Who Censored Roger Rabbit?

By: Gary K. Wolf

Narrated by: L.J. Ganser

Private eye Eddie Valiant doesn't like Toons - those cartoon characters who live side-by-side with humans. Not the way they look, and especially not the way they talk: word-filled balloons come out of their mouths and then disintegrate, leaving dust all over his rug.

Eddie will work for a Toon if his cash supply is low enough. So he reluctantly agrees when Roger Rabbit, a Toon who plays straight man (or should that be straight rabbit) in the Baby Herman cartoon series, asks him to find out who's been trying - unsuccessfully - to buy his contract from the DeGreasy Brothers syndicate.

Then Rocco DeGreasy is murdered - and Roger is the prime suspect! The rabbit is also, as Eddie soon discovers, very, very dead. Who censored Roger Rabbit? And who shot Rocco DeGreasy? Was it Roger, or was it Rocco's hot-cha-cha girlfriend, Jessica Rabbit? Why had Jessica - a pretty steamy number for a Toon - ever married a dopey bunny in the first place? And why does everybody want Roger's battered old teakettle?

As Eddie combs L.A. from the executive suites of the DeGreasy Brothers to Sid Sleaze's porno comic studio, he uncovers art thefts, blackmail plots...and the cagiest killer he's ever faced.

©1981 Gary K. Wolf (P)2019 Tantor

A lot different from the movie

This is an amazing book. And it is so much different than the movie right off the gate. I highly recommend it. The story is captivating. The twist is… weird but in a fun way and the performance is wonderful.

Don't expect Who Framed Roger Rabbit.

As a kid I was a huge fan of the movie Who Framed Roger Rabbit. As an adult, I'm still a huge fan. For whatever reason, this book escaped me until fairly recently.

Unless you're one of those people who simply can't conceive of a version of Roger not voiced by Charles Fleischer, this is perfectly narrated. L.J. Ganser has a brilliant range of voices that is perfectly suited for noir.

The biggest thing to keep in mind is that this is "Who CENSORED Roger Rabbit?" and NOT "Who FRAMED Roger Rabbit?". Two entirely different stories. Eddie Valiant here isn't the toon hating, alcoholic private eye of the film. There's no Judge Doom, the rules and physics of toons are different from the film, there isn't any cashing in on cartoon icons, and the mystery presented is slightly more gritty as it slowly burns to its bizarre conclusion.

This is one of the rare cases where it's hard to say the book is better than the movie due to the fact that they are 99% different stories. Comparing the two would be like comparing apples to Rocko's Modern Life.

That being said, if you're expecting Judge Doom and the Dip, you might find yourself more than a little disappointed.

I prefer the movie to be honest

More like a 3.75. This book went off the rails a bit but everything fits into the clues left. That ending though…

I was in no way prepared for this

Impeccable performance by Ganser and Wolf clearly has talent. In more ways than one.

Wonderful Story and Narration

If you are looking for a dramatization of the film Who Framed Roger Rabbit, this isn't that. The characters aren't actually cartoon characters, rather they are comic strip characters who speak via text balloons. I loved the movie but was not the slightest bit disappointed when I discovered they were different. On the contrary, I am now quite happy, not in spite of their differences, but because of them. However, if you love the movie, there are enough references that are maintained in the book. For instance, you will discover certain characters acting or saying things they did in the film.
The performance is simply first rate. The narrator voices all of the characters wonderfully.