Anansi Boys

By: Neil Gaiman

Narrated by: Lenny Henry

Length: 10 hrs and 5 mins

Publisher's summary

God is dead. Meet the kids.

When Fat Charlie's dad named something, it stuck. Like calling Fat Charlie "Fat Charlie." Even now, twenty years later, Charlie Nancy can't shake that name, one of the many embarrassing "gifts" his father bestowed, before he dropped dead on a karaoke stage and ruined Fat Charlie's life.

Mr. Nancy left Fat Charlie things. Things like the tall, good-looking stranger who appears on Charlie's doorstep, who appears to be the brother he never knew. A brother as different from Charlie as night is from day, a brother who's going to show Charlie how to lighten up and have a little fun, just like Dear Old Dad. And all of a sudden, life starts getting very interesting for Fat Charlie.

Because, you see, Charlie's dad wasn't just any dad. He was Anansi, a trickster god, the spider-god. Anansi is the spirit of rebellion, able to overturn the social order, create wealth out of thin air, and baffle the devil. Some said he could cheat even Death himself.

Returning to the territory he so brilliantly explored in his masterful New York Times best seller American Gods, the incomparable Neil Gaiman offers up a work of dazzling ingenuity, a kaleidoscopic journey deep into myth that is at once startling, terrifying, exhilarating, and fiercely funny, a true wonder of a novel that confirms Stephen King's glowing assessment of the author as "a treasure house of story, and we are lucky to have him."

©2005 Neil Gaiman (P)2005 HarperCollins Publishers

Critic reviews

• Locus Award, 2006
  
• Alex Award, 2006

" "Excellent." (Stephen King)
"It's Gaiman's focus on Charlie and Charlie's attempts to return to normalcy that make the story so winning...along with gleeful, hurtling prose." (Publishers Weekly)

Loved this book!

Where does Anansi Boys rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This is a delightfully performed and masterfully written book that draws on the genre of myth to create an enchanting and meaningful story.

Which character – as performed by Lenny Henry – was your favorite?

My favorite character was Anansi.

Fabulous story and good narration.

The only thing I didn't care for was the intermittent music. It just seemed to distract from the story a and at times ruin the feel.

This is a great audiobook

Wow this is a great audiobook. The story itself is really good but the reader is out of this world. I loved it.

Superb!

Great novel and awesome narrator. I held off on getting this novel because I thought that it was geared toward a "young adult" audience...I was pleasantly surprised to find that this is a fantastical novel for all. I don't know how Neil Gaiman does it, but I hope he never stops. The reader was throughly entertaining from the first word to the last. I highly recommend this one!

Great

Lenny Henry does a stellar job, makes every character memorable. One Of Neil Gaiman's best. Highly recommend.

A very worthwhile audio experience.

The lack of five stars is simply a matter of taste. The execution and performance was excellent.

Thoroughly enjoyed the book and storytelling

This was a Great book/ great listen. I had a difficult time pausing the story!

Great Narration

This is probably the best narration of a Neil Gaiman story that hasn't been narrated by Neil himself. Loved it.

I loved it so much.

It is so much funner then American Gods but in the best way. I also believe Charlie and Spider seem to kind of remind me of Ford and Arthur Dent.

Amazing story, Fabulous Narration

I read this book because I was not ready to leave Mr Nancy and Shadow behind after American Gods. I loved the narrator’s ability to switch accents. He truly brought all the characters to life. His Mrs. Higgler was absolutely fantastic.