[The Living End] stretches from the moment of Ellerbee's murder until the end of time and space—doomsday. We follow the fortunes of Ellerbee and one Ladlehaus, an accomplice to the crime, through what there is of eternity. We see the Lord in action, giving and taking away, damning and saving, making the occasional error, explaining the ways of Him to men. I leave the reader to discover the explanation, the "state of the art" for himself, suggesting only that it hinges on those attributes of divinity emphasized when we speak of Him as "Creator."

And readers there must be. Through the years Elkin has garnered all the critical superlatives and deserved them, never more so than with this astonishing book. But he has remained something of a cult figure, and there is no reason for this. It may be said that anyone who reads this book without...