Harry Shearer is one of those people who isn’t satisfied with just doing what he’s always done. Most well known as the voice of several characters on The Simpsons, he is a former writer for and cast member on Saturday Night Live. Additionally, he has a nationally syndicated radio show and a political blog. With Not Enough Indians, Shearer now establishes himself as a novelist.
The story starts with a familiar setting: a town decimated by the loss of its factories and major business chains. A town so poor they can only rename stores by rearranging the letters left when the big-name franchise moved out (think T.G.I. Edy’s, Tergat and it Aid). A town so down that even Wal-Mart refused to build a store there. The townspeople and mayor are out of ideas when the answer comes from an outsider – have the town declared an Indian tribe and open a casino!
A few shady deals later, Mayor Curtis Zorn dons a headdress and becomes Chief Zorn. The Filaquonsett Tribe opens its luxury casino, and the townspeople begin living the good life. That is, until they start drawing attention (and money) away from the Wowosa Reservation Casino down the road.
Every stereotype gets its turn in the spotlight as the battle of wits ensues between organized crime, government bureaucracy and uppity do-gooders. Shearer keeps the satire driving at breakneck speed all the way to the surprising, yet completely befitting, end.
225 pp.
Featuring Shearer (a selection): Haunted Castle; Now You See It; The Return of Spinal Tap; The Simpsons: Season 1, Season 2, Season 3, Season 4, Season 5, Season 6, Season 7, Season 8, Season 9, Season 10, Season 11.
