Book love is real love

Do you ever have those books that you just fall in love with?


Somewhere around page four you know this is going to be the beginning of a beautiful love affair. You'll remember that book all your life, join a few fandoms and if you're me, quote lines out of it.


Quoting lines out of your favourite book is fine btw, IF the other people know what you mean. I tend to quote, "Lord, heal this bicycle," out of Good Omens a lot. My family know what it means but when I quote it around other people they kind of scotch their eyes at me, particularly as 9 times out of 10 I'm not holding a bicycle.


I have a few of those books but the earliest I remember are James Herriot and Terry Pratchett's works. Around 5 I found James Herriot's works and while I might not have understood every word at 5, I fell in love with the Yorkshire Dales and his animal stories. I wanted to be a vet and I'd be one now, if I didn't suck so badly at maths and chemistry.


My parents introduced me to Pratchett around the same age with a VHS called "Truckers." I was fascinated by the Thing they walked around with and the concept of an artificial intelligence. Come to think of it, that video and classic Doctor Who are probably responsible for my love of science fiction today. Later I got "Lords and Ladies" to read. I was fascinated with how Terry would write the actual novel but then he'd add in lots of footnotes with all this extra information. He does it in all his books and I've always loved it, it's like he is so into the worldbuilding that he just has to add all of this extra info. Most of this extra info is heavily sarcastic too, which only makes it better.


My brother and I were blessed enough to see Terry Pratchett live and it was one of the most emotional times of my life. Beautiful because this is one of my heroes, because he's hilarious, because he was sharing his knowledge and his time. Devestating because by this time Alzheimers had already taken his ability to read and he moved like a man old before his time. I remember crying because I was so upset and frustrated that a disease was robbing the world of that brain.


Maybe all this explains why I was happy but terrified that Good Omens became a TV show. Happy because while his work lives on, so does he. Terrified because I didn't want it to be spoilt somehow. I'm a big Margaret Atwood fan but I think The Handmaids Tale loses something in the show. Somehow it just becomes a story more about Offred and her sleeping with Nick than it is a story about repression and rebellion (that's my opinion though, loads of people would disagree!) Alias Grace is beautifully done though - understated and quiet, much like the main character. But what Neil Gaiman has done is PERFECTION. It's a fitting memorial to Terry Pratchett and hopefully goes on to introduce thousands more to the Discworld.


How do you find it when your beloved book becomes a TV show? Do you watch it or run? For me, Good Omens and Outlander are the best adaptations out there. The Handmaids Tale left me disappointed and wary of going near the coming adaptation of MADADAM. I've fallen in love with the Dark Days Club and I can see that getting made into a TV show. I already have anxiety about who you'd cast as Lord Carlston!


Moral of the story: Watch Good Omens!