Hello and welcome to this bonus episode of Ken Reads The Classics. As I mentioned, I will, from time to time, review a modern book and this is one of those times.

I just finished reading Razzmatazz by Christopher Moore. Razzmatazz is the sequel to his novel Noir but rest assured it stands on it’s own. I know this because I haven’t read Noir before but after reading Razzmatazz, I plan on picking a copy of Noir up and enjoying that.

Razzmatazz takes place in post-World War II San Francisco. Moore created a host of engaging characters like Sammy, Moo Shus, The Cheese, and Uncle Ho among the human ones and the Rain Dragon and Scooter among the non-human ones.

This book grabbed my attention from the beginning, and I mean beginning with the trigger warning. Moore uses colorful language throughout the book, including some racial slurs, but he uses them to show the ignorance of people vice engaging in racial supremacist apology or justification.

Sammy is the lead character who couldn’t serve in the war due to physical defects and now that the war is over, earns his living as a bartender. He dates a energetic, former welder now turned waitress that he calls The Cheese but doesn’t want her to know that. Moore surrounds this duo with a multi-racial, multi-cultural team of people with Asian and African ethnicity to solve a mystery, well several mysteries actually, like the figurative onion with Moore peeling away layer after layer until you reach the center - of the earth - well, almost.

His energetic writing style kept my mind engaged as the story raced along; I admit to re-reading several sections, sometimes because I wanted to laugh again - this book is very funny, and other times because my brain couldn’t keep up with Moore. I appreciated the challenge though and I think you will too. If you can handle the many off-color jokes and a great deal of immature yet somehow just for adults language, then Razzmatazz is for you.

Thank you for listening and please joining me next time on Ken Reads The Classics.