Special to L. Neil Smith’s The Libertarian Enterprise

I read this book a while back in a hard copy form, though I now I have a copy of this book in the Kindle format courtesy of J. Neil Schulman. Escape from Heaven is actually a departure from J. Neil Schulman’s usual work. The story begins when Duj Pepperman, a talk radio host in L.A. gets a call from God during one of his daily shows. Like most rational people, Pepperman brushes this bizarre experience off as a crank call. That is until he is taken into heaven by two beautiful angels.

This is when we are given an entirely new twist on the concepts of God, creation, the Adam and Eve myth, Jesus and even Hell. I do like how he answers certain questions that I have always had about Heaven. Is there sex in Heaven? Is Kevin Smith right about angels being as anatomically correct as Barbie dolls? If you want to know the answers to these questions, I would strongly suggest reading the book.

Though the real turning point happens when Jesus/Adam and Satan/Eve, fight for the rightful dominion over Earth. Yes, you read that right. Jesus, is also Adam who made a cosmic mistake that created a rift between him and Eve. Now, the two are fighting for the hearts and minds of the people of Earth. Jesus/Adam wants the people to have free will, while Satan/Eve wants the opposite. The two fight it out in what resembles two competing political campaigns with Jesus/Adam being aided by Pepperman and other great minds such as Thomas Jefferson, C.S. Lewis, Martin Luther King, George Patton, Ayn Rand, Robert Heinlein and George Bernard Shaw. I do find Shaw somewhat questionable, since this is the man who once advocated genocide for those who he didn’t think were contributing enough for society. If anything, I would have thought Shaw would be on the other side.

I would have to say that Escape from Heaven is my favorite of J. Neil Schulman’s work right after Alongside Night. It is a perfect combination of comedy, satire and philosophy with a slight touch of romance. It also has a very satisfying ending. This is a book that I would actually recommend to both libertarians and non- libertarians alike. Don’t get me wrong, the book is unarguably libertarian in its message about free will. The message is not exclusively libertarian and it can resonate with those who may not have much understanding of the movement. I actually loaned a hard copy of the book to my mom who isn’t quite versed in libertarianism or most political philosophies for that matter and she really enjoyed it. I think there are many other political laymen who will enjoy it as well.