Blogcritics The critical lens on today's culture & entertainment
I'll be brief. Carl Reiner, American humorist, is the author of a funny novella, entitled Just Desserts.
Reiner's career bio might be longer than this story, but it is such a funny piece of literature, size doesn’t matter. Really.
A scant 103 pages in the preview copy, Just Desserts tells the story of Nat Noland and the adventures that ensue when he decides to email God with a list of suggestions. And… he gets a reply.
Noland, you may remember, appeared as a successful novelist in Reiner's NNNN, A Novel, in 2006.
This time around, the likeable Nat Noland talks to himself in a witty dialog that makes him funny right from the start. No matter what goes wrong, you're rooting for this poor fellow to work it all out.
As funny as it is, if you look deep, this might be a book about the omnipotence of God, or proof to Noland the atheist, that God does exist. But you don't have to look that deep to have a good time with Just Desserts.
As the story moves along, we find Nat's troubles grow, while he tries to write a spiritual blueprint for building a brave new world. He's often distracted, as most writers are with mundane issues. His include the public spectacle of his teleporting friend, a bit of toilet humor, and a speech to the UN.
When American funny man Carl Reiner invents a man who emails suggestion to God, you've gotta listen.
Carl Reiner is well known for his seven decades working in television. He's the creator of The Dick Van Dyke Show, an inductee of the Television Academy Hall of Fame, recipient of the Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize for American Humor, and a 2008 honoree of the Paley Center for Media.
Enjoy this brief look into the creative mind of an American icon. Given the interior dialog and riotous scenes, Just Desserts is probably even more hysterical as an audio book. See Amazon link below.
(Available July 2009)
