Review - I is for Invasion by Marc Richard

Preamble

Invasion of the Body Snatchers is that B horror movie that seems to always come up in discussions of classic horror. I never watched it until recently – right before I read this book, actually – and man is it hilarious in that unintentional B movie way. If you miss having sleepovers as a child and watching terrible movies while you and your friends quip about the ridiculousness of a plot, look no further.

A note about my reviews: I consider myself an appreciator, not a critic. I know first-hand what goes into the creation of art – the blood, the sweat, the tears, the risk. I also know that art appreciation is subjective and lernt good what mama tell’t me – if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all. I’m not a school marm grading a spelling test – I’m a reader who enjoys reading. If a book is entertaining, well-written, and I get absorbed into it, five out of five. It’s either five stars or nothing these days – if I don’t like it, no review. Regardless, I wouldn’t even put a star rating system on my reviews but for the reality of storefronts like Amazon.

Take from that what you will.

Review – 5/5

I is for Invasion is one of Marc Richard’s alphabet books for adults. Basically, he picks something to satirize and goes full tilt into riffing on it in every way possible. He’s got a sharp wit and a clever tongue… erm, keyboard hand. I is for Invasion is his riff of the 1979 version of Invasion of the Body Snatchers, an apocalyptic horror featuring a youngish Donald Sutherland and a very young fella what parodies he’s self… Jeff Goldblum.

Marc literally calls him Jeff Goldblum in the book, since all you can think about while watching him in the 2020s is the fact that he is Jeff Goldblum. There’s a particularly ridiculous scene in the movie/book that involves a clay bath house, a practice that I feel was left behind in the 80’s, before I ever was old enough to hop into one of them. I mean, I’m sure they’re still around, but it feels like one of those fads that was popularized as a cure-all before I was born and died out with the advent of hot tubs.

But we aren’t here to talk about ancient folk remedies for melancholy or some shit – we’re here to talk about I is for Invasion. It’s a great book, people. I think you would want to have watched the movie before reading it, since Marc riffs on pretty much every single scene. There are puns, plays on words, literal explanations of what is happening so that it seems as absurd as it is to watch it.

If you are a fan of B horror and comedy, you’ll find plenty to enjoy.

Check it out on the ‘zon here.