Race Me in a Lobster Suit
Absurd Internet Ads and the Real Conversations that Followed
Absurd Internet Ads and the Real Conversations that Followed
This collection of prank Craigslist ads and the real email exchanges that followed is “hilarious, good fun” and the perfect gift for fans of offbeat humor (Huffington Post) When New York City copywriter Kelly Mahon started posting fake gig ads online as a creative outlet, she was surprised to find that there was someone interested in every bizarre job offer she dreamed up. Race Me in a Lobster Suit collects Mahon’s funniest posts, along with the improvised email exchanges with would-be cocoon knitters and lobster racers. Some correspondents became suspicious, while others seemed willing to play along. The result is good-natured comedy gold and a kind of collaborative entertainment that could only exist in the internet gig economy. Irreverent illustrations by cartoonist Graham Annable (creator of the Harvey Award nominated Grickle comics) ensure that this small book offers outsize laughs. A quick, hilarious read, Race Me in a Lobster Suit is perfect for anyone who needs a bit of absurdity to brighten their day.
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In theory, this sounded like it was going to be hilarious. An author who got bored enough to start posting ridiculously absurd “help wanted” ads on the internet and publishing the email conversations that ensued? It reminded me of a nonfic/humor collection I've loved before, so I honestly thought this was going to be a big hit—and it is! At first.
It starts off pretty funny, if a bit tedious—I definitely found myself skimming some of the stories because I was just getting bored of the constant repetitive nature of the messages (not that the emails are similar, but that each specific “incident”'s conversation would have a lot of messages where the author repeated themselves). After a while, though, I began to notice a theme with some of the email conversations: many of the people responding to the ads really needed the money and were willing to do anything to get it.
Maybe this is just my own personal issue, but once that “clicked” for me, it was impossible to view this author as anything other than a raging jerk because, I mean, imagine someone offering you hundreds of dollars to do some weird but feasible thing when you really need to get your rent paid or buy your kids groceries, and then after days of having your hopes up, they tell you it was all a joke so they could make money off of this book. I dunno, y'all, I'm a mom and I'd do anything to keep my kid fed and safe and I'd probably come after somebody over this shit if I had been forced into a desperate enough spot to respond to Mahon's ads.
I dunno, I'm being a spoilsport and I know it, but this kind of sucked and I have no respect for the author.
Thank you so much to the publisher for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
