Vote for Larry

Vote for Larry
written by Janet Tashjian



This is...an odd book. I mean, really, that's the only word for it. The first book in the series, The Gospel According to Larry, has a really definitive and conclusive ending. As in, there is absolutely no room for more. And yet, somehow, Tashjian manages to somehow completely ignore the fact that she told us in the previous book that we would never hear from Larry again, and she brings him back. Just baffling. So, okay, we're left to read another book about Larry's adventures which were supposed to have ended, but that's ok. More books can be a good thing, right? I still want to know why she didn't just create a new character with a new story, but this is ok, too. For the book itself, you don't have to have read the first book to understand it, and not very much time and depth is given to recapping, which is always nice. It has that same quirky writing we saw in The Gospel According to Larry, same lovable characters with some new ones thrown into the mix, and the amazing footnotes are back as well. I think my biggest complaint is the convenience of all the events. Larry somehow gets back in touch with her. Somehow all these people collide in this perfect chain of unlikely events. Not buying it; it just comes off as ridiculous. It's kind of a cool read for anyone interested in the inner workings of the political process, and I will admit the West Wing geek in me adored that portion of the book, but it gets preachy at times, just like The Gospel did, and there's a bit of a romantic cliffhanger that I wasn't quite a fan of. There's really not that much else to say. I'm honestly still confused about why this book exists. It's an interesting novel, but somehow just feels...hollow.

Rating: 4/5

Also in the series:
The Gospel According to Larry

I got this book from...:Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh