Busybodies and Killjoys

Most times I’ll buy a book after having someone recommend it, or after reading a review. Maynard and Jennica,  by Rudolph Delson, however, was one of the first books that was a total mystery to me when I came across it, yet I knew instantly that I had to go out and buy it. I actually threw on pants and ran (kay, walked briskly. the sidewalks were icy.) down to Chapters to look for it.

Here are some of the reasons I risked broken ankles.

1. I stumbled across Rudolph online mentioning that he loved Andrew Bird. Who also loves Andrew bird? Me. What’s not to love about warbles and whistling?

2. He delivers excellently goofy book readings – at Google headquarters (!). You can watch the reading of Maynard and Jennica, along with question and answers, online right…… here.

3. Not only does he give goofy lectures, he also poses for a good goofy picture.

4. He lived in Germany, earning a living selling personal letters to strangers.

5. Last, I think Rudolph perfectly sums up both the story and my feelings about the book in an interview from Powell’s Books:

“… at least in literature, the misanthrope and the romantic are opposites. In the misanthropic comedy, we laugh at the follies of a man who loathes the misery of the people he sees around him; in the romantic comedy, we laugh at the fancies of a woman who longs to be happy like the people she sees around her. Similarly, there are two things you can do with blackberries: plant them along your fence to keep the world out, or pick them from the roadside for pancakes.”

Well,  if I can’t convince you, maybe New York’s literati can!

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