So-so satire
I usually enjoy both satire and parody, but I could not get enthusiastic
about this book. I've read some Grafton and Clancy, but not King, Steel,
or Sittenfeld. There were some laughs, even in the chapters about authors
I've not read, and a few more in the chapters about authors I have read.
The writing was good enough that I finished the book, but not good enough
for me to read a phrase or a paragraph and think, "Wow, I wish I'd written
that."
Notice the distribution of the ratings. Most readers loved the book, or
hated it. That is the kind of distribution usually reserved for partisan
political works. A substantial portion of the book seems to be about the
authors as celebrities rather than about their work. Those that have read
more of the works of the authors being parodied and have followed them in
gossip publications will probably enjoy the book more than I did.
Laughed so loud it scared my dogs
I spotted this gem at the local library (bless those astute librarians who displayed it prominently), and had not read Kaplow before. But I love satire, and was hooked from the first sentence. I'm sure the authors who "appeared" as characters laughed harder than any reader. Kaplow is a master at recreating the inner ramblings of all writers and also wannabe writers(I'm one)who never actually write the novel in their heads. He nailed every facet of the publishing world, extending to media, teachers and others. I taught high school English for a while in the 70s,and I'd forgotten all about "transformational grammar" and Noam Chomsky till I read this book.
I"m sorry for those who didn't love it and probably didn't even "get" most of it. You almost have to be an English Major or at least have taken some literature and creative writing courses, and you'd have to be familar with all the genres referenced as well as the dozens and dozens of famous novels and writers mentioned to get the jokes. Kaplow's choices of "characters" had to fit the story line exactly for it all to work. Stephen King, the undisputed master of horror, is the perfect protagonist. I won't go further, and be a spoiler, but the irony of the last several chapters is delicious. And there really is a mystery.
I got a little tired of the "f" word and the outrageously kinky sex both real and imagined, but must admit the sex (and yes, Sue Grafton's excessive diarrhea) was all there for a reason. The poignant ending celebrating true, unkinky love was all the more so when juxtaposed against the yucky stuff. I suspect there is a special "satire appreciation" gene, and some of us have it and some of us don't. But it's not a big deal. By the way, I'm 76. The older I get, the funnier we humans seem. I'm going to read this book again and again, and give it to carefully selected friends.
The "Epic Movie" of books.
Anyone who has had the misfortune of seeing the countless parody movies in theaters such as Epic Movie or Meet the Spartans should feel intense deja vu. This books seems to think that vulgarity equals humor. The attempts at humor fail and as they flood the book, it becomes a series of eye rolls and groans. I would not recommend this book to my friends or my enemies.
Mean spirited
Admittedly, everyone has their own idea of what's funny. For some people, it's seeing others slip on an icy street and fall down. Others quite enjoy someone being humiliated, and the more famous the person receiving this treatment, the funnier it is; I guess it makes the envy more bearable.
If there's humor in this book, it escaped me. Prolonged descriptions of diarrhea don't make me laugh, especially when they are inflicted on the likenesses of well-known authors, who are presented as grotesques and lampooned with pitiless adolescent glee.
If I'm a spoilsport for not thinking public humiliations of living human beings are a laugh riot, so be it. If you happen to be one of the increasingly few people who agree that mean spirited ridicule isn't funny, consider yourself warned to avoid this book.
Laughing too hard to think of a witty review title
This parody by Robert Kaplow is quite simply hilarious. I'm buying it as a gift for every SMART FUNNY person I know (but not the dumb boring ones.)
A great idea all-around and executed flawlessly by Kaplow.
My only request: More, more, more!
(13 reviews)
