Consumers may have to wait awhile before they can get their hands on talk show host John Oliver’s “Marlon Bundo” book about a gay bunny — written to troll a more serious children’s bunny storybook written by Charlotte Pence, the daughter of Vice President Mike Pence.
Although the first copies of Oliver’s book won’t hit store shelves until March 23, Hachette Book Group, which is handling distribution for San Francisco-based publisher Chronicle Books, told Media Ink Tuesday it has 150,000 books on back order.
Preorders already pushed the Oliver book — written not by the funnyman but by staffers of his HBO show, “Last Week Tonight” — to No. 1 on Amazon’s best-seller list, knocking to No. 2 “A Higher Loyalty,” the memoir of former FBI Director James Comey.
The Pence family’s “Bundo” book — written by the Veep’s 24-year-old daughter, Charlotte — sits at No. 4.
Preorder of the Oliver book was available only on Amazon.
Despite the quick start via pre-orders, Chronicle President Tyrrell Mahoney said Oliver’s “Marlon Bundo” is not the biggest best seller in the publisher’s history. That honor belongs to, “Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook,” which sold more than 10 million copies worldwide.
Regnery Kids, the publisher of the Pence book, blasted the Oliver spoof book.
“It’s unfortunate that anyone would feel the need to ridicule an educational children’s book and turn it into something controversial and partisan,” a Regnery spokesperson told CNN.
But Charlotte Pence , appearing with her mom, Karen Pence, on Fox on Tuesday, seemed to be much more nonchalant about the looming rivalry. Karen Pence is the book’s illustrator.
“I think imitation is the most sincere form of flattery in a way,” Charlotte Pence said. Proceeds from both books are earmarked for charities.



