Dave Barry and Alan Zweibel tag-teamed in 2012 for this novel, and it was a fun one . . . if you can suspend your disbelief again and again and again. I can. I enjoyed the repeated and unbelievable twists and turns. As I outlined in some previous posts, writing funny involves exaggeration, grotesqueness, shock, and sometimes being offensive. Lunatics effectively uses all of those strategies. It was especially fun seeing each author embody a different character and chapter. If you’re looking for an unbelievable storyline and two highly entertaining antagonists (I’m not sure if there was a protagonist), this might be a book for you. This quote hooks the reader from page one:
I also apologize to all three branches of government, Arnie and Sue Kogen, and to both the General Assembly and Security Council of the United Nations for any role we may have played–and I assure you it wsa completely inadvertent–in exacerbating world tensions.”
I’ve been reading–and working on writing a funny thriller. The humor is easier for me than the action thriller aspect. You can learn more about Barry, Zweibel, and Lunatics on GoodReads. And if you know of any action or thriller books that made you laugh out loud, let me know!
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Dann is an educator, Media & Design Guru, Author, and Public Speaker. He currently serves as Media and Design Specialist at an impressive little Midwestern College where he works directly with faculty to develop effective instructional videos. He has an MFA in Digital Cinema from California's National University, a BSED in English and Theatre Education from the University of South Dakota, and a certificate in Online Education from UW Stout. He was founder and principle owner of Little Prompter, LLC, a teleprompter design and manufacturing company until he sold the company in 2020. Prior to joining Carleton's staff, he taught communication, theatre, and video production for approximately 15 years while working as a professional actor and director--appearing in over forty national and regional commercials and directing and editing dozens of videos and musicals.
Dann’s MFA thesis project involved writing and directing an original, full-length musical, filming the entire development and production process, and editing it into an educational DVD entitled How to Write and Produce Your Own High School Musical. His DVD is currently being distributed by Films Media Group. His debut YA Christian Fiction novel, Suddenly Rural Girl, is published through Kirk House Publishing.
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