Celebrity Mum

by Josh Samuels

David Hawkes wants nothing more than to quit his law practice and write his second detective novel.

However, on the day he finally quits, his crazy soap opera star mother, Susan Wilde, comes back into his life after a five year absence. She’s broke, homeless, drinking heavily, and looking to revive her career (which she can’t do without his help according to her).

All David wants is some peace and quiet but that’s impossible when his mother is around. She’s having him read lines from the Graduate (she’s Mrs. Robinson and he’s Benjamin), forcing him to confront his fear of lobsters using open flames, and promising to never drink or do drugs again, and again, and again.

Processing the childhood trauma of a workaholic mother and her adult writer son has never been more hilarious.

311 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 21, 2023

About the author

Josh Samuels was raised in Marin County California, where his mind was warped by the joint influences of Jam Bands, Beat Poets, the 49ers, modal jazz, redwood trees, and the Pacific Ocean. Oh and a heavy dose of Marxism (Groucho, not Karl). He was so obsessed with marsupials that he moved to New Zealand. Finding none there he moved to Australia. He writes a lot of stuff, some of which is good, and some which his wife tells him is good so she can placate his desperate need for approval (and also so she can get back to reading the John Mayer subreddit). One of his formative life experiences was working in a video store called Video Kamron which specialized in foreign and independent cinema. For those who don’t remember, a video store was like a much less convenient version of Netflix where you had to talk to people and pay extra money if you didn’t do a thing called “rewind.” It was medieval. Anyways, I think this bio is now over, it has sort of gone off the rails. I told you his mind was warped.

Reviews

[Anne Freeman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Come for the gags, stay for the poignant relationship insights!

CELEBRITY MUM by Josh Samuels began life as a script for a sitcom and it shows. The story explores the highly dysfunctional relationship between David Hawkes, a lowly lawyer and emerging author, and his eccentric ex-soap opera star mother, Susan Wilde. Susan bursts back into David's carefully curated life, trailing her trademark chaos like a comet behind her upending everything in her wake. The humour running throughout ranges from slapstick, to epic high jinx to sophisticated and witty observations about humanity but the story has enough substance to carry it all.

This is a fantastic debut filled with original and amusing turns of phrase you would never find elsewhere. A rollicking good read!

[Zoe Cass · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Comedic Gem with Sharp Observations on Family

I knew Josh Samuels was funny even before picking up Celebrity Mum, but what I didn’t expect was the poetic quality of his writing and the sharp observations he brings to everyday life. I loved this book; it’s a hilarious yet deeply insightful look into fame, family, and the unique complications of mother-child relationships. I think any reader with ‘mummy issues’ or a taste for witty social commentary would find it captivating. Josh delivers humour and heart in equal measure, making Celebrity Mum both a joy to read and a story that lingers.

[Sapna Kumar · Rating 5 out of 5]

The biggest disappointment to this book is its ending. A cliffhanger?! I must wait for Celebrity Mum 2 to learn if former Soap Opera star Susan Wilde will destroy her son David's dreams and marriage with her shenanigans. Well worth the laugh-out-loud rollercoaster ride!

[Simon Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can't remember reading a novel with so many jokes per page. Endless laughs.