Ananzi Boys (6 points)

Myth is a common topic of modern novels. Stories like Percy Jackson and Marvel's Thor use myth as a basis for characters. Taking the name-sake and key attributes of these mythological beings is common place, and over used. You hear the name "Zeus" and you know its a man in the sky throwing lightning bolts. But a key difference Ananzi Boys has with them is it's ability to feel like myth. True old myths are complicated and often contradict each other based on where you hear it from. Things don't have to make sense or be properly explained. Arachne being turned into a spider wasn't witch magic, it's just something gods did. Ananzi Boys pays true homage to historic African mythology, not by using name-sakes, but by telling a modern story in a mythological format. 

Characters like Tiger and Spider don't have to be explained physically, they exist in a god-state, not as human or as animal, but sharing properties of both. Ancient myth is all about blending those borders, like the Maori myth of the rainbow serpent. Even in Greek myth where Gaia has a physical humanoid form, as she has a womb, but is also the earth beneath us. 

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