Texts From Jane Eyre - Daniel M. Lavery
a review by Brodie Hubbard
(published Nov. 2014, revised Sept. 2024)
a review by Brodie Hubbard
(published Nov. 2014, revised Sept. 2024)
Texts From Jane Eyre And Other Conversations With Your Favorite Literary Characters is the first publication by Daniel M. Lavery, co-founder of highbrow humor site The Toast. His previous work has been published through a number of outlets, but I found out about him at a reading in Los Angeles where he performed a piece called Male Novelist Jokes. I can't do justice to the premise by describing what I saw that night, I can only say these are now my favorite lightbulb jokes of all time, and I will be keeping them in mind when setting forth on novels of my own, as to to avoid being rightfully lampooned. Throughout the piece, the repetition of the question posed became funnier with each variation in Lavery's inflection and the wounds left by the sharpness of his wit grew deeper.
Lavery's book, which imagines how figures from literature would converse over text message, draws comedy from the widely criticized style of conversation that the kids these days use over their smartphones, but it is not an indictment of that development in our society. Rather, it's in the juxtaposition of text messaging and classic characters where the amusement lies, and it's written in such a fun way that you can feel the author laughing right along with you. (Or at the very least, restraining a smile while watching you crack up - something I enjoy about Lavery's social media presence is his explosive, occasionally all-caps persona, which he balances out with sincere bursts of sentiment and social and political commentary.)
Humor based on reference can be tricky. In the case of sticking Dennis Miller in the broadcast booth on MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL, it was disastrous. For a show like FAMILY GUY, it can be seen as a shortcut. In this work by Lavery's, which is clever and intelligent without being condescending or inscrutable, I've found that the audience doesn't necessarily require an in-depth knowledge of literary canon to appreciate the jokes. It's more about Lavery's tone and syntax. My father was often fond of repeating to me the adage attributed to Ed Wynn: "A comic says funny things, a comedian says things funny." But Lavery is apt at both. Even as I kicked myself for not being as well-read as an English Literature graduate, writer, and reviewer of books probably should be, I was able to easily follow the track. We are familiar with these archetypes, and antiquated views on class and gender, as displayed by these characters representing the periods of both their fictional universe and of the times the authors who created them lived in.
There are also riffs on modern novels like THE HUNGER GAMES and the HARRY POTTER series. In fact, there is a wide variety of eras and genres represented and it will be tough to select a favorite portrayal. Hamlet acting like a petulant teenager? Ron Weasley as a rube? Scarlett O' Hara as an unapologetic flirt? If you aren't already a fan of the novels sent up, you might just go seek them out - or, if you hated having to study some of these books and authors in an academic setting, maybe this will be a cathartic reading experience. Not that Lavery has contempt for the characters, just that he really brings out the worst in them for you.
The layout of this book is a beautiful thing. There is no preface, no commentary from Lavery, the reader just dives in as if they've picked up someone else's phone and started snooping around their inbox. The context of each exchange is easy to pick up on and the conversations are clear. But the swiftness of the read should only be seen as an indicator of how entertaining it is.
This is not merely an LOL-speak novelty, it is a well-crafted parody that belongs in the collection of book lovers everywhere.
Lavery's book, which imagines how figures from literature would converse over text message, draws comedy from the widely criticized style of conversation that the kids these days use over their smartphones, but it is not an indictment of that development in our society. Rather, it's in the juxtaposition of text messaging and classic characters where the amusement lies, and it's written in such a fun way that you can feel the author laughing right along with you. (Or at the very least, restraining a smile while watching you crack up - something I enjoy about Lavery's social media presence is his explosive, occasionally all-caps persona, which he balances out with sincere bursts of sentiment and social and political commentary.)
Humor based on reference can be tricky. In the case of sticking Dennis Miller in the broadcast booth on MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL, it was disastrous. For a show like FAMILY GUY, it can be seen as a shortcut. In this work by Lavery's, which is clever and intelligent without being condescending or inscrutable, I've found that the audience doesn't necessarily require an in-depth knowledge of literary canon to appreciate the jokes. It's more about Lavery's tone and syntax. My father was often fond of repeating to me the adage attributed to Ed Wynn: "A comic says funny things, a comedian says things funny." But Lavery is apt at both. Even as I kicked myself for not being as well-read as an English Literature graduate, writer, and reviewer of books probably should be, I was able to easily follow the track. We are familiar with these archetypes, and antiquated views on class and gender, as displayed by these characters representing the periods of both their fictional universe and of the times the authors who created them lived in.
There are also riffs on modern novels like THE HUNGER GAMES and the HARRY POTTER series. In fact, there is a wide variety of eras and genres represented and it will be tough to select a favorite portrayal. Hamlet acting like a petulant teenager? Ron Weasley as a rube? Scarlett O' Hara as an unapologetic flirt? If you aren't already a fan of the novels sent up, you might just go seek them out - or, if you hated having to study some of these books and authors in an academic setting, maybe this will be a cathartic reading experience. Not that Lavery has contempt for the characters, just that he really brings out the worst in them for you.
The layout of this book is a beautiful thing. There is no preface, no commentary from Lavery, the reader just dives in as if they've picked up someone else's phone and started snooping around their inbox. The context of each exchange is easy to pick up on and the conversations are clear. But the swiftness of the read should only be seen as an indicator of how entertaining it is.
This is not merely an LOL-speak novelty, it is a well-crafted parody that belongs in the collection of book lovers everywhere.
