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CHARLIE MALARKEY AND THE SINGING MOOSE by William & Brendan Kennedy Kennedy

CHARLIE MALARKEY AND THE SINGING MOOSE

By

Pub Date: June 1st, 1994
Publisher: Viking

Another offbeat tall tale from the authors of Charlie Malarkey and the Belly-Button Machine (1990); William Kennedy is also the Pulitzer-Prize-winning author of Ironweed and other adult fiction. Barnaby, the moose in question -- appealingly long-faced in Schindler's exuberant depiction -- is an unwilling circus star, captive of moose-trainer Bungaroo. Barnaby can only sing with the help of a polka-dot tie, which ends up in Charlie's possession. The tie enables Charlie's monkey, Max, to sing -- and also, when hidden (from bad-guy Bungaroo) in the freezer, causes a quartet of fish sticks to burst into harmony. In the end, Bungaroo gets his comeuppance, and Charlie sets Barnaby free; but this inevitable outcome is second to the wordplay and whimsical shenanigans along the way, much enhanced by the authors' crisp delivery. Better-than-average slapstick; Schindler's adroit caricatures suit the playful tone.