Practical Demonkeeping Audiobook By Christopher Moore cover art

Practical Demonkeeping

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Practical Demonkeeping

By: Christopher Moore
Narrated by: Oliver Wyman
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About this listen

In Christopher Moore's ingenious debut novel, we meet one of the most memorably mismatched pairs in the annals of literature. The good-looking one is 100-year-old ex-seminarian and "roads" scholar Travis O'Hearn. The green one is Catch, a demon with a nasty habit of eating most of the people he meets.

Behind the fake Tudor façade of Pine Cove, California, Catch sees a four-star buffet. Travis, on the other hand, thinks he sees a way of ridding himself of his toothy traveling companion. The winos, neo-pagans, and deadbeat Lotharios of Pine Cove, meanwhile, have other ideas. And none of them is quite prepared when all hell breaks loose.

©1992 Christopher Moore (P)2009 HarperCollins Publishers
Classics Fantasy Fiction Funny Witty Practical Shooting
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Editorial reviews

Travis and Catch come to the small town of Pine Cove, California, and that's when the trouble begins. You'd probably say Travis is a nice, good-looking kid, except he isn't really a kid at all, but a man who hasn't aged a day since World War I. Catch is the reason Travis hasn't aged a day; he's a demon, bound to Travis, and an albatross around his neck. Catch might not be so bad if it weren't for his habit of eating people, but in some relationships there are certain flaws one just can't be expected to overlook. And so Travis comes to Pine Cove in the hopes of finding the answer that will let him free himself of this curse and send Catch back to where he can't eat his friends and neighbors.

Moore describes Practical Demonkeeping as a "whimsical horror novel", but perhaps "demonic ensemble comedy" is more apropos. "Ensemble" is the important part of that description, for it's really the interactions between the characters that makes this story sing. The characters range from Gian Hen Gian, King of the Djinn, to the waitress Jenny whose only extraordinary talent is having the exceptional bad luck to get involved in this mess in the first place, to H.P., a man who might just be a little too obsessed with Lovecraft. The plot itself is nothing revolutionary, but how it unfolds is enjoyable from start to finish, and the listener will likely be surprised and amused along the way as it is unveiled what parts each of the ensemble cast play.

Oliver Wyman's general narrative voice has a youthful quality to it, with a wry, but good-natured tone which fits despite the sometimes dark turns the story takes (unavoidable when you have a primary character who tends to eat people). He provides each character with his or her own distinct voice, going above and beyond the call of duty with the guttural and abrasive but somehow endearing! growl of Catch.

Without the embellishment of an actor's reading, Moore's writing is quite fun and funny on the page, but as with many humorous works, the right narrator can take lively prose and make it even livelier and this is one of those performances that truly elevates the text to a different level. Wyman, a veteran cartoon voiceover actor before turning his talents to audiobook narration, ably employs the skills of the former to strengthen and diversify the skills of the latter. Wyman's style isn't ideal for everything reading a serious nonfiction book wouldn't be his forte but for a book like this, which is practically a cartoon in prose form already, it's hard to imagine a better match. John Joseph Adams

What listeners say about Practical Demonkeeping

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Very Good

The writing is excellent, the reading is very good. I downloaded the book using the audible for blackberry and every three minutes, the recording would skip several seconds

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Great book

Christopher Moore has done it again.. Very funny book. I enjoyed every minute of it

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...

Any additional comments?

Why is this read by someone who seems to want to be the next Casey Casum? That "top 40 radio guy" melody and cadence he affected was just not well suited to this story. So cheesy! I recommend that you by this one in print.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Quite obvious it's Christopher Moore's first book

I have read seven other Christopher Moore's books, six of which I enjoyed immensely (Love Story and Grim Reaper series). I literally laughed out loud many times during those experiences. This one, not so much. While it is a good story overall with well-developed characters, it just never reaches the level of story-telling evident in Moore's subsequent efforts. I was, however, able to get through it in one try, unlike the "Serpent of Venice", which I could not make a quarter of the way through in several attempts, mostly due to the Elizabethan dialogue coupled with Euan Morton's accent and unnecessary amount of profanity. I will try again soon perhaps. Back to Pine Cove...

The plot lacks the cohesiveness and the dialogue lacks the same humorous punch I have come to expect from Moore. It's as if the story ambled along looking for direction for much of the book, not unlike the main character's quest to find the WWI veteran with the first initial E. The bumbling Sgt. Ramirez was nothing more than an unnecessary distraction, bolted on to add some semblance of depth perhaps.

Oliver Wyman does a nice job with the narration and voice characterizations which save the sometimes plodding storyline and sometimes banal dialogue. Wyman's performance doesn't reach the levels of the hilarious Susan Bennett of the "Vampire Love Story" series or Fisher Steven's performance in the "Grim Reaper" books.

I understand from reviews that the Pine Cove series does improve with subsequent installments, so I look forward to those. I still love Moore and will give any future book the benefit of the doubt.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

Meh

Not bad but not great either. Cute story but then end was developed too fast. Has potential only because I liked the narrator

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

oddly amazing

i love this book from beginning to end. easy funny listening. would hear it many more times

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Funny and different

The story was different, the characters were like able and it didn’t take itself too seriously. I would recommend to someone looking for a short and enjoyable paranormal comedy.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

controlled Chaos

Never frantic but always busy, never obvious but always entertaining. I never call a book a "must read" but this one I strongly recommend. Darkly fun and uplifting by turns, come and see the violence inherent in the system.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Great story

Great story and a good example of Moore’s writing. If you like any of his books you will appreciate this one. Well narrated.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Same ol' Christopher Moore

Great story, fantastic writing with remarkable and colorful detail. Narration was superb. Finished this one in record time.

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2 people found this helpful