American Gods 10th Anniversary Edition

[lestatar]

@HarryT: I generally feel as you do. Still, there are some authors who I will go the extra mile for just because they are personal faves. Gaiman is one of them for me. Stephen King as well...e.g, the unabridged "Stand".

lol...my wallet is not so safe as I hope on occasion.

[Richey79]

I finished American Gods fairly recently.

It's funny, but 'meh' was precisely my reaction. There were a few nicely-written and fairly clever sections, but it didn't really hang together as a novel.

Spoiler:

When I'd finished, I was left with the feeling, 'okay, so Loki and Oden decided to have a muck-about. Was that really all the novel had to say?'

I thought there was at least going to be some kind of comment on the conflict between the old world gods and the modern ones, and whether they can co-exist in the modern world.

The quality of character-depiction is mostly at cardboard-cutout level, and certainly never rises above cliche.

I really did like Sandman and Coraline, but Gaiman is only at his best when the medium allows him to be fragmentary and anecdotal.

[Hatgirl]

Originally Posted by HarryT

When authors release versions of books with extra text, it generally indicates that they are releasing the material that their editor very wisely decided was extraneous to the story. I very much doubt that it will improve the book.

It can often be purely a marketing gimmick (The chapters added to Rober Jordan's The Eye of the World spring to mind) but in some cases it creates a far superior work. Like Darkspell, Book2 in Katharine Kerr's Deverry series. The original editors forced the author to change a key plot point to make the series more marketable When she gained more control in future negotiations, she was able to reissue the book with the proper ending. (Great series, btw.)

@carld If you liked Coraline and Stardust, you might also like Good Omens (with Terry Pratchett) and Neverwhere. They're both a bit different from his usual work - Good Omens because it was co-written and Neverwhere because it is based on a script he did for a UK TV miniseries.

@Richey79 Hey, watch the spoilers!

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by HarryT

When authors release versions of books with extra text, it generally indicates that they are releasing the material that their editor very wisely decided was extraneous to the story. I very much doubt that it will improve the book.

The Stand with the added bits was very much better then the edited version.

[Penforhire]

I'm certainly curious to see what gets added. Perhaps additional gods, extensions of the Czernobog group, or more love/sexual interests?

[AnemicOak]

I don't know if this will interest anyone reading this thread, but I figured I'd pass it on...

FREE Access to American Gods: The Tenth Anniversary Edition Livestream with Neil Gaiman

Have you ever wanted to talk to a New York Times bestselling author? Now is your chance to sign up for exclusive access to a livestream with Neil Gaiman for FREE! On Tuesday, June 21st, Studio 360’s Kurt Andersen will interview Gaiman about the 10th anniversary edition of his bestseller American Gods. After the interview, you will get a chance to ask Neil Gaiman your own questions. Don't miss out on this opportunity!

http://www.bookperk.com/offer/28468/...a-9e967a8e047a


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[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Yes, I will agree that the expanded version of "Magician" is better, but generally, when an author gets sufficiently well-known that they think they no longer need editing, the results are... not beneficial to the reader.

It's a shame that there's still no legal ebook version of Magician.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

It's a shame that there's still no legal ebook version of Magician.

I agree. I'd buy it like a shot if it were to appear as an eBook.

[carld]

I put this on my waiting list at Clevnet, where I'm number 10 of 10. I'd have been quicker, but I found out my library card had expired.

[DArenson]

I agree re The Stand; the longer version tended to ramble. Since then, I've been wary of authors announcing "extended editions". But we'll see. I did enjoy American Gods overall.

[charleski]

You have to remember that paper books do in fact have real limits on the number of pages they can contain at a given production price, and the issue of book length is a big deal in their marketing. Charlie Stross has posted a lot of articles on this, and about why books get broken up, especially if they're part of a series. This is why I can imagine that it would be possible for sections to get cut for purely technical or marketing reasons, which is clearly something that would be worth redressing later if the book is a hit.

But to be honest, American Gods was already a bit too wordy in its original published version.

[OtterBooks]

An anniversary edition, with an introduction? Seriously? What is this, Don Quixote? How about The Annotated Works of Nicholas Sparks. The book is ten years old. What a scam.

[lestatar]

^ meh. I see your point, but I like the guy

[OtterBooks]

I've got nuthin against Gaiman. A new copy of Neverwhere is sitting two feet away from me. The "anniversary" treatment just seems a bit silly and exploitative (just as it is for movies, etc).

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by OtterBooks

I've got nuthin against Gaiman. A new copy of Neverwhere is sitting two feet away from me. The "anniversary" treatment just seems a bit silly and exploitative (just as it is for movies, etc).

To accuse Mr. Gaiman of perpetrating a "scam" (meaning a fraudulent deception) seems somewhat unjustified. He's releasing a new version of a book; last time I looked, this wasn't against the law.