Wednesday 14 August 2013

YOU GOT TO BE KIDDING BLOG TOUR : INTERVIEW + REVIEW



Paperback: 206 Pages
Publisher: Trans Über LLC
Language: English
ISBN: 0985900202
 
Why did God turn Lot's wife into a pillar of salt? Were there no other seasonings available? Why don't we know anything about the early years of Jesus? Did someone lose his baby book? Who reported the desert encounter between Jesus and Satan? Jesus-or Satan? And why does the Holy Spirit like to show up as a bird?

As irreverent as the musical The Book of Mormon, Joe Wenke's YOU GOT TO BE KIDDING: The Cultural Arsonist's Literal Reading of the Bible is an engaging, provocative and hilarious investigation into the bestselling book of all time. Written to "cause trouble" cultural arsonist Wenke, a keen observer of human gullibility, tempts readers to more closely examine the stories they think they know about the Bible.

Drawing upon the same pool of incendiary and cerebral humor as Bill Maher, Jon Stewart and the late, great George Carlin, YOU GOT TO BE KIDDING is a call for humor to restore our sanity and our ability to think for ourselves. Just as it was written in the Bible-or was it?
 
MY REVIEW:
 


Let me just start out by saying that this is without a doubt the funniest book I've ever read. I sat with my parents and read aloud some of the passages and we all laughed a lot!

It was such an interesting take on the bible and whilst I kind of always hovered between believer and non-believer this book tipped me into the non-believer category. This isn't a bad thing. It points out just how unfair, old fashioned, sexist and ridiculous some of the stories are, Noah's Ark for example.

I highly recommend this book for those who don't believe or for those who aren't sure, it's very funny and very interesting. I don't think I'd recommend it to devout Christians though as it may cause offence.

 5/5 stars!
 
AUTHOR Q&A:
 
 

1. There is a famous quote which states ‘There are two things I’ve learned never to discuss with people … religion and politics.’ Were you nervous about sharing your views on religion with the public?
No, not at all. I could care less.

 
 
2. You have such a logical approach to religion in this book have you always viewed the bible this way or have your views changed over time?
I started questioning everything at a very early age, like around eleven or twelve, right when I was hitting puberty. It took a while to work through all of the crazy stuff that was drilled into my head, but once I had, I would have to say that I pretty much had this attitude and this approach.

 
 
3.This book made me laugh out loud, it is seriously one of the funniest books I have ever read. Was it your intention to make the book so humorous?
Thank you. I’m glad you found it to be so funny. That’s the exact reaction I was looking for.

 
 

4.  What was the hardest part about writing YOU GOT TO BE KIDDING? What was the easiest?
The whole thing was really easy. It just was. That could of course change. At some point I might find it impossible to write another word, but for the time being everything is just sort of flowing out of me. 

 

5. How did you get the inspiration for this book?
As I explained, I just rolled out of bed one day, and the whole thing came to me.

 
6.  What is your typical writing routine?
I don’t plan. I don’t outline anything. I just get an idea and go with it. I don’t really revise anything, although I do tweak stuff and make sure that everything is grammatically correct and all of the punctuation is right.

 

7.  Do you have any advice for aspiring authors?
Go with your ideas. Go with the positive energy, and don’t give a fuck.

 


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