A Bawdy but Thoughtful Fool

Fool by Christopher Moore
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Rude, irreverent, weird, and funny. Bawdy doesn't cover it--the mildest passages are bawdy. This is... ribald? Libidinous? Ooooh--salacious! No... Hmmmm....

Ah. Raunchy! That's it. In a good way.

Anyway, I thought it was entertaining and hilarious. I understand some readers might be put off. Such folks should check it out from the library, if they read it at all. I got it in hardcover. :)

I accidentally (long story) read the sequel first, and enjoyed it. Before I read this, I re-read King Lear, which it is largely based on, and that was a good idea. There are many threads in the original, and there are several additional threads here. I'll admit I lost track of what Pocket (the fool) was trying to do at all times, but I just rolled with it. Still fun.

A reimagining of old literature resonates with me, perhaps more than for others. I love seeing a fresh look on something that hasn't already been done a hundred times. (I'm looking at you, King Arthur.) This made King Lear relevant to me again, for the first time since 1979, so that's cool--and I enjoyed this romp (obligatory review word) through the old story.

Pocket is great character--almost entirely motivated by id, part loyal friend, part trickster, filled with ironic detachment, unafraid of annoying or enraging others and actually happy to do it (reminding me of, say, Hawkeye Pierce in M*A*S*H or Patrick Jane in the Mentalist)--and it works making the novel centered on him. He is not a minor character here, as in the play, but drives the action, affecting events in a surprising way.

And taunting, mocking, annoying, insulting, and frustrating everyone around him almost the whole time, with sex or inappropriately sexy talk on pretty much every page. Raunchy. That's the word.

Light tone; medium heavy themes; tragic events; it's a strange mix. But I like it.

Recommended.

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