A couple of days ago, I wrote about how watching the TV show Parks and Rec has been an unexpected boost to my mental health. Well, reading about it has also helped me stay away from dark thinking.
In the season 3 episode 'Born & Raised', Amy Poehler's character of Leslie Knope has just written a book called Pawnee: The Greatest Town in America. It was to act as both a history book and tour guide for the small Indiana town. It's also a love letter from Leslie to her 'hometown.'
As I was watching the episode, I got this funny feeling that maybe, just maybe this book was real. A quick search on Amazon proved me right! A quick purchase and a couple days later, I was reading my own copy of Pawnee: The Greatest Town in America.
The book was brilliant! It's got the OCD optimism/perfectionism of Leslie Knope as the main author. Supplemental articles are written by other staff at the Pawnee Parks and Rec Dept. Libertarian head honcho Ron Swanson discusses his political views. Leslie's assistant and lead singer of the band Mouse Rat, Andy, provides insight in the Pawnee music scene; while his wife April gives us a very begrudging overview of the community college. Every segment reads like the characters who supposedly wrote them and it felt like an extra secret episode of the show.
I'm not really one for audio books. People who complete audio books claim that they've 'read' the audio book. You didn't read that book- you listened to it. However, I would be more than willing to listen to this book as a recording if it features the voices of all of the characters from the show!
And can I just say- Ron Swanson is one of the greatest TV characters ever! There's not enough of him in this book. Heck, 125 episodes isn't enough of the character portrayed by the amazing Nick Offerman. Could someone write a book from his perspective? And then have Offerman read the book as Ron Swanson?
The history of Pawnee is insane! It's absurdist and chuckle inducing. It's not exactly politically correct. But considering that this is a satire, I think some of the extremes in the comedy are meant to be more thought provoking than material worthy of social cancellation. If you aren't a fan of the over-the-top unexpected nature of Monty Python, Parks and Rec isn't for you and this is a book you will not enjoy. But if you can't get enough of near-surrealist comedy, this book is the perfect compendium to those of you who can't get enough of this classic NBC series.
Worth Consuming!
Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.
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