Edward Morneau

Billy Budd, Wtf? Edward Morneau

Publisher Marketing: Billy Budd, WTF? is a parody of Herman Melville's classic Billy Budd, specifically the play adaptation by Louis O. Coxe and Robert Chapman, which strips Melville's story to the bone in search of the mighty themes of Law, Order, Justice, Authority, Conscience, Good and Evil. Morneau dispenses with these themes and pursues more useful themes such as: What if you were fighting against the French and instead of them shooting cannonballs from their guns they shot fine French cuisine? What would you fire back? What if your crew mates were Frankenstein, the Wolfman, Dracula, Zorro, James Joyce and a guy named Ranch Dressing? Would you fit in? What if the force of evil on this war time cruise was a man who made lesser men laugh themselves to death? Can anything be that funny? What if you were captain of this ship but were more interested in puppet making and pantaloons? Do these obsessions give him moral authority? What if the bilge rats on your ship sang at certain intervals and functioned as a Greek chorus? Would you sing along? Somehow all of this comes together to entertain, to indict war and bad chowder, and bring about some of Melville's themes in ways that perplex this writer. It's also a musical This is the second parody of great literature Morneau has authored. His first, Willy Loman, Nosferatu, speaks for itself and yet doesn't speak at all, as it is not yet a book on tape. Contributor Bio:  Morneau, Edward Edward Morneau lives near Boston, MA, has taught off and on for thirty-five years, sleeps fitfully on his couch, believes that spiders have saved his house from being devoured by wood ants ("Spiders are your friends" he maintains), hates thick chowder, refuses to shop for Christmas the day after Thanksgiving, likes wallpaper over paint, currently has a sore right shoulder, frets for his soul, will write for blueberry pie and chocolate ice cream, and can't think of a higher state of grace than teaching children. "Willy Loman: Nosferatu," is his first full-length play, which he wrote while recovering from breaking a leg. Morneau is also an accomplished musician and songwriter, having been recognized by several songwriting organizations for his contributions to folk and protest music. One of his benign works, "Read to Me," has been recognized by reading specialists and PTO's as the center piece of their respective reading programs. The cat-produced, "The Godfather's Christmas Song," is a holiday favorite on YouTube. In 2010, Mr. Morneau released "Jacquerie"-a full-length CD of what he calls "progressive diet folk." He admits that, musically, "it's provocative and dark, but there's more to life than just auditioning."