Ian Croskell's The Word: A Satire Where the Beatles Became a Religion

What is The Word?

Ian Croskell's comic speculative novel The Word: The Second Book of the Beatles set centuries in the future, in a world where the Beatles are worshipped as gods and their songs serve as holy scripture. The book follows Croskell's earlier title, Love Them Do.

The premise

In this future there is one true religion, built on the songs and supposed teachings of the Fab Four. Believers belong to religious orders devoted to a particular Beatle. The narrator of The Word is Paula, a student in the Order of Paul and a sincere believer. Much of the book unfolds through her letters with a student of the Order of John, the skeptic who narrated the first book. Their correspondence sets faith against doubt and gives the satire its emotional center.

Where the idea came from

Croskell told Literary Titan in July 2026 that the idea grew out of an evening with a fellow Beatles fan, talking about how often the band is described in religious language, with John Lennon in particular treated almost as a secular saint. The joke became a series. He also explained a neat piece of character logic: the skeptic follows John, who once sang that he did not believe in Beatles, while the believer follows Paul, often seen as the member most devoted to the band.

What the satire is really about

The humor comes from treating ordinary moments in Beatles history as sacred events. Beneath it, Croskell has said, the book is about the stories people choose to believe to make life bearable, which he sees as close to how religions work. The book's tagging also leans into Beatles fandom itself, which has its own pilgrimage sites, relics and rival interpretations.

What is next

Croskell has said the third book will center on a follower of George and will be titled Our Sweet Lord, a play on George Harrison's song "My Sweet Lord," with release hoped for in 2027.

Who it suits

Beatles fans with a sense of humor about their devotion, readers of religious satire in the tradition of Good Omens or Life of Brian, and anyone who enjoys epistolary novels. Readers who are devout in either sense, religious or Beatle, may want to go in expecting gentle mockery.

Series

1. Love Them Do
2. The Word: The Second Book of the Beatles
3. Our Sweet Lord (forthcoming)