I have not read many (well, there’s some “non-fiction” books…but I digress), but one that I have had fun reading is “Shadow and Substance: My Time with Charlie Chaplin (A Novel)” by Gerry Mandel. I have read it 3 or 4 times. Summary is that it takes place in the late 1990s and it’s about a guy named Cooper whose a huge Chaplin fan, who been hired to work on a documentary on Chaplin. And who appears from the mists of time to help him with this quest but Chaplin himself. Is Charlie a ghost? Time traveler? I’ll let you decide.
That does sound like a hokey description. But a fitting one that doesn’t give away too much.
Is it a literary masterpiece? I wouldn’t say that. Is it a lot of fun to read? Yes.
And if the title sounds familiar, it’s taken from one of many film projects that Chaplin had started on but never completed. And when he met his last wife Oona.
And Jason Allin, a filmmaker and a topnotch Chaplin impersonator, is currently recording an audiobook version. Hooray!
