Kill Two Birds & Get Stoned

WOW!,what a read. Kinky has put together his best book yet.There are a great bunch of lines in this story.Typical of Kinky,you'll find several on one page and then he'll go several pages before laying on a few more.At times, it seems like he writes while riding a rollercoaster.Not all rollercoasters have to have wheels,you know-I wonder what kind Kinky rides? Here's some of Kinky,s wisdom to chew on: "Man cannot live on bagles alone." "How you wear what you wear is everything." "There was a bathroom big enough for a midget without any dreams." "Don't you know that when you capture something in words,you make it disappear?" "The only things you ever really keep in this life,are the things you let slip through your fingers." "This woman was a ticket for the train to Hell." "It's always easier to get into a mental hospital,than it is to get out of one." "It's seldom a good sign when the bartender's drunker than the patrons." "That's also why,if you like the book,you should never meet the author." Just in case you've spent the last year in some faraway land , you might be unaware that the Kingster is running for Governor of the State of Texas.Check out on the Web under Kinky Friedman for Governor.At least with Kinky as Governor you'll know where he stands,and he'll tell it to you like it is.Maybe he'll put his friend Willie in charge of ATF and bring back his new friend Clyde from Moro de Sao Paulo ,off the coast of Brazil ,and put her in charge of States Initatives.That ought to wake up the Establishment. Kinky was a guest on Larry King a couple of weeks ago and served notice that things are going to change when he gets elected.

Once again the Kinkster successfuly ventures into another world. A place far removed from the bizarre detective and his insane group to an intense writer searching for inspiration not found in a bottle. The outrageous adventures are "out there" but if one pays attention you get the sense that Mr. Snow is not as superficial as he seems at first glance. I couldn't put the book down, I was keenly interested in finding out if his relationship with Clyde ever went beyond the pleasures of a solo act!

Interesting how this celebrated writer mixes the hilarious, bizarre, inane, contemplative, and even the beautiful in one masterly contemporary novel. Two very odd people meet our frustrated 1st person writer- narrator, sending him on three rollicking, anarchic adventures in the Village. The trio battle a mental hospital, a big time real estate developer, and the world's #1 Coffee Chain. Along the way, some terrific dialogue, discussions of the art of the novel, the real vs the fantastic,and a general critique of modern urban society shine through. A fine page turner written by a terrific pen man, with more than enough laughs for all. My only complaint: a bit too harsh on the three corporate adversaries, and our three Robin-Hood style protaganists may be interesting. but they are definitely not all that nice! A very tragic ending, but the last paragraph is a winner. maybe even a beautiful finale.

Don't give up on this story. I read the first 1/3 and then put it down because Kinky was not in the story and I could not easily understand the characters. But since he has never disappointed me, I picked it up about two weeks later. It really is awesome. It has the usual Friedman "sound bites" that are memorable but it also is true literature . Ironically, it is probably the first good book he wrote "not stoned". You will think about the story forever and I am still trying to figure out the meaning of the dedication in relation to the story.In an allogorical sense Is Irv really Clyde or Fox or Walter or Kinky

There is no doubt that I was one of the first to read this new Friedman novel, and it is truly different from any other Friedman detective novels. Characters like Walter Snow (who has the very familiar voice of Kinky Friedman, btw), Clyde and Fox fill the pages instead of the more familiar musician-turned-author-turned-detective "Kinky" that is so familiar to his fans. There are no McGoverns, McCalls or Ratsos, but there is that very familiar Friedman pace and style throughout. Kill Two Birds and Get Stoned is already a collectible, in that it is so far afield for Friedman. It took courage, too. Changing a winning pattern can give many an author the heebie-jeebies. Please check out Fannie Flagg's review in the April 13th New York Times Book Review.