Lord of the Barnyard: Killing the Fatted Calf and Arming the Aware in the Cornbelt

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Summary: Kaltenbrunner vs. the Baker Lay. So absurd, it's credible.
Review: I discovered this tome during a rather miserable trip to tropical, sunny Cairns (Australia). It was about the only thing that stopped me from running accross the road in the middle of the night, setting free all the poultry farm chickens, then running back to peel all the lizards off the exterior wall and drowning them in the pool.

In Lord of the Barnyard, Egolf weaves a tale of misfortune, destruction, putrification and assertion so involving, intense, and breathless (as much from the narrative as trying to read the free-flowing, pin-wheeling, and exceedingly wordy sentences aloud to my sister) that you can't help but be drawn in. I don't see it as highly likely that even, or especially, John Kaltenbrunner's early exploits would ever be possible, but somehow, it just seems perfecly reasonable.

Explaining this book is as impossible as any of John's deeds. I suppose it's fitting that it has yet to be released in the country in which it's set.

A book for thinking people who relish the self-mocking edge of post-modernism. But if you're into the surprise twist at the ending thing, or you need to be able to identify with the book's main character/hero, look elsewhere. You have been warned...

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Summary: Bizarre more than funny...
Review: I picked up this book after reading about it and friends recommending it as a great laugh.. And "Lord of the Barnyard, Killing the fatted calf and arming the aware in the cornbelt" was funny, for a long while and it did make me laugh many times..

The protagonist, John Kaltenbrunner, was born and raised in Baker, a trash city in no-where land. He has lived a life, continuous with misfortunes and tragic events from even before he was born. As a very young boy he showed extreme interest and talent in running the family farm. School was of no interest, and each hour spent there he thought of as wasted time. As a teenager still in school, his mother Madam Kaltenbrunner falls ill. John helplessly watches how the people from the Methodist church lurks around, takes care of his mother in return for piece after piece of beautiful antique furniture from the farm. I really enjoyed following the war between John and the Methodist church, with Hortense as the focal point.

This is certainly not a read for people who like to identify themselves with the story's protagonist, the story is too far off for that. And with over 400 pages of John's insane world - the author outstays his welcome just a little bit..

Having said that, I really enjoyed parts of this book, but it is a bizarre more than a funny read..

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Summary: Neon Bible?
Review: This was a fabulous book, I loved it, but the fact is Tristan seems to have gleaned the bare bones of his story from The Neon Bible, which is a brief tale with some important parallels.

However, this book is much longer and Tristan takes his character far beyond the protagonist in The Neon Bible (Toole). The protagonist, John, is suprememly likable in spite/because of his extreme personality disorder, which i gather to be Aspergers (sp?).
The book follows him through a manic, farm running childhood to the killing floor, to being a sort of labor organizer for a group of his fellow trash haulers. A very intense and interesting read. Something for people who need no "happy endings."