``You don't want to mess with the original story because it's so perfect,'' says Winick, ultimately justifying the crows' inclusion as providing what he saw as some necessary tension and comedic relief.

An editorial cartoonist should be more than the opinion page's comedic relief, waking up each morning not as a jester but rather a rough-and-tumble member of the editorial board, armed with ideas, meditations, observations, and a healthy dose of outrage, ready to speak the truth, prepared to let the chips fall where they may no matter how politically incorrect, no matter how few people end up laughing.

In prior books, his best friend, Theo, has offered some comedic relief, but doesn't help much in that regard this time out.