There are many cultural references in The Great American Deception. Some of them are so obvious, no one will miss them. For examples, R2-D2 and John Coltrane are mentioned by name, so nothing hidden there. However, there are other references in the novel that might be considered Easter eggs, since they are more hidden or at least not blatantly announced. Some of them are fairly obvious allusions and some might be more difficult to find, depending on how familiar the reader is with the cultural detail being referenced. If you’d like to add a literary scavenger hunt to your reading experience, here are clues:
- Van Gogh’s birthday
- Even worse than Vogon poetry
- Book by Jean-Paul Sartre
- A cartoon feline
- Airplane!
- Two Bayside, NY pizza shops
- The first line of 1984
- The Rolling Stones
- He took his vorpal sword in hand
- Vizzini’s plan
- The ultimate gentleman’s gentleman
- Alice in Wonderland
- The High Priest of Bebop
- James Bond
- Classrooms at Drexel University
- Three separate references to Star Trek (one is easy, one is moderate, one is difficult)
- Gone with the Wind
There might be others.
