One of the most amusing and enteraining books I have read. Well written, humour all the way through and a sheep called Boris. The one bad point is that Barry the brussel sprout is not featured!!!!

Fantastic stuff! If only Rankin had a U.S. publisher the prices of his hysterical books would be a little more tolerable. "Snuff Fiction" is one of his best, a pseudo-memoir written in 2008 about the life of the Doveston, purveyor of the world's bestest tobacco & explosives.

While all Rankin's books are funny, this one's plot lifts it above the rest. All too often Rankin drops plot threads and writes in (intentionally) dense prose. "Snuff Fiction" has his trademark hyper-kinetic writing style while, for once, admirably wrapping everything up at the end. It's a great balance of clever storytelling, some effectively disturbing passages, and overall a lot of laughs.

Buy this book!

For all fans of comic literature, Robert Rankin does the goods. This is an extremely funny and weird book, which is also quite intelligently construed. I think some of Rankin's other works are even more funny, but all in all this book is miles ahead of most other works in the genre. If you like Terry Pratchett, you will definitely enjoy all of Rankin's books, and maybe even prefer the self-consciousness of his works over others. Very much recommended.

All I can say is that this is one of the funniest books I have ever read! Not only that it is also possessed of a plot so complex that it only makes any kind of sense at all when you reach the grand finale but it also has so many running gags concerning "that amazing rotary machine gun that Blaine used in Predator" that every time you watch said film you will have a smile on your face. I have read many humourous sci-fi books in my time but this one had me laughing out loud whilst sitting on a train getting some very odd looks from fellow passangers. If only the Elvis Appreciation Society had not blocked moves to make the film...... Be that as it may, if you are just dicovering the sprout miester for the first time, this is the perfect place to start and get hooked. BEWARE however reading in public can cause very embarrassing hesterical laughter fits!

LOOK, CHEEZMOS--READ MY BOOK! READ IT!! READ IT NOW!! DO IT!

Great paranoid romp through the bowels of governmental and alien conspiracies. Why for God's sake is Douglas Adams published in the States and not Rankin. Only the men under Morningstar Crescent know for sure.

If I had a penny for every time I giggled, sniggered or experienced any form of emotion whilst reading this book, I would have....I think. Rankin has written (another) fantastic peice here. All the characters are great (especially Wok Boy with his ideas agout ladies underwear. ahem) and all come together in the end in a grand finale involving an alien vegetable, Nelson's Column (and indeed all of Trafalgar Sq.), Magic and a bloody big explotion!

Apocalipso took me a while to get into but when the Ministery of Sependery (MoS) Plan to nuke Dilbert Norris (An alien evolved from a vegetable) Things get interesting.

When you read a Rankin you have a good idea what your in for: wacky characters, daft running gags,a completely over-the-top plot and hours of humourous entertainment. 'The Greatest Show Off Earth' delivers this and more. If you are struggling to find good humour since the demise of Douglas Adams' Hitchhikers and Dirk Gently series then look no further than Rankin.

I stumbled upon this second hand book in a little store in Egypt (of all places) and read the whole thing through in less then two days. Not that it's this short, it's this good ! It completely obliterated all interest I had in pharao's and pyramids, i just couldn't put it down.

If you like Douglas Adams or Terry Pratchet, you're gonna love this.

It's the first book of Robert Rankin i read and here I am, coming back for more.. ;-)

I will never tire of this book. In the three years since I first discovered it, I have read it well over ten times. Excellent value for money. A lot of Rankin's fans treat this as his worst bok, I say it is his best. It is superbly off-the-wall, with likeable, funny characters, and moments that continue to make me laugh out loud every time. Should be retitled The Greatest Book on Earth.

This is the best Rankin book - and one of the best humour books around. He combines his excellent jokes with a short piece at the beginning of the book that is one of the funniest things ever written - yes, you heard it. The overall standard of the book is high, however the plot is not too far above his average (if humourous) standards. Especially worthwhile for Rankin veterans, as large parts of the Sprout mythology are revealed X-Files style at the end of the book.

This is truly a marvelous book. It is full of the running gags, stupid puns, deranged descriptions and confused characters that is the hallmark of Mr. Rankin. In this book, Mr. Rankin takes over the world in a very nervous manner, with the help of his holy guardian sprout, Barry, who gets him in more trouble than he's worth.

The trouble with this book and the others outside Rankins series about Brentford and Barry the travelling time sprout is you know that what you are reading ain't half as good. Rankin is undoubtedly an extremely funny science fiction writer but his(or his publishers?) policy of bringing out what seems like a book every week means you are getting less genius per page than is tolerable. Slow down, Robert and refine your exquisite stories.Forget this book, readers, and head for Brentford country.

This book contains everything which is to be expected. There is a humour not found in any other writer, which floats through the story like a log on a fast flowing stream. The lead charactors are obviously mad, the philosophies of Hugo Rune strangely persuasive, and there's an obnoxious Campbell! It's a sardonic sort of wit, but make no mistake, you will relate to the humour. If this is the first book you read by Rankin, you'll buy more.

robert Rankin is a great writer and this is one of his best books. Very funny silly and enjoyable. a word of caution though he has writtern a lot of books so prepare for a compulsive addiction

Not the best Rankin novel - Sprouts fails to inject enough humour into the proceedings to carry the bog standard plot. Rankin regulars (like myself) will be disappointed.

Well, it isn't the first Rankin I've read- in fact, I've gone throught them all. But this is one of the best. Coming from Ealing, near Brentford, where the books are set, I must admit I feel a certain affinity with Mr Rankin, but I am damned glad I do. He is incredibly funny, and get's funnier with each book. Sprouts...deals with Brentford's hosting the next Olympic Games, which will be held in a giant invisible floating stadium. Hmmmm. Anyway, it's a great laugh, as much for regulars as newbies. Trust me - you will enjoy it. You have my word. No, really.

East of Ealing, a part of the "infamous" 5 book Brentford trilogy, will not disappoint the fans of the series. Find out in this book whether the flying swans patrons will once again outlive the fiendish schemes of the archvillain, or even worse, will their drinking be interrupted ("mine will be a pint of large , neville"). If you're a fan, you will love this book, if you are not, you have been wasting your precious few daily hours of sobriety ....

I found it absolutely hilarious, all the way through. If you like Robert Rankin, you'll like this. Even though it is extremely cunning and funny it still doesn't beat the armageddon trilogy!