I need to start another book like I need a hole in my head, but Oreo by Fran Ross arrived for me at the library and there is a hold queue so I can’t renew it and I couldn’t remember what it was about or where I heard about it only that I really wanted to read it when I put a hold request on it and Bookman is working late tonight so I decided to read while eating dinner and what should I read? Oh look! There is this new book from the library! Let’s see what it’s all about! And OMG, I almost choked on my dinner because I was laughing so much. I still have no idea what the book is about but is it ever funny!
I take that back, I do have some idea what the book is about. It’s about Christine (aka Oreo) whose father is Jewish and mother is black. Yiddish everywhere! Jokes and humorous situations galore! The back of the book tells me it is a modern parody of the odyssey of Theseus with a feminist twist, pop culture, black vernacular and Yiddish wisecracking.
I have not gotten far, I am only on page 12, but I am hooked. Here is how the book starts:
First, the bad news
When Frieda Schwartz heard from her Shmuel that he was (a) marrying a black girl, the blood soughed and staggered in all her conduits as she pictured the chiaroscuro of the white-satin chuppa and the shvartze’s skin; when he told her that he was (b) dropping out of school and would therefore never become a certified public accountant — Riboyne Shel O’lem!— she let out a great geshrei and dropped dead of a racist/my-son-the-bum coronary.The bad news (cont’d)
When James Clark heard from the sweet lips of Helen (Honeychile) Clark that she was going to wed a Jew-boy and would soon be Helen (Honeychile) Schwartz, he managed to croak one anti-Semitic “Goldberg!” before he turned to stone, as it were, in his straight-backed chair, his body a rigid half swastika, discounting or course, head, hands, and feet.
And it just gets zanier from there. This is going to be fun!
There was a story about this book on the On the Media podcast a few weeks ago. They focused on its publication history, but I couldn’t get a sense of whether it was something I’d enjoy. I’ll be interested to learn what you think!
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Teresa, so far it is very entertaining and irreverent. I’ll be sure to say how it holds up until the end 🙂
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This sounds way too funny…let me know how it holds out till the end and I will accordingly follow suit! 🙂
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cirtnecce, I’ll let you know for sure! But so far, so good 🙂
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This is indeed zany! I’ll be curious to know whether the style gets wearying after a while, or if you like it just as much by the end. I must also say I don’t know much (anything) about Theseus – oh other than the Minotaur. Wikipedia here I come!
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Litlove, yes, we’ll see about the style, it is one that could definitely get tiring. The book is not very long though so that will help. I’m not entirely up on my Theseus story either, thank goodness for the internet! 🙂
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Sounds like an interesting storyline. And the writing styles is quite entertaining too. 😉
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Arti, definitely! Hopefully it ends up meeting the expectations it has created!
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Starting a new book and having it grab you right away is one of the best experiences. Yay! I hope it continues to be awesome all the way through.
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Jenny, it does give one a rush, doesn’t it? Fingers crossed it stays good!
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OK, so THIS is so going on my TBR list now.
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danahuff, I hope you enjoy it!
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I hadn’t heard of this but love the sound of it. Helen Honeychile Schwartz! Haha, love it.
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whisperinggums, that name alone makes me laugh! 🙂
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I have caved in a few times, too, with starting new books when I shouldn’t, but I am still cranking away at Henry James and I should be finishing my very long (but very good) French mystery (it is well over 500 pages and I am in the last 50 page stretch–already have my new mystery picked out of course….). Library books always make things interesting—and this one sounds most intriguing!
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Danielle, well you know I had no choice on this one, right? It has a deadline so I had to start reading 😉
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I read about this one on the New Yorker blog (http://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/an-overlooked-classic-about-the-comedy-of-race) and then read the first page in a bookstore and immediately put a hold on it at the library. I have it checked out now but haven’t started it yet – soon, though!
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Ooh, thanks for the New Yorker link! I’ve gotten past the beginning now and am still enjoying it. Hope you like it too!
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