Saturday, February 14, 2009

Fool by Christopher Moore




Fool by Christopher Moore
ISBN: 978-0-06-059031-4
Pages: 304
Inside Flap Description:

A man of infinite jest, Pocket has been Lear's cherished fool for years, from the time the king's grown daughters--selfish, scheming Goneril, sadistic (but erotic-fantasy-grade-hot) Regan, and sweet, loyal Cordelia--were mere girls. So naturally Pocket is at his brainless, elderly liege's side when Lear--at the insidious urging of Edmund, the bastard (in every way imaginable) son of the Earl of Gloucester--demands that his kids swear their undying love and devotion before a collection of assembled guests. Of course Goneril and Regan are only too happy to brownnose for Dad. But Cordelia believes that her father's request is kind of ...well...stupid, and her blunt honesty ends up costing her her rightful share of the kingdom and earns her a banishment to boot.

Well, now the bangers and mash have really hit the fan. The whole damn country's about to go to hell in a handbasket because of a stubborn old fart's wounded pride. and the only person who can possibly make things right...is Pocket, a small and slight clown with a biting sense of humor. He's already managed to sidestep catastrophe( and the vengeful blades of many an offended nobleman) on numerous occasions, using his razor-sharp mind, rapier wit...and the equally well-honed daggers he keeps conveniently hidden behind his back. Now he's going to have to do some very fancy maneuvering--cast some spells, incite a few assassinations, start a war or two (the usual stuff)--to get Cordelia back into Daddy Lear's good graces, to derail the fiendish power plays of Cordelia's twisted sisters, to rescue his gigantic, gigantically dim, and always randy friend and apprentice fool, Drool, from repeated beatings...and to shag every lusciously shaggable wench who's amenable to shagging along the way.

Pocket may be a fool...but he's definitely not an idiot.

My Rating: A

My Review:

This is a most excellent comedy, another genius work by Mr. Christopher Moore. The characters are alive and well rounded, and horribly lovable. The humor is to die for, often you'll be laughing out loud while reading. Don't be surprised if you get looks from across the room if you're reading this in a public place.

The story is full of intrigue and isn't just a comedy either. Like any Shakespeare it's also a bit of a tragedy. Characters that you grow to love, though they may annoy, die and not always nicely.

As much as I loved the main plot of this book, I loved the back story more. It was not only laugh out loud funny, but endearing and sweet. I am amazed at how the author can pull this off so well.

The only issue I had with the book was that I often got confused as to who was doing what and why? Who was killing whom and because they wanted what? But, I think to be honest, that this is my fault, not the authors. I also think that it'd be a lot easier to keep track in this version, than in Shakespeare's himself.

I highly recommend this to any Moore fan, and to anyone looking for a book that they just might pee themselves while reading.

3 comments:

  1. I haven't read any of Moore's work, but he's on the list of authors I want to try.

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  2. Oh! Everyone should read Lamb, or Fool. They are both really excellent!

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  3. I saw a blurb about this last fall and it's been on my list ever since. I really look forward to getting to this one.

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