Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman

  In Anansi Boys, Neil Gaiman plays with the myth of the African spider god, Anansi.  I was previously unfamiliar with this mythology, and found learning about it through the story was really fun and interesting. 
  I love the idea of bringing mythology into the modern day.  Neil Gaiman was able to create a believable, modern world.  The main character, Charlie Nancy, gets his normal modern world and his status quo disrupted when his father dies and it's passed on to him that his family is an incarnation of Anansi.  He also learns that he has a brother, who can be summoned by using a spider as a messenger.
  I always like when authors create a world where the main character knows as much as the audience knows.  It's great when the main character turns into a sort of fish out of water in his own world.  Learning about his family's story completely turns his live upside down, and although some of the events that happen in the story are a little sad, such as Spider stealing Charlie's fiancee and making him lose his job, the way Neil Gaiman writes is whimsical and stops the reader from feeling too sorry for the main character.  This book, in some ways, made me feel like a little kid reading.  I found my mind wandering and thinking about if any myths could possibly intertwine with my own world, which was a fun and almost nostalgic experience.

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