structure. On the other hand, its probably unfair to compare them. Go re-read the first Dark Tower book, re-read American Gods, and then tell me that King is better. And as far as the gunslingers of the Dark Tower stuff goes, David Gemmell does it better in the Shannow novels.

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'I'm insane. What's his excuse?'

I reread the first two Dark Tower books recently and they're still as great as I remembered. "American Gods" is imaginative, but it can't compare to Roland's quest for the Dark Tower... his pursuit of the Dark Man, the slipping of his ideals, his challenge to Cort... its so great.
And i'll ask again-- does anyone know a Dark Tower fansite?

The Floyd still needs to write "Roland and the Dream King"

Hi, I'm new. I have preferred Gaiman over King since I was first introduced to the Sandman series early in 2001. American Gods is an amazing read. I had to force myself to put it down in order to do things like, oh, eat and sleep.

"And perhaps that is what she wants...To be lost in dreams." - King of All Night's Dreaming

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Originally posted by The Lord of Nothings:
If i'd bought the book and it had that offer, i would have taken them up on it.... there's nothing in "American Gods" that approaches the awesomeness of the Dark Tower series, and no characters who are fit to shine Roland's guns.

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I wholeheartedly agree. I just finished rereading American Gods for about the 3rd time, but in my mind Dark Tower is a better story, and I've only read that series once. On the whole, I think King and Gaiman are both great writers, and I'm a big fan of both. I wouldn't ever think of comparing AG to DT, since they're nothing alike, but i think Lord of Nothings is right that none of AG's characters would be given the right to sling guns.

I'm more of a recent convert. My first run in with Neil Gaiman's work was reading Good Omens. I was (and remain) a hard core fan of Terry Pratchett, so I picked that one up. Frankly, I was unimpressed, and didn't chase down any more work at the time.

Recently, however, I was given Two Plays for Voice as a gift. (We travel quite a bit and I'm always on the lookout for audio CD's to pop in for the longer trips.) I was, quite simply, floored. I determined at once to pick up some more of Gaiman's work and give it a chance.

I came down with the Flu this last week (*sniffle*) just after picking up American Gods. Good Lord! What an amazing read. I only wish I hadn't been bed ridden so I could have stretched out that delight for more than a single day. One of the better books I've read in the last year, no doubt. I have now ordered a couple more and have those to look forward to. This is something special.

As to the original poster's comment, I have a hard time comparing one artist to another, particularly when they are in relatively different styles. Simple enough to say that they are both wonderful, and King certainly has a large body of work including many offerings that I've thoroughly enjoyed

Insert Witty Comment Here

I've read Stephen King and there is definately no comparison. After reading Gaiman ( and I'm only actually halfway through American Gods ) I have no overwhelming desire to read King again.. though I must say I will continue to do so for principal sake. Does anyone have a suggestion on which book to read next? AG is the only one I've read(ing) so far.

the Gaiman books you'll find in stores:

Good Omens: a comedy done with Terry Pratchett about the end of the world
Stardust: a fairy tale
Neverwhere: a darker story about a world below London
Smoke & Mirrors: a collection of short stories
Coraline: A dark tale aimed at children

I'd go for Smoke & Mirrors (to get a feel for many Gaiman stories) or Neverwhere if you're coming from Stephen King.

Hi! I'm new here. (See my "hello" post) But I guess I'm going to jump in with both feet.

Gaiman better than King? King better than Gaiman? What a silly argument! How about "different?" We're talking apples and oranges, here. I mean, sure, they're both fruit (the apples and oranges, that is,) But they taste quite different.

Neil mentions the "As good as King" marketing ploy in "Adventures in the Dream Trade" (which I highly recommend, if you haven't read it, or the blog it transcribes.) He seemes somewhat amused and bemused at the UK publisher's guarantee. (Damn! I KNOW that's not spelled right.)

I've been a King fan since I read "Carrie" in the mid 1970's. I was a fan of Neil's before I even realized it. (It took me a while to discover that the guy who wrote "Violent Cases" was the same guy that wrote "Don't Panic," the terrific book on Douglas Adams.) But, even though they bump into each other's territories now and then, they really don't write the same kind of stuff at all.

I will say that, for years, my all time favorite novel was King's "The Stand." That was, up until I read "Good Omens." I actually give "Good Omens" to friends and family as gifts, on a regular basis. (Haven't read "American Gods" yet. I plan to start it tomorrow.)

As for "The Dark Tower," It isn't King's best work. But I do enjoy it. And if you have only read the first one, I recommend that you keep going. It gets better and better.

"You get what everyone gets. You get a lifetime." -- Death

Stephen King is my long time favorite author. I love the Dark Tower stories and because of that I have been able to follow along while nearly every book he has written in the past 10 years has been about the Dark Tower in one way or another. King got me into reading as a child (the first real novel I read was Salem's Lot) and I will be with him until the end. I got into Gaiman with Sandman and have since read all of hi work as well. They exist in two different genres. While Gaiman touches on some of King's themes, King is still about the dread and horror while Gaiman is about the fantastical and darkly humorous. King is retiring because, as he has stated, there is not mush more to say. The Dark Tower has become the over-riding theme in his work and if you are not into it, then you are out in the cold. I will follow King to the end but I am thankful that Gaiman will be there when King has stopped and after the utter brilliance of "American Gods" I cannot wait to see what he has coming next.

"These guys think they must try and just get over on us."

I have to admit, over a year ago, I had no idea who this Neil Gaiman character was. Then one day as I was looking for comics, I stumbled upon a Trade Paperback called, "Sandman:Preludes and Nocturnes" which was writen by some author I've never heard of before. I said to my self then, "Ah what the heck." and I bought it. I took it home and started to read, and then three hours later I finished the final page of the book, ans all I could do was shake my head. This was NOT a comic book. I've heard the phrase Advant Garde before, but now I trully knew what the phrase ment. Neil Gaiman created a work of art.
After finishing the entire Sandman series, I felt that I need more, and I have recently moved onto one of his novels entitled "American Gods." After studing English liturature in University for the past two years, I have yet to come across a style of writting such as this Gothic/Fantasy style. I trully fell in love. Neil Gaiman is an "American God."
In comparison to Steven Kings Dark Tower series, American Gods blows it out of the water. For shere depth and complexity of Gaiman's charaters this novel can hardly be compared to Kings work. I have to admit though, King's Roland and Gaiman's Shadow are qite simular in many ways, and they are both perfect protagonists.
Although Steven King produces more books than is humanly possible, most of those books are, in my opinion, garbage. All of Gaiman's works are amazing thought stimulating works of art. Ya, if this book wasn't as good as Steven King, I would take it back because it'd have to be a complete piece of crap. But as all of us who have read it know, it's far from crap, it's art.

But you have to look at King's work as a whole -- all of it, because it's all part of one underlying universe (the Dark Tower series is just one small part of it). Take King's canon in total, and you have to admit it surpasses anything Gaiman's YET done.

Plus, King's is better at prose than Gaimain, who is more proficient as a poet (which is why he did so well in comics ... a form more poetic than prose-like [especially from the writer's point of view]).

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Originally posted by Sparker:
But you have to look at King's work as a whole -- all of it, because it's all part of one underlying universe (the Dark Tower series is just one small part of it). Take King's canon in total, and you have to admit it surpasses anything Gaiman's YET done.

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Nah, Sandman whoops anything King's done in terms of depth of character and meaning and all that...

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"Shared pain is lessened, shared joy is increased, and thus do we refute entropy."-- Spider Robinson

http://lon.blogspot.com -- Its a slightly less eloquent me.

I agree. Sandman trully is amazing. He doesn't just write Dialogue either by the way. He has to write a paragraph for each comic square.

Sandman is a work of art.

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Originally posted by Thoth:
He has to write a paragraph for each comic square.

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true, but description as art instructions are different than description for readers

True, but those art directions have to be so perfect that the artist does the art perfect to portray the feelings that Gaiman wants to portray plus he has to actually write the story, whereas a writer just has to write the story. If that made any sense.