Maybe the Moon: A Novel (Paperback)

When I finally had the chance to read it, I was finding that he was expressing a lot of things that I'd felt in my life but I had not the eloquence to describe it! I can remember the quote about "going through the tiresome ritual of explaining myself" and there was another great quote about how a Little Person must honor other people's feelings over their own and forgive again and again just to be a part of the human race and not be corroded by their own anger.

There were also very funny scenes that may not have happened to me (I love that bit with the dog in Rodeo Drive) but I sure can picture how it'd be if it did! Another cool thing, I do have a best friend named Renee who happens to be Average-sized!

I love how he made Cady live and breathe and not be a character who moped all day because of her dwarfism but faced life head-on, as must we all. That is the gripe I have with "Stones From The River" and "The Dork From Cork". These Average-Sized authors spend more time than necessary pointing out that their dwarf characters hate their condition and long to be tall. How one-dimensional! Armistead Maupin has the gift of seeing through the eyes of a dwarf woman and telling her tale and making her human. It helps that he actually was friends with a dwarf, the other two authors, Ursela Hegi and Chet Raymos, who are both very good in their field, had never met Little People before writing their books. The difference shows.

I love, love, love this book and it tickles me to death that one of my favorite authors could get into my head and say stuff I've wanted to say all my life, and he understands. Read this book. It's fun, educational and you will get a different viewpoint that will, nonetheless be something that will be familiar to you!

Armistead Maupin does a change of scenery from San Francisco, which was the center of his six books collectively known as TALES OF THE CITY, to Los Angeles with MAYBE THE MOON, Armistead Maupin's first full-length novel. Although TALES OF THE CITY had been written first, these books started out as newspaper columns and have a distinct feel to them. They are more lighthearted and the characters are not fully developed. MAYBE THE MOON is indeed a novel, the story of the life of a spirited woman who learned to deal with a type of disability. It was with great pleasure that I read this book and got to know the character that was Cadence Roth.

Cadence Roth is a pint-sized person, legally classified as a dwarf, and although she is a very small person, her personality definitely is not minute or diminutive. In fact, she packs a punch and from such a little human being, she can shock others with her foul mouth and assertive ways.

Maupin starts the novel with a blurb from a review: Mr. Woods (1981) C-112 m. ****. It's the start of a movie synopsis from the movie critic Leonard Maltin's book "TV Movies and Video Guide 1992 edition".

Thus, the novel begins. Told via her journal, we are thrown into the world of Cady Roth, whose claim to fame was the starring (anonymous) role in the 2nd highest grossing movie of all time, MR. WOODS. She played an elf that befriends a young boy, but because of the type of role she played, she is behind a mask the entire time. The real world never learns who the actor behind Mr. Woods really was. She is forbidden to do any publicity for the movie except in costume, as the director feels the audience would lose the magic if they saw who actually played this beloved movie character. While other actors build their careers upon a breakthrough role, Cady is doomed to have this one big character haunt her till the day she dies.

And so Cady lives on in frustration. She finds whatever work is available, which is not very much since the average movie doesn't usually call for a character that is less than 4 feet tall. She at one point breaks down and takes a job with a small group of people who entertain the rich and famous at parties held in towns like Beverly Hills. She dresses up as a clown, making children laugh at birthday parties and bar mitzvahs.

References to THE WIZARD OF OZ are often made, as she relates to other dwarves who have been exploited or made it in the world of show biz. Her mother had a very important role in Cady's life, helping her become discovered and then pushing her on, making sure that her daughter's dreams were fulfilled despite the handicap of height. When her mother passes on, Cady is devastated but eventually hooks up with a new best friend, Renee, who latches on to Cady in a welcome way and the two become roommates and best friends for life.

Cady's life seems to be on a downward spiral, as the jobs with the entertainment company become scarce, and there doesn't seem to be any hope in her securing an acting job, but she does not give up. When news that there will be a big Star Studded tribute in honor of a major anniversary of the release of MR. WOODS, Cady feels this is her last chance at being recognized. What happens on this big day leads to the climax of the book with an ending that I did not expect, although there were hints of it throughout the book.

MAYBE THE MOON is probably Armistead Maupin's best work yet. The story of the life of Cady Roth touched me in many ways, and indeed I feel envious that Maupin knew the woman that this book was inspired by. Whoever she was, she was indeed a very special person. A story about people overcoming handicaps and differences in a world that abhors such people, MAYBE THE MOON gets five stars from me.