I normally review ARC copies of books or books that I’ve recently discovered, but I have realized that there are so many other books that I’ve read in the past that I would love to encourage you to pick up – thus, Favorite Reads Friday. These books may have been published awhile ago, but in my opinion, they are among some of the best of the best. So, check back each Friday for a look at one of my favorites and tell me about/share a link to one of your favorites in the comments!
Today, I want to talk to you about Good Omens by Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett. You’ve probably been hearing a lot about it lately since it’s currently in production to become an Amazon Prime Video television series in 2019 staring David Tennant and Michael Sheen. I can’t remember when exactly I first read it (I’d say probably 8-10 years ago), but I remember discovering a small paperback copy in a bookseller’s booth at a local flea market. The full title, Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch, sounded quirky, so I forked over a couple quarters, not realizing then that I was discovering what would soon be one of my favorite books of all time. What I find especially amusing now that the television show is coming, is that from the first time I read Good Omens, in my head, the character Crowley sounded exactly like David Tennant. I still read it that way today, and so I don’t believe his casting could have been any more perfect.
Summary (via Goodreads)
According to The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch (the world’s only completely accurate book of prophecies, written in 1655, before she exploded), the world will end on a Saturday. Next Saturday, in fact. Just before dinner.
So the armies of Good and Evil are amassing, Atlantis is rising, frogs are falling, tempers are flaring. Everything appears to be going according to Divine Plan. Except a somewhat fussy angel and a fast-living demon—both of whom have lived amongst Earth’s mortals since The Beginning and have grown rather fond of the lifestyle—are not actually looking forward to the coming Rapture.
And someone seems to have misplaced the Antichrist . . .
Why it’s one of my favorites:
This was my first introduction to both Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett, and my love for them grew from this fantastic co-authored work. Their wit and humor had me literally laughing out loud, giggling uncontrollably in public, and repeatedly quoting lines to friends. I don’t normally gravitate towards “funny” books, but Good Omens is so brilliant in its comedy that I often found myself rereading certain lines and laughing even harder. What’s not to love about an apocalyptic comedy starring a demon, an angel, a young Antichrist and his hell hound, and of course the four horsemen bikers. What makes it even better is that the humor also tends to have a philosophical leaning and will keep you reading and rereading throughout the book, savoring every word. I’ve even tried the audiobook (I reread Good Omens regularly when I need a pick-me-up), and you don’t want to attempt listening with any sort of distractions around, or else you might miss some of the more subtle jokes.
Good Omens is the book I’ve probably recommended most to friends over the years. It never gets old. Funny enough, I recommended it to my now fiancé when we were first dating. As he was reading it, he turned me on to a little show called Supernatural – which quickly grew on me, partially because of another character named Crowley. Both the Good Omens Crowley and the Supernatural Crowley are meant to be a reference in name to Aleister Crowley, but one can’t help but think that with all of their similarities and with show creator Eric Kripke being a big Gaiman fan, that maybe there’s a little nod to Good Omens in the show.
So, be sure to add Good Omens to your To Be Read list, and check it out before it becomes a hit television series in 2019.
“Learning how to be strong, to feel her own emotions and not another’s, had been hard; but once you learned the trick of it, you did not forget.”
Among the Authors 