Uncle Sam’s Carnival of Copulating Inanimals

Uncle Sam’s Carnival of Copulating Inanimals by Kirk Jones

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


After dying in a wood chipper accident and being reborn as a being composed of tears, Gary becomes part of Uncle Sam's traveling carnival where he's tasked with training the inanimals to copulate for the amusement of the crowd. But what is the dark secret Uncle Sam is hiding...?

Is Uncle Sam's Carnival of Copulating Inanimals the most bizarre of the New Bizarro Author Series I've read so far? Yes. Yes, it is. At first glance it looks like your average comedy: boy dies, boy gets reborn as a being of vitreous humor, boy joins carnival led by Uncle Sam and falls in love with his niece who later dies and is reincarnated as a futon. How many times have we read that tired old story?

All foolishness aside, Kirk Jones has written a commentary on the American dream, control, and conformity, and wrapped it in bizarro trappings. Or it's just a story about furniture having sex. It's fairly open to interpretation.

Any gripes? Only that the characters other than Gary and Uncle Sam didn't have a whole lot of development. That and not enough furniture sex.

For bizarro fans that like their tales to have a message, this is one to watch for. 3.5 out of 5. Now if you'll excuse me, I don't like the way my couch is looking at my chair one bit...







View all my reviews