Rating: 
Summary: I couldn't wade through it, either... ZERO STARS!!!!
Review: I really, really wish I had read the reviews before I wasted my money on this book - a friend had the title pop up on her "If you like Lilian Jackson Braun, you'll like this..." and I bought it on the basis of that information. WRONG!!!!! I couldn't even finish it; my friend managed to struggle through to the end but hated it. The parodying may be excellent, but I couldn't wade through all the graphic sexual scenes to appreciate the parody. There should have been some clue in the actual description of the book. Caveat emptor!!!
Rating:
Summary: Tasteless, childish
Review: I guess I'm one of the little old ladies, but I could not finish this book. All the scatology would appeal to 8-year-old boys, but they are too young for the sexual scenes. I just found this book too stupid to waste my time reading it. It is too bad this review system does not allow for negative stars.
Rating: 
Summary: "A FORTUNE COOKIE FULL OF CYANIDE"
Review: My mystery reading group recently chose this title for our discussion. About half the people loathed it; the other half absolutely loved it. I was one of the second group, one who definitely was able to "read and roar." I think the readers who were alarmed by the novel found it "too risqué" and "not enough about LJB", but as the people on my side of the room kept insisting, that was the very point. Kaplow's book takes the polite little world of LJB and completely turns it on its head. Instead of a cute little eccentrics in white-washed little towns, we're given a book-length Eric Bogosian-like screed against the fraudulence of novelists like LJB, but, more specifically, we're given a smart literary parody that begins even before the novel starts. There's a "By the Same Author" page that includes such gems as "The Cat Who Mistook His Wife for a Litterbox." Then, on the copyright page, amid all the tiny legalese, we find: "All of the jokes in this novel were originally rejected by The New Yorker." This is really what the book is about: a sly send-up of books, authors, literary prizes, popular culture, and sexual mores. It's done at high volume and high intensity. It made me cry with laughter. If you're looking for a tame little tasteful send-up of LJB, then be prepared to drop your bifocals and your dentures in alarm. But if you've got a taste for something madder and wilder and smarter, this book is for you. (I particularly recommend you reread "The Maltese Falcon" as the last quarter of this book is a delicious send-up of that novel.)
Rating:
Summary: Hilarious
Review: I don't laugh at much, but this made me howl. I can see how this book might offend the "little old ladies" (both the literal and the figurative variety), but, honestly, this novel was refreshing in its total disregard for conventional "good taste." It's a satirical bunkerbuster, unafraid to take on anyone and anything, and, frankly, I enjoyed every second.
Rating: 
Summary: WARNING!! NOT FOR CHILDREN!!!!
Review: Although the LJB "Cat Who.." books are PG and for children, this parody is not for kids. Besides the detailed pornographic actions of the main character, the way she was murdered is pretty gross.However, the parody is terrific. The writing is funny. And every aspect of the LJB books are made fun of. For example:
Instead of country town it's in NJ. Wholesome characters are far from that. And the cats are irrelevant when it comes to solving this case. Also, I found a great pun of LJB's style of using common items as murder weapons. Instead of butter knives or fireplace pokers, we have a shaver and dildo! It's creatively cleaver and fast-paced reading. But it can be disrespectful to serioius LJB fans and even perhaps her family?
To repeat: NOT FOR CHILDREN!!!
Rating:
Summary: Yuck
Review: I wish I'd read some of the reviews before I picked it up from the library! I have no objections to paradies in general, but this is badly written. Like some of the previous reviewers, my main objection is the overt sexual references. It could have been very funny without being explicit. I mean, I loved the title. Guess I should have just stopped there.
Rating:
Summary: Why is there no zero for ratings?
Review: I read 14 pages and was so disgusted I had to throw it in the trash bin. What a shameful way to use our favorite author's name. It was not funny unless you're a 14 year old boy. This book is NOT for fans of Lilian's Cat Who novels. Stay away! Stay far away!
Rating:
Summary: Funny, Sexy, and Satirical
Review: If you have no sense of humor, then pass on this one. But if your sense of humor runs towards the silly, the ribald, the off-center, and the reckless, then this is a novel you'll probably love.
Rating:
Summary: More poor writing than good humor
Review: I was very excited to hear that there was a parody book based on "The Cat Who..." series. Unfortunately, the book is not funny and not well written. I like a good racy story, but the graphic (or pornographic) thoughts and actions of the main character as well as other characters didn't even seem to fit into the story. I suppose they were thrown in for humor, but like a comedian who must resort to using foul language to get a laugh; it was disappointing.
Rating:
Summary: More poor writing than good humor
Review: I was very excited to hear that there was a parody book based on "The Cat Who..." series. Unfortunately, the book is not funny and not well written. The graphic (or pornographic) thoughts and actions of the main character as well as other characters didn't even seem to fit into the story. I suppose they were thrown in for humor, but like a comedian who must resort to using foul language to get a laugh; it was disappointing.
|
