Book Review: The Big Bamboo

Reviewed By: Harriet Klausner

The Big Bamboo     Amazon US PB Amazon US HC Amazon Canada PB Amazon Canada HC
Tim Dorsey
Class/Genre:   Mystery   Humorous
Morrow, Apr 2006, $24.95

At THE BIG BAMBOO Serge Storms (who everyone agrees is not because he will kill you otherwise) is outraged by how Hollywood (California that is) depicts his beloved Florida in the movies; movies fail to get it right since the classic top ever state seller Deep Throat. His stoned partner Coleman tells him they ought to do something about that so Serge decides to write a screenplay starring Florida, which means Southern California, will have the pleasure of the crazed duo.

In Hollywood, unprincipled agent Tori Gersh demands that the Glick twins, owner of Vistamax Studios, use her client Ally Street in their Werner B. Potemkin blockbuster movie All That Glitters or she will expose their coke and rape games. Before they can respond someone hires Serge to abduct Ally, which of course he succeeds in doing only to learn he is also involved in a homicide as the wannabe actress is found dead as Serge battles Hollywood vipers while taking the movie industry by storms.

As always when Serge is in town, chaos rules even ironically in a town in which chaos is already the norm. As Serge torpedoes everyone in sight, Tim Dorsey satirizes, using hyperbole, the worst transgressions of Hollywood in the minds of the fundamentally always right. Fans of the series and anyone who enjoys an amusing out of control zany tale will want to join Serge takes Hollywood.

Harriet Klausner

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Harriet Klausner