The Cretin Gene by Brendan Ball

When a mad scientist uses television and junk food to stupefy the British populace, cartoonist Al Horowitz must clear his name of murder, and find the cure to the Genome 9X9 disaster. The people have run amok, and Horowitz enlists his genius nephew Dr. Grossman and his colleague, the mysterious and tenacious Dr. Kamaruzaman. Together, they plot, hide, and attack as they cross England to confront the evil Dr. Proctor, and seek the cure.

Author Brendan Ball creates a clever satire that shreds the vapidity of nationalist pride in The Cretin Gene. He takes junk food, television, and the pervasiveness of social media to its logical conclusion, as literal weapons to dumb down and lead people to act against their own best interests. How do the “un-cretinized” fight back? By reading poetry aloud or shoving books into the faces of the mobs, which instantly stops and stupefies the masses.

The satire explodes as Ball alternates narratives between the highbrow Grossman and lowbrow Horowitz. Pugnacious zaniness mingled with edifying logic tells a rip-roaring story. Ball’s comic tour de force is a hilarious condemnation of our modern addictions. He skewers the intersection of money, war, and ignorance. Don’t miss this fun and illuminating read.

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