Fun_People Archive
20 Jul
Washington Post Literary Contest - Two-for-One

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From: Peter Langston <psl>
Date: Tue, 20 Jul 99 19:52:53 -0700
To: Fun_People
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Subject: Washington Post Literary Contest - Two-for-One

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The following are entries from a Washington Post contest in which readers
were asked to combine the works of two authors and provide a suitable blurb:

"Machiavelli's The Little Prince"-Antoine de Saint-Exupery's classic
children's tale as presented by Machiavelli. The whimsy of human nature is
embodied in many delightful and intriguing characters, all of whom are
executed. (Erik Anderson, Tempe, Ariz.)

"Green Eggs and Hamlet"-Would you kill him in his bed? / Thrust a dagger
through his head? / I would not, could not, kill the King. / I could not do
that evil thing. / I would not wed this girl, you see. / Now get her to a
nunnery. (Robin Parry, Arlington)

"Fahrenheit 451 of the Vanities"-An '80s yuppie is denied books. He does
not object, or even notice. (Mike Long, Burke)

"2001: A Space Iliad"-The Hal 9000 computer wages an insane 10-year war
against the Greeks after falling victim to the Y2K bug.  (Joseph Romm,
Washington)

"Curious Georgefather"-The monkey finally sticks his nose where it don't
belong. (Chuck Smith, Woodbridge)

"The Hunchback Also Rises"-Hideously deformed fellow is cloistered in bell
tower by despicable clergymen. And that's the good news ... (John Verba,
Washington)

"The Maltese Faulkner"-Is the black bird a tortured symbol of Sam's
struggles with race and family? Does it signify his decay of soul along with
the soul of the Old South? Is it merely a crow, mocking his attempts to
understand? Or is it worth a cool mil? (Thad Humphries, Warrenton)

"The Silence of the Hams"-In this endearing update of the Seuss classic,
young Sam-I-Am presses unconventional foodstuffs on his friend, Hannibal,
who turns the tables.  (Mark Eckenwiler, Washington)

"Jane Eyre Jordan": Plucky English orphan girl survives hardships to lead
the Chicago Bulls to the NBA championship. (Dave Pickering, Bowie)

"Nicholas and Alexandra Nickleby"-Having narrowly escaped a Bolshevik firing
squad, the former czar and czarina join a troupe of actors only to find that
playing the Palace isn't as grand as living in it.  (Sandra Hull, Arlington)

"Catch-22 in the Rye"-Holden learns that if you're insane, you'll probably
flunk out of prep school, but if you're flunking out of prep school, you're
probably not insane. (Brendan Beary, Great Mills)

"Tarzan of the Grapes"-The beleaguered Okies of the dust bowl are saved by
a strong and brave savage who swings from grapevine to grapevine.  (Joseph
Romm, Washington)

"Where's Walden?"-Alas, the challenge of locating Henry David Thoreau in
each richly detailed drawing loses its appeal when it quickly becomes clear
that he is always in the woods. (Sandra Hull, Arlington)

"Looking for Mr. Godot"-A young woman waits for Mr. Right to enter her life.
She has a looong wait. (Jonathan Paul, Garrett Park)

"Rikki-Kon-Tiki-Tavi"-Thor Heyerdahl recounts his attempt to prove Rudyard
Kipling's theory that the mongoose first came to India on a raft from
Polynesia. (David Laughton, Washington)

© 1999 Peter Langston