So, I just finished "A Dirty Job" by Christopher Moore, one of my favorite authors. Man...he's good. This book is a creative and original--and down right hilarious--look at Death as an occupation. At first, before I began the book, I was a little worried that it might be a bit too close to comfort to the Showtime series "Dead Like Me", which is also a funny look at Death. However, as is usually the case with Moore, it was entirely creative and totally original. He has an uncanny knack for writing about topics that some people might find too serious to joke about. My favorite book by Moore, "Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal", is a fresh look at the life of Jesus. It is both absolutely hysterical and touching, which is a difficult combination, especially when dealing with the life of the most famous man in human history.
"A Dirty Job" also tackles a touchy subject. While the plot hinges on the concept of a "grim reaper" type occupation, it in no way makes light of the difficulty of death on the people surrounding the deceased. In fact, Moore wrote this book after the passing of his mother as a kind of imagination of what death might be like.
I haven't read all of his books YET, but Moore is one of the few authors that makes me want to collect them all. It's difficult for me to loan his books out, because they are books that I know I'm going to want to read over and over again. (Like Blue Highways. Ahem, John!!!)
So, I guess I have a question for all of you...do any of you have authors that stand out to you? And, anyone know of any other books that so deftly tackle heavy topics and balance the drama with humor in such a great way?
(Oh, PS: Mom--do you still have Moore's the Stupidest Angel?!)
(c;
Hey, thanks for stopping by...
Tommy
PPS: For those of you who are on MySpace...I was, for some unknown reason, deleted from the MySpace archives this morning, and I'm not sure if I'm going to rejoin--just a heads up.)
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I love Christopher Moore, and have read all the rest of his oeuvre, starting with Practical Demonkeeping -- but haven't picked this one up yet, so thanks for the excellent review. Not all of them are as fantastic as Lamb, but definitely worth it.
These are pretty obvious, but if you haven't read Neal Stephenson, Karl Hiasson (can be a bit heavy-handed), Neil Gaiman (a bit more serious, but if you like reimaginings of religious figures, he's the man), Douglas Adams (the heavy topics there are usually metaphysical, and most people don't even notice them under the jokes) and Tom Robbins, then do. Then let me know what you think!
Come to think of it...Tom Robbins is probably the most like Moore that I've found. Jitterbug Perfume is one of the best books ever. He's getting a little flaky latterly, but Skinny Legs and All would be interesting to re-read in light of today's Mid-East escalations...
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