No Country for Old Gnomes, by Delilah S. Dawson & Kevin Hearne

Having heartily enjoyed Kill the Farm Boy, I of course had to pick up the second adventure set in the magical and extremely ridiculous land of Pell. Once again, we join a ragtag group of characters as they journey to right some pretty grave injustices, namely the destruction of gnome homes by halfling thugs. Offi, a rare goth gnome and pretty handy with a wrench, pretends to be his perfect twin brother Onni so he can figure his shit out, and it doesn't hurt that the beautiful gnome lady Kirsi is going as well. The motley crew is rounded out by a cheerful dwarf herbalist, a surprisingly urbane halfling, an ovitaur (half sheep, half human) and her golden mechanical companion, and a gryphon who really likes umlauts and omelets. Off they go, righting wrongs and defying expectations, all while learning the true meaning of friendship.

You're best served by this narrative if you read a lot of fantasy (e.g. Tommy Bombastic won't make much sense if you haven't read The Lord of the Rings). And playing Dungeons and Dragons, or a similar role playing game, definitely doesn't hurt. But even if you aren't enmeshed in those worlds, I'd imagine this is still a hilarious and silly romp through the realm of imagination. And I still get the giggles whenever I read their map.

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