Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Book Review - In the House

I found a great book called "In the House." Those are pretty much the only words in the entire book, other than the publisher info and the fact that it was copyrighted in 1981 and printed for the fifth time in 1987. I'm surprised this book went through five prints and 6 years to be honest. Anyway, let's start the review.

Creep-ass

That is the cover. Like I said, those are the only words in the book, leaving the meaning of the book open for interpretation. Since the book is only like 6 pages long, I will be presenting each page and the interpretation I have come up with. Feel free to give me your thoughts, I'm open for debate on this. 

I originally thought that the clown is an MC and he is "in the house," meaning that he's present and ready to party because it looks like he is raising the roof and making it rain on them hoes (notice the coin-like objects in his hands). I also thought that he was wearing that coat and boots, but the coat is clearly backwards, his arms aren't in the arm-holes, and there are no legs going into the boots. That can only mean that the title, In the House, means that this shitty little clown is hiding somewhere in your house. But where? That's the mystery and intrigue of this book.


The first two pages of the book are pretty confusing. It is difficult to gather what they could mean, but with a little brainpower we can see that in the first page, the clown (Let's call him Tinkles) is telling you that you're going to need to be seated for this. The book is far too powerful and emotional to read standing up. He also laughs at your crappy taste in chairs. 

On page two, we see an empty table, set in a calming blue background. The calm is only temporary, however, because the meaning of this page is clear once you think about it. Tinkles the Clown participates in Manson-esque Creepy-Crawls (note: since I doubt anyone really reads my links, and to provide insight into that reference, Charles Manson and crew would break into peoples houses while they slept and rearrange their furniture, just to fuck with people. They called it Creepy Crawling, and Tinkles does too!).


What would you do if you only had a short amount of time left on Earth? That is the question that page three presents, as it shows a ticking cuckoo clock. Although it is not an overpowering message, Tinkles delivers it smoothly just the same. As a side note, I actually kind of like that clock picture for some reason. The colors and the simpleness of it maybe?

How did Tinkles the Clown get in your house to begin with? This book knew its readers were smart and would ask such questions, so page four covers the details. Silly you, you forgot to close the window! 


Remember on the cover when Tinkles was fucking around in your clothes? Well page five shows a wardrobe, but make no mistake! This is only here to throw the readers off, he is not inside your wardrobe. But you're curious and you're going to look anyway, and when you see it is empty, you are given a false sense of security. 

Page six is simply reminding you to water your plants.

And that's all there is to "In the House!" The end, kaput, el fin. But wait, where in the hell was Tinkles hiding? That lingering question will haunt you and taunt you, and you won't want to close the book until you find out. That's where this book's genius really shows. Once you give up and decide that Tinkles is nowhere in the house and you finally close the book - BOOM!


That's right, kids! He's been under your bed the whole time! Goodnight! :)

When I decided to review this book, I just started writing. I had no idea where I was going with it, and I don't know how or why I gave it the creepy-clown-hiding-in-your-house theme, but that's where I went. What are your interpretations?

7 comments:

  1. A minor correction. With the coins in his hands, he would actually be making it "hail on them hoes" (see Daniel Tosh).

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  2. Ah, my apologies! In Daniel we trust. But the fact that he's making it hail on said hoes just proves that he's a creep no matter what he's doing.

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  3. That clown is in disguise. This is what he really looks like:
    http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=scary+clown&view=detail&id=7CEA8B6814B348DFAC18F362F292E8B1CDD95D32&first=31&qpvt=scary+clown&FORM=IDFRIR

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  4. That does seem more like the clown I had in mind.

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  5. The creepy clown was in a horrible circus accident, leaving only his head intact. So who cares if the clothes are on backwards, or at all. The chair represents the place where CC’s (creepy clown, let’s just keep it simple) “friends” like to play whoopee cushion with his head. The table is where all his “friends” play quarters, poker, and slam whiskey shots- all while yucking it up at the awesome fart noises being emitted from CC’s head. At exactly 2:34 (am? pm?) CC says eff alla this- I can’t take it anymore, and flings himself out the window, only to land on the old discarded wardrobe closet. His “friends”, sadly, find CC face down (tee hee), deader than a doornail ( I never knew what this meant, exactly). In his honor, CC’s “friends” plant a nice yellow flower to remember him by, because they are cheap bastards who couldn’t afford a nice comfy bed adorned with a bright diamond shape designed quilt and fluffy pillow to bury him in. ( well, at least the pillow part, as he doesn’t need no stinking quilt- tee hee). The end.

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  6. Wow Anonymous, I kind of feel sorry for Tinkles now, thanks a lot! So you're saying the fact that the bed/coffin is on the back cover shows that he did not get buried in the pillow, but merely got a yellow flower? Very interesting... Good interpretation! But I still say he's evil.

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  7. I could not stop laughing while I was reading this! Which is kind of a bad thing because it's 4:30 in the morning, and I think my laughing fit woke up everyone else in the house. Oh well, worth it.

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