We finally have a print copy of Last Week Tonight with John Oliver Presents A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo by Jill Twiss. The book was announced (and released) on March 18th during an episode of Last Week Tonight with John Oliver with some controversy. Independent booksellers were blindsided by the release and questioned business ethics as the book was first made available to Amazon.¹ The larger conversation was around the fact that the book was published as a parody of Marlon Bundo’s A Day in the Life of the Vice President, written by Charlotte Pence and illustrated by Karen Pence. Both books star the Pence family pet, Marlon Bundo, but one is a biography of the Vice President, while the other is about same-sex marriage.
The release of Last Week Tonight with John Oliver Presents A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo was political, serving as Oliver’s response to Mike Pence’s indirect support of anti-gay organizations.² The plot is about gay marriage and pictures contain cues for adults. At the same time, the book introduces broader themes that go beyond this specific political situation. Twiss writes about the essentials of democracy and diversity, ideas that are universal regardless of who is in power. You can checkout the book in print or electronically from our library.
- Green, Alex. “Booksellers Outraged by Chronicle’s Rollout of John Oliver Book.” Publishers Weekly, 26 March 2018, https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/bookselling/article/76440-booksellers-outraged-by-chronicle-s-rollout-of-john-oliver-book.html. Accessed 26 April 2018.
- “Mike Pence: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO).” YouTube, uploaded by LastWeek Tonight, 18 March 2018, https://youtu.be/rs2RlZQVXBU.