The irony of my final statement from my Book 19 review about how my next book had better be “good” is that I honestly hadn’t made my next choice at that point. Just made this selection all the more serendipitous, I suppose.

Whatever the universal alignment that led to my latest selection (which really boils down to the fact that this was at the top of the closest stack of my unread books), Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett’s joint effort, Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch, was more than simply “good”; it was astonishingly enjoyable.

What would happen if the Antichrist is born but then accidentally misplaced by Satanic Nurses (who are not quite as awesome as Satanic Mechanics, but who would rock the soft-core porn parody of Satanic Verses)? How would he grow up to be a right proper universe-ending bad ass without guidance from his netherworld family? How can Aziraphale the Angel and Crowley the Demon battle over the instruction of the young Bringer of Armageddon if they don’t know where he is? Even better, how can they stop it all from happening anyway since they do fancy living among the mortals? Would it surprise anyone to know that the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse aren’t all men…and have traded in their horses for Harleys? How did Agnes Nutter end up predicting that all this would eventually happen even though she died (rather spectacularly) centuries prior? Are there really people named Nutter? Can I please shake one loose from my family tree?

For the answers to all these questions and more, you simply must read Good Omens! (Well, okay, they won’t answer the last two questions…but you’re good on all the others.)

If you’re familiar with Gaiman or Pratchett, then this book will be a delightful pairing of two grand talents of the sci-fi/fantasy literary world. If you’re not familiar with either of them, then this is a wonderful introduction. It’s witty, funny, and cheeky in equal doses, and once you start it, you really won’t want to put it down (except maybe you should try to put it down when doing things like driving, chopping vegetables, or mowing your lawn, especially if you own a cat or a small dog).

Also, the most recent printing of the paperback came with two different covers, as you can see in my accompanying photo. I am pleased to say that my parents, when they purchased this book for me for Christmas, chose the white cover with the Demon Crowley on the cover. They know me well, little devil that I am.

Final score: 4.5/5. Like Mary Poppins, this book was practically perfect in every way, but did begin to drag on a bit too long toward the end.

I was thinking about doing a quick listing of all the books I’ve read so far and their scores now that I’m at the 20 mark, but I think I’ll hold off until the halfway mark. Sound good? Good. And I’m once again loaded up with library selections and have already chosen my next read (and it really is going to be my next read; I’m not going to wimp out like I did with the Saramago book I had a while ago). It’s a shock rocker autobiography of sorts. I shan’t say more than this: Think “Fairway to Heaven.”

‘Nuff said.