Rating:  Summary: SIX STARS! Review: As someone who has grown increasingly tired of the formulaic "cat mysteries" by Braun and her imitators, it was with a real sense of dark delight that I read this merciless parody of her work. It takes all the sentimental, cutsey-nonsense of bloodless, user-friendly fiction and sets it right on its head. Howlingly funny from start to finish. A MAJOR triumph. And I can't wait to see the film. (I read this whole book in one sitting. It was the perfect way to celebrate my ninetieth birthday.)
Rating:  Summary: EXCELLENT FOR DISCUSSION! Review: We used this title for our mystery book club, and it certainly generated a lively one-hour discussion! Half the club hated it, and the other half thought it was one of the funniest send-ups they'd ever read. People were yelling at each other, reading their favorite (or most reviled) passages outloud. It was great!
Rating:  Summary: Shameful Review: It is shameful that Mr. Kaplow is taking advantage of Ms. Braun's good name - and the Cat Who. . . series to make some money for himself. She sells well, writes well - develops a plot, etc. Mr. Kaplow's story is male, college-freshman humor(?) He knows two "f" words - and how to satisy himself physically. His parodies are shallow throughout. COMPLETE WASTE OF MONEY AND TIME!!
Rating:  Summary: If you are bored with Braun's recent books, this may be... Review: ...just what the doctor ordered!I love the Lilian Jackson Braun "The Cat Who..." series, especially the first five or six books. I have read at least a dozen, and I would count myself as a fan... but I have stopped reading her stories in recent years because I have found them meandering and uninteresting. As I became increasingly impatient with Ms. Braun's writing, I started noticing my mind wandering as I read her books. I started to wonder about the lead character, James Qwilleran. Does Q ever have sex? Does he ever defecate? These questions are answered, to hilarious excess, through Robert Kaplow's introduction of James Qafka.... the alternate-universe Qwilleran! The beloved Q has certainly undergone a metamorphosis, from a resident of the kingdom of purity and light to... well... let's just say the anti-Q is more realistically human, in a very base way! My only real criticism of Kaplow's book is that Qafka's Siamese cats did not play a greater part. As a cat owner, I feel Ms. Braun has a good grasp of feline psychology. I love the way she integrates Qwilleran's cats, Koko and Yum-Yum, into her stories. I can think of about a dozen cat-related grotesqueries Kaplow could have perpetrated upon his helpless readers... And yes, the book has pornographic sequences. I found these sections to be rudely humorous, but readers who find such writing offensive should skip this book. I suspect Kaplow is actually a Lilian Jackson Braun fan, and that his attitude is probably "sometimes you have to make fun of what you love." I hope he loves other series by famous authors, and that we will see more of his subversive writing soon.
Rating:  Summary: NOT SINCE THE NAIROBI TRIO... Review: Five shining stars for Mr. Kaplow's brilliantly funny, startlingly original, appealingly vulgar and deliciously sophomoric The Cat Who Killed Lilian Jackson Braun. This side-splitting parody offers wit, erudition, a sense of play, a shrewd selection of targets, and a bouquet of outrageous humor--as Ms. Braun is devastatingly massacred. The Cat Who books are long due for a parody, and they finally receive the kind of biting satire they so richly deserve. Not for the weak-hearted!. Readers, Braun fans or not, will savor this true whiff of dark genius!
Rating:  Summary: A GENUINE BREATH OF FRESH AIR Review: An inspired send-up of mysteries and mystery fans. There are few books that make me laugh aloud, but this was one of them. I recommend it to everyone who walks into my diner. Puns, satires, songs: the jokes just don't stop. Some are tasteful and some are wildly tasteless. That's the fun of the book. If you're fan of the Farrelly Brothers kind of humor, this is one for you. Smart, sweet, and unsentimental. If the only thing Lilian Jackson Braun had ever done was to inspire this satire, then her entire literary career was worth it.
Rating:  Summary: SIX STARS! Review: As someone who has grown increasingly tired of the formulaic "cat mysteries" by Braun and her imitators, it was with a real sense of dark delight that I read this merciless parody of her work. It takes all the sentimental, cutsey-nonsense of bloodless, user-friendly fiction and sets it right on its head. Howlingly funny from start to finish. A MAJOR triumph. And I can't wait to see the film. (I read this whole book in one sitting. It was the perfect way to celebrate my ninetieth birthday.)
Rating:  Summary: A FLAWLESS PARODY Review: I give this five stars only because I can't give it six stars. This book is an example of gleeful, male-adolescent comic exuberance--postively Swiftian in its artful malice--imagine Beavis & Butthead or Howard Stern combined with Noel Coward and Oscar Wilde, and you've got some idea of THE CAT WHO KILLED LILIAN JACKSON BRAUN's form of highbrow/lowbrow intellectual comedy. A book that is considerably smarter than the traditional LJB audience who will probably stumble upon it. It's, quite simply, laugh-outloud funny. A wicked parody. Grab it.
Rating:  Summary: Not amusing parody Review: I began this book last night and intend to throw it in the trash today. I found nothing amusing or entertaining about it. The descriptions are crude, as is some of the language. All in all a vile book. I'm not some old prude, but I thought I'd be entertained by this book instead it's appalling. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone!
Rating:  Summary: Someone needs to learn the definition of "parody." Review: I give this one star because the site doesn't allow zero or negative stars. This book is an example of something written by a guy stuck in the mindset of an inadequate male adolescent who thinks Beavis & Butthead or Howard Stern are examples of the highest form of intellectual comedy. To speak in language the author would understand, this book sucks. It's not funny, and it's definitely not a "parody." Avoid it.
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