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Monday, April 19, 2010

In which I meet my favorite adult author, Christopher Moore.

The FNC doesn't usually highlight adult authors... but Christopher Moore is so beyond worthy.

He's the bestselling author of absurdly hilarious books with a cult-like following. They have some of the coolest titles around.

Evidence:
Island of the Sequined Love Nun
Practical Demonkeeping
The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove
The Stupidest Angel: A Heartwarming Tale of Christmas Terror

I am a proud, proud member of the Christopher Moore cult of awesome. He's currently on tour for his latest book, Bite Me -- the third book in his hilarious vampire trilogy (Bloodsucking Fiends and You Suck = sparkle-free amazingness) -- and he stopped by Chester County Books and Music in nearby West Chester, PA.


(The FNC also met Laurie Halse Anderson and Sarah Dessen there last fall, and fellow blogger Joanne from My Brain on Books works there. We heart that store!)

Anyway, Sara and I are HUGE Christopher Moore fans, so of course we went!

But here's why Moore is so awesome -- he turned my reluctant reader Future Husband into an avid fan, and Moore was the first author FH ever got me hooked on. (He never lets me forget it, either.)

FH was like a giddy schoolgirl when I told him about the signing.

Well over a hundred people showed up, and Moore spent about an hour talking and answering questions.


I didn't take any notes from his talk (bad, bad blogger, I know), but he was just as quirky and entertaining as his books. From a writer's perspective, I loved how obvious it was that he loved writing and had FUN writing. He talked about some of the travel research he did, specifically for Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal. And he talked about his hat. And why he doesn't sell as well as Dan Brown. And how he occasionally sets out to write a "normal" book, but then he gets bored and throws in some random absurd paranormal element, like Roberto the talking fruit bat in Island of the Sequined Love Nun. (I freaking love Roberto.)

One thing he said that made me squee with vindicated joy is how he is an incredibly slow writer, but because of that, he barely needs to revise. I wanted to jump up and down and go "I'm a slow writer TOO!!!" Except I, um, still need to revise. But still!

And then he took his time chatting with everyone as he signed their books and took pictures.

Here's a pic of FH and me with Moore.

(I was so entertained watching Moore's different expressions in the pictures he took, and his lack of a smile is even funnier because of the giant cheesers FH and I have.)

What's so awesome about Moore is his wide appeal. The audience's age range was from young teens to retired people. Men and women. Joe Normal and unwashed hippie types. All with PILES of Moore books. (Another notable is Fool, Moore's take on King Lear.)
 
So if you're not already a Moore fan, I'd recommend starting with A Dirty Job. (The audiobook, read by Fisher Stevens, is hands down the best audiobook I've ever listened to.) If that doesn't strike your fancy, try to vampire trilogy (also with a great audio narration).
 
If you're a Moore fan -- what's your favorite book? And how much do you wish you could meet the Emperor of San Francisco?

7 comments:

  1. I have a questions. I have two of his books, Bloodsucking Fiends and You Suck, and I don't know which one comes first...

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  2. Glad to help! Bloodsucking Fiends is first, from Jody's perspective. Then comes You Suck, from Tommy's perspective. And his newest book, Bite Me, is from Abby Normal's perspective.

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  3. He came to a store in my area too! He rocks =) I haven't read all of his books, but the one that drew me in was Coyote Blue--it was recommended to me last year and I've slowly been adding to my CM collection ever since!

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  4. I met him last year on his tour for Fool and just last week for Bite Me. He's so great and funny! My favorite of his books is A Dirty Job.

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  5. Great. Now my TBR pile just grew exponentially. So, glad you got to meet him. That's so fraking cool!

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  6. Sara - I haven't read them all either, but they're totally fun and I love how unexpected they are.

    Titania - A Dirty Job was my first CM experience, and it will always be my favorite!

    Tina Lynn - Woooooo join the cult of CM awesomeness! Well worth it, I promise.

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  7. Look like you had a fantastic time!
    First book I read from Christopher Moore was A Dirty Job and I enjoyed it. I like his sense of humour.
    I haven't read his other books yet, but Bite Me is definitely on the TBR list.

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