Mudd, Vic. Deity. Lynnwood: Afterbirth Books, 2006. 168 p. Paperback. ISBN 0976631075.

Vic Mudd’s Deity tells the story of God, who has imposed Himself on a family (the Smiths) in Ohio to see how the little people live. He convinces them that He is their son Aiden and has been there all along, strumming His guitar and listening to Elvis songs. He thinks that staying with an average midwestern family will be a peaceful, unremarkable experience. Not so. The fact that God himself is an Elvis fan is just the beginning of the hilarious, strange, bewildering phenomena that crop up in the book. Mudd’s God is abducted by aliens, appears on the Oprah show, and is arrested because cops think He’s the Naked Tickler, among other peccadillos.

Mudd has a keen sense of humor. He infuses his characters with small quirks, making this wonderfully bizarre story disconcerting and surprisingly relatable. Like many families, the Smiths aren’t completely “average,” as God initially suspects. Grandma Smith chews Kleenex. Mrs. Smith sneaks around the house with a whisky bottle in the pocket of her coat. The Smiths’ Martian cat becomes God's guide to this strange new world, rounding out a colorful, likeable cast.

Mudd’s God thinks people are clueless about religion, the afterlife, and war. A staunch pacifist, He doesn’t intend for there to be a “meaning of life" and hangs out with Buddha, Allah, and occasionally Zeus, the latter of whom has an attitude because no one believes he exists anymore. When God makes his appearance as Aiden, He is sensationalized on daytime talk shows and capitalized on by the tabloids, shocking audiences by saying that people are taking themselves too seriously — they were meant to enjoy life and not worry about what comes next. This seemed to be the thesis of the book: God wouldn't want people killing and fighting over Him, but rather enjoying His creations. God narrates these events in a hip, funny, casual way. Using phrases like “maybe it would be cool” and “damn straight,” He renders the divine and the commercial interchangeable.

Deity is an original, skillfully constructed, and delightfully quirky novel. Highly recommended.

— Kristina Marie Darling