The Family Experiment

The Family Experiment by John Marrs, 453 pages

In the near future, having kids is too expensive for all but the most wealthy people. To address that issue, an enterprising tech company has come up with virtual children, which, through the magic of haptic suits and VR headsets, can be raised and interacted with in the metaverse throughout their whole "life." To promote this new offering, the company has created a reality show in which five couples and one single man raise virtual kids at an accelerated rate over nine months, at the end of which one winning couple or individual must choose whether they want to keep their virtual child (who, if they've done everything right, they care for as much as they would a biological kid) or if they want to kill that coding and try for a real world baby.

This is a horrifying concept done disturbingly well. There's emotional manipulation, sure, but this book also features social media judgment, child abductions and exploitation, and, well, reality TV. Oh, and some really unlikeable characters. There is an audience for this book, and I know that when those people who want horrifying books about technology and AI and its impact on our lives ask for a recommendation, I'll have this one ready to hand over. Because it IS well-thought-out and executed. Disturbingly so.

The Sky Is Yours

The Sky Is Yours by Chandler Klang Smith, 457 pages

Take Manhattan, and throw in the following elements in equal parts:

• horrific prison mismanagement (think a walled-in neighborhood where all criminals, regardless of crime, are thrown together); 
• a disturbing fascination with reality TV and technology; 
• a hopelessly romantic teenage girl whose only purpose is to be married off to a rich husband;
• and a freaked out kid who grew up on a trash island.

Mix well and cook with intermittent fire provided by two ever-circling dragons flying above the city.

Makes: one cynical, funny science fiction novel. Devour at will.

I read this book for the first time last year, and blogged about it here. I feel much the same on this reread as I did then (still loved it, still tickled pink at the character names), so I won't say much more in this post. I'm curious to see what the Orcs & Aliens think of it tonight though.

Unhinged: An Insider's Account of the Trump White House

Unhinged: An Insider's Account of the Trump White House by Omarosa Manigault Newman, 334 pages.
Other than as a Trump surrogate on the campaign trail and then as a person that people I paid attention to were maligning and making fun of, I was unaware of Omarosa. I had never watched The Apprentice (yes, I am bragging about that) and I was unaware of Omarosa's many other accomplishments. I did start the book with a bias against Omarosa, based on her pro-Trump stance and the things people I like and respect said about her, I found myself believing the author a bit after listening to her narrate this book.. She is obviously a smart woman, and she is used to controlling the narrative and convincing people of what she wants them to believe, and though she has an enthusiasm for reality TV and a poor choice in mentors, she comes across as an honest person who has seen the light about Donald's douche-baggery. As the Assistant to the President and Director of Communications for the Office of Public Liaison, Omarosa is able to give us well-formed opinions about Trump, Pence, Kellyanne, Bannon, and others. While she claims to have lingering respect for some members of Trump's inner circle, Melania, and to some extent Eric, she is now willing to acknowledge that the Trump side is dishonest, cult-like and that Trump is a sexual abuser and that he definitely said the n-word. More interesting than I thought it would be.

Most Talkative

Most Talkative: Stories from the Front Lines of Pop Culture by Andy Cohen, 273 pages

When reality TV producer Andy Cohen graduated from Clayton High School, his classmates dubbed him "Most Talkative." This celebrity-soaked memoir proves that, even though he graduated more than 30 years ago, he still OWNS that title, covering everything from his youthful obsession with soap operas (and really, all things TV-related) to his coming-out story to his early career as a CBS This Morning producer to his creation of The Real Housewives reality TV franchise. He covers everything with plenty of self-deprecating humor and 20/20 hindsight. While I'm not a fan of soap operas or CBS This Morning or The Real Housewives (never seen an episode, nor do I really care to), I am a closet fan of celebrity gossip, so I loved listening to this audiobook, which was read by Cohen himself — a decision that added a level of effervescent comedy that made all the difference.

Razor Girl

Razor Girl by Carl Hiassen  333 pp.

Andrew Yancy, disgraced police detective turned health inspector from the book Bad Monkey, is once again landed in a situation involving multiple criminal activities. There's the mistaken kidnapping of a Hollywood agent and the kidnapping of the correct victim, a reality television star and his fanatical and dangerous fan, Mafia gangsters, and the lawyer & fiancee who want to build on the lot next to Yancy's place, blocking his beautiful view on his island in the Florida Keys. Yancy's medical examiner girlfriend has left him for Norway and he ends up involved with Merry Mansfield, the razor girl of the title, who just happens to be involved in the kidnappings. The lawyer is suffering the horrible effects of an addiction to the ED product he advertises as fighting with a class action lawsuit. Buck Nance, the reality show star of "Bayou Brethren" (think "Duck Dynasty" but with roosters), wants to go back to living under his own name as an accordion player in home state of Wisconsin. And the fanatical fan is a racist, homophobic, violent, nutball with a penchant for guns. Add in an infestation of giant Gambian Pouched Rats, Cricetomys gambianus, and you have the usual Hiassen craziness that somehow works out in the end. The only think missing is Hiassen's returning character, Skink, who doesn't appear in this book. 

Chaos Choreography

Chaos choreography / Seanan McGuire, 368 p.

The fifth book in this fun urban fantasy series switches back to Verity Price as the viewpoint character. She's come to terms with giving up her dream to be a professional ballroom dancer in order to focus on the family business (cryptozoology)...but then the reality show she competed on a few years previously, Dance or Die, entices her with a reunion show, and one last time to dance. She has to juggle dancing, her fellow contestants' egos and secrets (some of the other dancers are cryptids)--and a murder investigation, as eliminated contestants begin dying.

Chomp

Chomp by Carl Hiaasen, 290 pages

 Wahoo Cray has a silly name, but he's a serious kid. You kind of have to be if your dad is an animal wrangler and your backyard is filled with alligators, snakes, snapping turtles, and all manner of creatures that are used in TV shows and movies. When Wahoo's dad, Mickey, is hired to wrangle animals for the reality TV show Expedition Survival, they find themselves in over their heads. Not because of the animals; they're easy and predictable. No, it's Derek Badger, the faker-than-fake star of the survivalist show with an overinflated ego, who's impossible to deal with. Throw in Wahoo's friend Tuna, who's an amateur taxonomist on the run from her gun-happy alcoholic father, and you've got a classic Hiaasen, south-Florida story.

In both his adult and kids books (Chomp is the latter), Hiaasen has a strong environmental message, as well as a penchant for taking out big-city know-it-alls, usually by means of Everglades rednecks and some zany hijinks. Chomp is no exception. Derek Badger gets what's coming to him, and we learn to respect nature and not believe everything we see on those survival reality shows. It's a cute book, the characters are fun, and if you're into Hiaasen's brand of kids' books, you'll enjoy it.

[This is the first in a series of animal-themed posts I'll be writing this month. This is an unintentional series.]

License to Pawn

License to Pawn by Rick Harrison  257 pp.

This is the story of the owner of "World Famous Gold & Silver Pawn Shop" subject of the reality show "Pawn Stars." Rick Harrison spent most of his youth in California. As a child he suffered from epilepsy and the debilitating seizures caused him to miss a lot of school. He became and still is an avid reader which has helped him acquire an incredible amount of knowledge about the many odd items that show up in his pawn shop. In addition to telling about his life and the oddities of the pawn business, there are chapters by each of the other stars of the t.v. show: the Old Man (Rick's father), Corey (his son), and Chumlee (Corey's best friend). Corey's chapter was the most surprising. He detailed his methamphetamine addiction and his method of kicking the habit which caused him to gain 100 pounds and he doesn't recommend to others (eating bacon cheeseburgers when the urge for meth hits). Old Man is as curmudgeonly as he appears on the show but Chumlee is not nearly as dopey as he seems. Fans of the show will enjoy this book.  

Dark Entries

Dark Entries by Ian Rankin  214 pp.

If Dante were to write The Inferno today, on what level of hell would he make the punishment a reality television show? That is the question that came to mind while reading this graphic novel. John Constantine is a paranormal investigator who is hired by the producer of a reality television show that is a sort of cross between "Big Brother" and "Survivor" that takes place in a haunted house. The six people who have been chosen to live in the house have been dealing with their own hauntings before the show's producers started their own spooky stuff. Once there Constantine discovers things are not as they seem on the show and the producers are not what they appear to be. The shift in the reality of the story is shown by the change in the background of the art from white to black.

This book is based on the John Constantine, Hellblazer character but done by a different author and illustrator.  

License to Pawn: Deals, Steals, and My Life at the Gold & Silver by Rick Harrison

License to Pawn: Deals, Steals, and My Life at the Gold & Silver by Rick Harrison, Memoir, 256 pages.
I don't know why I decided to pick this book up as I had never seen the show. I am pretty sure that I wasn't even really aware that this particular show existed. Thanks to the library and to Netflix I now know way more about the Gold And Silver than I would have thought. The show and the book are about equal in content and tone. It's all fairly pleasant from the author's somewhat self-involved viewpoint, but it's not anything to get that excited about. Harrison and his son Corey, "Big Hoss," were both horrible kids, and they both ended up working for their fathers. The stories of the crazy folk that inhabit their world can be funny, but the day-to-day life there is not exciting enough that I would read the sequel.
Recommended for fans of reality shows.

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Deus ex machina

Deus ex machina by Andrew Foster Altschul 205 pgs.

An absurd novel about a reality TV show ala "Survivor" this book focuses on the producer who came up with the genre and his latest season which includes an ex marine, a hairdresser, a lawyer, a dental hygienist, etc. When the producer starts questioning what he has done and how unreal "reality" can be on television, he also starts getting paranoid about his crew and their activities behind his back. He seems to fall in love with the dental hygienist who refuses to "play" and doesn't really engage with the other contestants. In flash back, we see his marriage to an earlier contestant on a house rebuilding show disintegrate. Seems like the reality tv guy can't tell reality from an act and that doesn't just include those around him but himself. All of these questions lead to a bit of a breakdown where he wants the final contestants to answer a question about love to win the show. Instead the crew puts him under "house arrest" and then ties him to a chair for the finale they have rigged up that includes kidnap, torture & a grand escape including parachutes...the audience loves it! - Christa