HOLY ROLLER

It's been described as The Bridges of Madison County meets The Celestine Prophecy meets Self magazine, and if publishing pundits are to be believed, Pocket Books' God on a Harley: A Spiritual Fable will be among this summer's must-reads. ...Harley, for which Pocket paid au- thor Joan Brady, 44, more than $250,000, follows a New Jersey Shore encounter between Christine, a thirtysomething nurse, and the creator Himself. Clad in a black leather jacket and faded blue jeans, and going by the name Joe, He teaches Christine how to remake her life, beginning with her closets. ''I was always given a very narrow view of what God was-a guy in the sky. I always needed more,'' says Brady, a registered nurse who has published two other novels. ''That's how this started. It's just a nicer concept of God.'' ...Moreover, it's an answer to Pocket's prayers; like many houses, the company is deeply devoted to New Age religious books. ''There is an element of spirituality to the book,'' says Pocket Books spokeswoman Liz Hartman, ''but it's a spirituality for today's woman.'' Given Pocket's plans for an initial printing of 100,000 copies-an impressive quantity for a relative unknown-the company clearly has a great deal of faith in Brady's book. To reach out to both the secular and religious audiences, Pocket is planning a publication party at New York's Harley-Davidson Cafe and is promoting Brady via Christian media outlets. Speaking of the Christian audience, is the publisher concerned that the somewhat glib take on Him might incite controversy? ''There are always people who are going to take offense,'' admits Pocket's Cindy Ratzlaff. ''But Harley is (about) experiencing God in a way that's not necessarily the gospel truth.''