My God is WAAAYYYYY hotter than your God
Written: Nov 29 '06 (Updated Apr 24 '09)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Flow, Style and Wit
Cons: No sequins and no nuns. The title could use some work...
The Bottom Line: Another great concept from the mind of Christopher Moore
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| shmoo1's Full Review: Christopher Moore - Island of the Sequined Love Nu... |
Ok…ok…ok… so what do a talking, sun-glass wearing fruit bat, a cargo cult of ex-cannibals, an insidious Cosmetics guru, a horribly mutilated penis and nipple rouge all have in common?
If you answered “Sea Otters” or “Mother?” you’re wrong… and probably insane. You have serious issues and need to call someone.
The correct answer is of course Island Of The Sequined Love Nun.
PLOT:
Tucker Case is kind of a shnook. A square jawed, ruggedly handsome shnook maybe, but a shnook none the less.
Not long ago he owned the friendly skies. As a pilot in a private pink jet, owned by Mary Jean Dobbins (of Mary Jean Cosmetics) his life was envious.
Now, thanks to a horrible accident that incorporated flying, booze and sex (and which will make every guy who reads this book wince) he's lying in a hospital bed, has lost his job, has lost his Pilot's license, is petrified he'll get a hard-on and needs to get the hell out of Dodge before he's indicted.
From out of no where comes a message from Dr. Sebastian Curtis and his wife Beth. They are simple missionaries on the island of Alualu (near Micronesia) and are looking for a pilot to fly medical supplies to the natives and assist them on simple business trips.
Tucker runs at the opportunity with open arms, picking up Roberto (said talking fruit bat) and Kimi the local Micronesian transvestite in the process.
Due to a horrible storm they land on the island long before Curtis and his wife are aware and begin see that things are a bit... off.
Alualu is an Island of ex-cannibals. While they converted away from this practice some sixty years ago, there is at least one old native (Sarapul) who remembers the taste of LongPork and has a hard time shaking the old ways and old religion.
Before Tucker meets Curtis and Beth a number of questions arise. How can the good Dr. and his wife afford a Lear Jet? Why do they have dozens of Ninjas guarding their compound? What happened to their old pilot?
What, exactly is the situation with the quasi-religious ceremony that combines an awesome pyrotechnic display and a voluptuous, nude Beth Curtis parading on stage in front of the islanders and “choosing” one of them?
It turns out that near the end of World War Two a B52 bomber called “The Sky Priestess” landed on Alualu and it's pilot, Vincent Bennidetti, impressed the natives enough that they now worship the naked redhead that was painted on the nose of the plane and wait for the “Return Of Vincent”. The Dr. and his wife have set themselves up as Deities for fun and prophet (I mean profit).
The profit? Flights to Japan with small parcels after one of the “Chosen” has been chosen.
Sometimes they are returned to the fold and sometimes not.
OPINION:
My first recommendation is that you buy a slip cover for this book. If you plan to read it on public transit it will attract some strange looks.
I've come to the conclusion that Christopher Moore can't write a bad novel. His two speeds are either “Above Average” or “Excellent”.
This falls in to the excellent category for me.
If, like everyone else in the world, your first introduction to Moore was Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff then this one makes an excellent follow up.
It is a truer reflection of Moore's writing style, while still retaining his humor and sense of fun.
Most people read Lamb and expect the same slap stick/ punchline laden content in all his other books. Inevitably they are disappointed because that's not his dominant style.
Yes, it pops up from book to book but not nearly as frequently as with Lamb. Moore relies more on absurd situations and sharp smart dialog than he does gags and jokes.
There is a fluidity to Love Nun that is missing from much of Moore's other work. The flow is so smooth and so quick that the book is over before you expect and you find yourself thinking “Wow, I read that really fast”
When thinking about this I realized that it was due to the content and the topics that Moore chooses to write about. He either presents you with a broad “What If” concept and explores multiple incidents that could take place (as is the case with Lamb and Fluke) or he presents you with a single idea and follows it through to it's conclusion (Love Nun and BloodSucking Fiends).
He knows how people talk and has an ease with conversation that many other writers aren't even aware that they lack.
Inadvertently, I'm drawn to and collect authors that tell a good story. Authors like Stephen King, John Irving or Terry Pratchett, that make you feel like you are sitting on a porch or around a fire listening to someone spin a yarn.
Moore has joined their ranks and Love Nun is one of his better tales.
I can hear some of you asking “Is Shmoo going to review everything that Moore has written?”
Quite possibly (and then I may move on to the 60 books by Pratchett).
Why?
Because, in the immortal words of Willie O'Keefe, “The people gots ta know!”
More By Moore:
Fool
You Suck: A Love Story
A Dirty Job
Fluke: Or Now I Know Why The Winged Whale Sings
Lamb: The Gospel According To Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal
Island Of The Sequined Love Nun
Bloodsucking Fiends: A Love Story
Coyote Blue
Practical Demonkeeping: A Comedy Of Horrors
Recommended:
Yes
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shmoo1
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Location: Milton On. Canada
Reviews written: 103
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About Me:Vote Kingfish/ Shmoo in 2012 'Cuz A Shmoo In The Hand...
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