Fool Books in Order

Christopher Moore introduces us to Pocket of Dog Snogging, a man whose stature is small but whose influence is surprisingly vast. He is a royal jester by trade, clad in motley and bells, but he is far from a simple clown. In a world populated by mad kings, vengeful ghosts, and scheming royalty, Pocket is usually the smartest person in the room.

The premise of the series is a delightful act of literary vandalism.

Moore takes the heavy, tragic histories of William Shakespeare and cracks them open to find the farce hidden inside. Instead of treating the Bard’s work with quiet reverence, he injects it with chaos, rewriting famous doomsdays into raucous adventures where survival depends on how fast you can talk your way out of a beheading.

It starts with Fool. Here, the backdrop is the storm-battered kingdom of King Lear. If you remember the play, you know it ends poorly for almost everyone. In Moore’s version, the madness is still there, but the perspective shifts. We follow Pocket as he maneuvers between the King’s three daughters, trying to save the ones he loves while dodging assassination attempts. He is armed with little more than a sharp wit and his constant companion, a puppet named Jones. Jones serves as Pocket’s sounding board, sidekick, and occasionally his harshest critic, and their banter drives much of the narrative.

Later, the scenery changes to the damp, treacherous canals of Italy in The Serpent of Venice. Pocket finds himself serving as a diplomat, but things go sideways quickly. He ends up entangled in the plots of both Othello and The Merchant of Venice. There are betrayals, a dungeon break, and a legendary sea creature that complicates everything. It is a heist story wrapped in a revenge tragedy, all navigated by a jester who just wants a good meal and a warm bed.

Eventually, the road leads to the magical woodlands of Shakespeare for Squirrels. This is Moore’s take on A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Pocket is thrown into the realm of Oberon and Titania, but instead of just frolicking with fairies, he has to solve a murder. It plays out like a noir detective story, only the suspects have wings and the local law enforcement is a goblin.

What makes these books work is the distinct voice. The language is a cocktail of Elizabethan dialect and modern profanity, creating a rhythm that feels both classic and fresh. It is filthy, fast-paced, and unapologetically silly, focusing on the bawdy humor that Shakespeare often hid in the margins.

Through it all, Pocket remains a charming guide. He rewrites history not with a sword, but with a joke and a well-timed shove.