Since I was fairly young (pre-teens, certainly, although I can’t put an exact date on it), I have been fascinated by mythologies of all types. The earliest ones I was exposed to were the Greek and Roman myths, quickly followed by Egyptian stories and Norse sagas. Thanks to growing up in Oklahoma, I also got lots of early exposure to Native American stories, particularly ones from the Kiowa tribe. Reading stories like the Epic of Gilgamesh and learning more and more about comparative mythology was a critical step in my road to embracing a naturalistic worldview.
But even once I became a naturalist, I never stopped loving stories about gods, goddesses, demigods, devils, demons, and the human heroes they often harried. This may be why I embraced comic books so heavily as a teen (and still!), they do seem to be a modern mythology for the masses (just take a look at Grant Morrison’s late 1990s JLA run or more recent works like Fables). One of the writers who plays in the mythology sandbox the best is Neil Gaiman, best known for his amazing Sandman series, as well as books that have been turned into movies (Coraline, Stardust, MirrorMask). Now, my favorite mythology-mixing novel by one of my favorite writers is officially being turned into a HBO series.
Neil Gaiman Offers ‘American Gods’ TV Show Update; Teases New Story Material
For those mythology-lovers out there who have not read it (and really, you should be ashamed of yourself), the American Gods follows a former convict named Shadow as he leaves prison and gets drawn into a conflict much beyond his imagination. On one side are the Old Gods (those famous folks from the above mythologies I mentioned) and on the other are the New Gods (things like television and computers). I won’t really go into the story because you should read it. Right now. And then you should watch the show when it comes out, which will likely be some time next year. And then read the follow-up book, Anansi Boys.
You may want to brush up on your mythology beforehand, though, by following those conveniently located links in the first paragraph. It will definitely enhance the read/watch.
