I was offered a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This review may contain spoilers.
I very much enjoyed my first foray into comedy fiction. Matt Nagin’s Do Not Feed the Clown pulls no punches and no one is safe.
Written as a series of shorts, Nagin experiments with form to deliver solid humour. Some are written as adverts, while others are monologues from famous faces. My personal favourites included:
- New Apps: a series of apps partially in development or would be developed in the future.
- Zombie Apocalypse Insurance: an idea that I can’t believe isn’t already a thing.
- Confessions Of A Wayward Santa: a kick in the balls to all your childhood favourites.
- Yelp Reviews of the Crucifixion: way too accurate for their own good.
The shorts are quick to read and you’ll find yourself saying, “Ooh, just one more…” every time you come to the end of one. It’s a very dry humour, balanced on the precipice of dark and outright offensive, but Nagin pulls it off well and manages to satirise even the most untouchable of topics.
My only issues were that some of the jokes were a little repetitive; targeting the same topics for three chapters in a row became a little tiring after a while. I also think this book would be a lot more enjoyable when read by someone who grew up in America, as I did not and some of the references went over my head.
If you’re looking for a quick read to give you some laughs and distract from the disasters on the news, look no further than Matt Nagin’s Do Not Feed the Clown.
Check out Do Not Feed the Clown on Goodreads.
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Writing Werewolf 