You'll laugh yourself to Hell!

Terry Pratchett has obviously read and enjoyed David Seltzer's "The Omen", for is is the basis for this hilarious account of Armageddon. All the elements from "The Omen" can be found here, though most of them have been distorted in some manner -- a boy (the Antichrist, who has decided he actually likes mankind) and his dog (supposed to be a ferocious Hell-Hound but has been curiously transformed into a cute, lovable puppy), a housekeeper (who arrives at the wrong house but doesn't know it), and the end of the world (which doesn't happen anyway). Also thrown in are an assortment of wacky characters such as Aziphrale (a mischievous angel) and his best friend Crowley (a reluctant demon), a teenage witch (faced with the dreary task of deciphering the cryptic prophecies of her ancestor) who is, by a twist of fate, assisted by an amateur witch-hunter (whose assignment is to track down and destroy her), his boss (who succeeds only in ridiculing himself), the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (who ride motorcycles rather than horses), and -- believe it or not -- E. T.'s (who have come to deliver a message of peace and goodwill to us Earthlings)! A remarkable potpourri.

Armageddon is drawing near. But things aren't going as they should be. The Sisters of the Chattering Order have misplaced the Antichrist. The Antichrist thinks that ending the world is silly, thus disobeying his father (who else? Satan, of course!). Given the power to mold the world to his liking, he envisions a clean, green world, and puts an end to factories and creates massive forests. Aziphrale and Crowley echo his sentiments, and are thereby plotting to stop Armageddon, much to the chagrin of their masters. Needless to say, Heaven and Hell are not at all pleased to see their warground not ready for war.

Co-authored by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman, this book packs all the laughter you can take in a week, with each page promising to be better than the last. The only downside is that one of Pratchett's characteristics -- hopelessly complex plot details with so many scene shifts and characters that you can't keep track of who's who -- is also present here, though not as bad as in his Discworld series. Also, the footnotes that keep popping up every now and then can be a little distracting, but they contain many of the book's jokes. Other than that, this may well be the funniest book you have ever read.

Not to be missed for all the world.