Christopher Moore is one of my top five favorite authors. I first discovered him when I read “Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal,” the imaginative and satirical fictional account of the life of Jesus Christ, the years that are missing from the Bible. It’s actually my favorite book, which I will disclose depending on the audience. (If I don’t think they’ll have the sense of awareness to appreciate it, then I go with 1984, which is a close second). I reread his “The Stupidest Angel” every year for Christmas, and it is the only book I reread on a yearly basis. And don’t even get me started on “The Island of the Sequined Love Nun,” with a title like that you’d hope it delivers and it does. Plus, some of his books exist in the same universe so you get characters that cross over and develop in interesting ways.
You’ll notice that I haven’t started talking about “Fool” yet. I’ve done a lot of couching and thrown in loads of praise for his other works because I really didn’t like this one. But I don’t think that means you should skip it, and you certainly shouldn’t skip Moore altogether because he rocks! But this book is for a certain audience pool, and I’m not in it.
Fool is an insane and satirical love letter to ol’ Bill Shakespeare, a retelling of King Lear, with all of Moore’s standard quick witted quips and jabs. I loved the bits of humor and his way with words, as I always do, but, well, I don’t think I have ever read or seen King Lear, so that’s really why this book wasn’t for me. I felt like I was missing out, because I was, since I was unfamiliar with the source material. There is actually a second book, which I’m not going to read, because for me getting through this one was a real slog. I just never got into it.
So, in conclusion, Christopher Moore rocks! This book (probably) rocks for someone who adores Shakespeare and is more familiar with King Lear. And definitely read “Lamb.”
