JERE KRAKOFF
BOOK REVIEWS
SOMETHING IS ROTTEN IN FETTIG-BOOK REVIEWS
"...the uproarious novel is first and foremost a comedy, rife with absurdist humor...enough
jabs at law and criminal justice to make a point, all packaged in a courtroom drama that's pure entertainment."
-Kirkus Reviews
"Something Is Rotten in Fettig is a wonderful, whimsical parody of an absurd criminal justice system in a strange nation...populated by colorful characters with outlandish names. It is a fast-moving legal satire..."
-New York Journal of Books
"...farcical take on the justice system...a coherent, engrossing plot."
-Israel Book Review
"Krakoff’s great talent is that even while we are falling over laughing at the comedy he presents, the real truth is close to the surface and impossible to miss. Something is Rotten in Fettig is that rare treat that is not only great fun to read but also teaches us much, in this case, about the dark side of the American Legal System.”
-The Champion Magazine
"Imagine a courtroom drama written by Kafka, directed by Mel Brooks. Angst and hilarity abound with side dishes of neurosis and paranoia."
-Broad Street Review
"Very funny, very pointed satire of U.S. justice system."
-Bookbag Reviews (UK)
"The law receives justice of a literary sort in this satirical tale by attorney-novelist Krakoff. Unlike the typical, fat, legal thriller—a glossy fantasy of wealth and power filled with the noble and the devilish—Krakoff’s canvas is absurdist comedy, his goal edification rather than escapism.Something is Rotten in Fettig is a funny book, that’s the main thing; but behind the comedy, which ranges from dry to zany and even black, there’s an air of surrealism, a sense in which we see society devolving before our eyes."
-The Nervous Breakdown
"Readers will enjoy this humorous trip through absudity."
-Association of Jewish Libraries
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"The novel invokes the situational absurdity of works by Franz Kafka, Albert Camus and Jonathan Swift...the cast is loaded with figurative (and literally drawn) caricatures of biased jurists, inflamed mobs and incompetent legislators."
-Duquesne Duke Review
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“Something Is Rotten In Fettig wittily satirizes a legal system that is very similar to our own…this fast-paced work is filled with good writing, presented in highly readable prose…characters are well developed…very enjoyable…”
-Midwest Review (Posted on Compulsive Reader and AuthorsDen)
“Delightfully satirical, the author takes a jab at everything from judges to juries, to lawyers, to public manipulation and ignorance, oftentimes with hilarious results.”
-Manhattan Book Review
"With its wide-angle aim at a deranged republic’s corrupt institutions, and its feel for a punchline, Something Is Rotten...hardly the earnest treatise you might expect from a lawyer whose résumé includes (as Pittsburgh resident Krakoff’s does) the ACLU National Prison Project and a local legal-aid program. Instead, the novel is sort of Dickens by way of Woody Allen.”
-Pittsburgh City Paper
"The satire is very heavy...and I must say that I laughed all the way through the read...Krakoff's prose is lyrical and lovely, and this is interesting when we cosider that the novel is about.”
-Reviews by Amos Lassen
REVIEWS FROM AMAZON:
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“An insightful, witty, sometimes hilarious and largely accurate portrayal of a legal system whose hallmark is ‘the appearance of justice'. I enjoyed it very much, laughed aloud occasionally and at other times felt more like crying when some of the more sordid truths of our own criminal justice system, the one parodied in this book, were unmasked so jarringly and poignantly.”
-Robert J. Cindrich, former U.S. District Court Judge
“The author's extensive experience as a civil rights lawyer has given him the unique opportunity to stage a trial that reads like a cross between the Marx Brothers , Woody Allen and Franz Kafka. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to spend a few evenings laughing out loud and then a few more evenings wondering why our legal system isn't more fair.“
-Marvin Fein, former law professor and trial attorney