Defoe, Gideon 1976–

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Defoe, Gideon 1976–

PERSONAL: Born 1976. Education: Graduated from Oxford University.

ADDRESSES: Home—London, England. Agent—c/o Author Mail, Pantheon Books, 20 Vauxhall Bridge Rd., London SW1V 2SA, England.

CAREER: Writer. Former bartender and temporary assistant to Westminster City Council, Westminster, England.

WRITINGS:

FICTION

The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists, Pantheon Books (New York, NY), 2004.

The Pirates! In an Adventure with Ahab, Pantheon Books (New York, NY), 2005, published as The Pirates! In an Adventure with Whaling, Orion Publishing Group (London, England), 2005.

OTHER

(With David Strorm) How Animals Have Sex, Orion Publishing Group (London, England), 2005.

SIDELIGHTS: English novelist Gideon Defoe was hoping to impress a young woman he wanted to date when he wrote The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists. The comic novel was born in a pub, distributed among friends, and discovered on the Web. To Defoe's surprise, he was contacted by a literary agent who negotiated contracts with British and American publishers. A publicity tour would require harder work from the author. He was pressed into visiting London bookshops by rickshaw, dressed in a pirate costume. This silliness mirrored the tone of his debut and its sequel, which have drawn comparisons to the work of England's Monty Python comedy troupe.

The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists introduces readers to a nameless pirate leader and his crew. Looking for plunder, the inept group is near the Galapagos Islands when they attack the H.M.S. Beagle, with scientist Charles Darwin aboard. They spare Darwin's life when he agrees to take them back to London. He has hopes of making a fortune with his chimpanzee Bobo, who has been trained to imitate a gentleman. An investor worried about their competition on the music hall circuit kidnaps Darwin's brother, and the pirates are called upon to recover him, otherwise assist Darwin, and foil an evil bishop who is threatening young women. Their work is aided by an aptitude for dressing up in women's clothes.

Reviewers recommended the book to fans of outrageous humor. In a review for Entertainment Weekly, Gilbert Cruz described the work as a "highly childish yet hilarious story about a bored pirate clan," and Booklist writer Michael Gannon suggested that "aficionados of outré British humor should find this amusing." A Kirkus Reviews critic found the pirate tale to be "completely juvenile and thoroughly enchanting."

In the sequel, The Pirates! In an Adventure with Ahab (published in England as The Pirates! In an Adventure with Whaling), the pirate captain is persuaded to upgrade to a ship he cannot really afford. Trying to satisfy his murderous creditor, the pirates fail as pirates, visit Las Vegas, and end up trying to land the whale Moby Dick. According to a Kirkus Reviews writer, Defoe shows "a winning proclivity toward footnotes—where he does some of his best writing."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, October 15, 2004, Michael Gannon, review of The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists, p. 389.

Bookseller, July 15, 2005, review of The Pirates! In an Adventure with Whaling, p. 38.

Entertainment Weekly, October 22, 2004, Gilbert Cruz, "Pirate Booty," review of The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists, p. 100.

Kirkus Reviews, August 15, 2004, review of The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists, p. 760; August 15, 2005, review of The Pirates! In an Adventure with Ahab, p. 869.