I just finished the book in the post title, primarily to get it back to the library as its a week overdue. "NCtM" got itself lost in my luggage during a short vacation to northern Mass and southern New Hampshire, and I was content to let it sit there a while.
The title caught my eye, and the plot is an odd thing involving the head of Fidel Castro and a manatee by the name of Booger, but while I like the idea of a collaboration like this, it just didn't work. The opening is a bit slow, and each of the book's thirteen authors felt the need not to only continue the story as it was, but to add a new element in each chapter. The result is chaotic, especially because none of the writers seemed to trust one another enough to just continue along with introduced plot threads, but instead threw out or trampled on previously introduced material.
The net effect is that what should be a shared story soup comes off as more of a pot luck with little coordination. Three people showed up with napkins, another three with potato chips, and it's up to Debby's modest tuna noodle cassarole to save the day... only there's only enough for six people.
