What do I have in common with Tori Amos and a grizzled old commissionaire at my workplace?

Apparently we've all read the same book.

Yesterday I passed an older, bespectacled commissionaire reading Neil Gaiman's 'American Gods', which I felt obliged to comment on (it being one of my favourites).

"That's a great book..."
"Yeah, I've read it a number of times..."

And thus began our urban fantasy geek discussion in the middle of a busy entryway. We had both read all of his books. We both agree this was the best one. And things only got worse when Terry Pratchett came up. Did you know that several of his books had been made into movies in the UK? And to watch them over here you have to convert them from whatever wacky format the Brits use (he picked them up when he was stationed there)? And that back in the early nineties several other books were made into cartoons? And video games (with Eric Idle's voice)? And... well this is about where I felt I was being left in the dust.

"I hear he's sick."
"Yeah - Alzheimer's..."
"Wow, I hope he continues to write..."
"..."

Ta-dah. The awkward conclusion.