Wednesday's Pick!

Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman.
When Fat Charlie learns of his father’s death, he reluctantly returns to his Florida hometown from the life he has reinvented in England. While there, his neighbour lets it slip that he has a brother named Spider who Charlie knew nothing about. Charlie ends up contacting his brother by following the ridiculous instructions to ‘ask a spider’ for him. These odd instructions become clear as Charlie learns that his deceased father was the human embodiment of the African trickster god, Anansi, and Charlie’s brother has inherited many of their father’s powers. Spider shows up in Charlie’s life and causes a lot of problems for him – stealing his fiancée and getting him in deep trouble at work. Charlie has increasingly ominous confrontations with Anansi’s animal god enemies, and makes some risky deals in order to claim his life back. The weaving of everyday reality, wonderful characters, and vivid forays into African cultural folk and fairy tales makes Gaiman’s novel captivating.