Mother-Fracking Earth Day

I'm a sucker for puns, but I wasn't a sucker for deciding to read Mother Fracking Earth Day. I came for the title and stayed for the contents. Politics, comedy, and mystery swirl together to create a narrative that's meant to entertain. Although I have not read the rest of the series that came before, this was such a fun read even as a standalone.

Satire, especially satire willing to touch on current and controversial politics, seems to be getting rarer and rarer. Thankfully, Sapp does not shy away from tackling those politics. He also tackles them rather masterfully too. Two towns very close in geography but worlds apart on ideology represent the left and right platforms largely how the other ideology would see them. This means all the stereotypes, all the talking points people spout, show up to create walking and talking caricatures of ideals. Somehow though, what could seem more like cut-outs in other author's hands still felt relatable, and I still cared about what happened to these characters. Even the ultimate villains behind the kidnapping plot feel more fleshed out than many works that take themselves a lot more seriously.

Two things kept this from being the top rating for me. A romantic subplot felt pigeonholed and took away from the story instead of enhancing it. Maybe it would have made more sense within the larger narrative of the series. Coming in with just this book in my hands, it just didn't. The other issue was polish. Typos and a few other errors could sometimes draw me out of the story.

If you enjoy your comedy mixed in with a little bit of intrigue, I highly recommend giving Mother Fracking Earth Day a chance. I've already added the previous books of the series to my reading list and look forward to the next holiday doused with satire.