The Old Man and Mr. Smith [antikvár]

In his new novel, Peter Ustinov has chosen as his protagonists two of the most unusual characters of recent fiction. The Old Man is somewhat overweight and out of shape, wearing slightly tattered robes and sporting a pair of tennis shoes. Mr. Smith is small and dark, with a foul temper only occasionally relieved by a fiendish humor, and a disturbing aroma of sulfur that follows in his wake. Yes, they are God and Satan, returned to Planet Earth on a fact-finding mission. Archenemies in eons past, they are together again thanks to God’s endless ability to forgive, and His fear—being sorely out of touch with His creation—of returning to Earth alone. He has an uncanny sense that six days may not have been enough to do a proper job. Almost from the start this dubious duo find themselves in trouble, partly because of the Old Man’s unnerving habit of conjuring up money out of thin air to pay His bills. To the FBI, this is called counterfeiting, pure and simple. In their whirlwind tour of Earth, the Old Man and Mr. Smith visit not only the corridors of power in Washington but also the cesspools of New York’s 42nd street; they hobnob with hobos and terrify a TV evangelist (“You don’t mean to tell me that God and Satan are on my show at the same time!”). They also touch down in Russia, China, Israel, and, finally, India, where a group of holy men recognize them for what they are. Labeled by the author as a fable, The Old Man and Mr. Smith offers us insights into our world through the weary but still sharply focused eyes of the immortals. It is, in the view of the London Daily Mail: “Witty, wise, accomplished; a novel that many established writers will envy.”