Humor Books

I love this book for how it incites great conversation and it is a welcome addition to my small collection.

This is one of those books that really gets people talking. Conversations range from the story itself, to the historical truths or lack thereof, the religious implications, and now its look.

I really enjoyed reading this book the first time around when I would find myself laughing out loud when I would least expect it, and most recently with this edition where a friend thought I was laughing about something in the Bible itself.

This new edition was a great idea, with only one flaw: It can be difficult to hold open because it is bound tightly. I'm afraid of causing too much wear to the spine of the book, but in retrospect I guess that would only add to its charm of looking like a Bible.

This is one of my favorite books of all time! Yay Christopher Moore!

Anyone who has any interest in Christianity should find this book hilarious! Moore clearly knows his Christian and world history then and now. His treatment of Jesus and the people who worship him is outrageous and irreverent and strangely loving at the same time. I'm an athiest who went to Catholic school (I LOVED it) and while I don't believe a word of it, have a great appreciation for all things Catholic, especially Catholic humor (the movie Dogma Dogma (Special Edition), the play Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All for You.Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All You and the Actor's Nightmare: Two One-Act Plays) I also appreciate a big dose of skepticism, and this book delivers on all fronts. Moore is such a great writer that this is a PERFECT BOOK! This new Bible edition is sexy and great!

At first, I have to admit I was a bit put off by the look of this gift version of "Lamb" when first saw it at a Barnes and Noble while doing some window shopping. I'm not very religious now, but as someone who basically got ten years' worth of Catholic dogma engrained into my DNA, well...the irreverence in the very look of this book made me worry just a little. I picked this book up and cracked it open to a random page, not expecting to see anything particularly interesting, and was pleasantly surprised when I ended up reading something that made me laugh. I ended up reading a few pages farther, and even though I hadn't read the rest of the book, the stuff I did read was very funny and clever, and I knew I had to have this book. So...I bought it here instead because I wanted to save a few bucks. :P

This book is definitely worth reading. It's irreverent, yes, and there's a bit of coarse language sprinkled throughout the story. And there's one gross (but funny) experience involving Biff, turnips and a toothless old Chinese woman. Despite that, however, I really don't feel this book is disrespectful to Jesus or to Christianity at all. If anything, it pokes gentle fun at what Christians are taught to know about the Bible--you have to know your stuff, as a Christian, if you expect to understand all the references made to it in this book. But I don't feel it makes fun of Christianity itself. So if you want a clever, funny, well-written book to read and you don't mind laughing at least a little at what you've been taught over the years if you're Christian, this book is for you. :)

I have read all of Christopher Moore's books, and this one is right at the top of my list. I wouldn't read this in a public place unless you like people staring at you for laughing out loud. Also, you might, depending on your personal beliefs, want to remember this is a fiction book, not one trying to pass for fact.

just when i think i cannot be surprised -- i am. moore's book is delightful. i plan on buying a few with the "bible" cover as gifts. i just need to get people past their "religion" in order to read it and i am sure they will love it; and it all makes sense.

What a great book ! I have two daughters ,6 and 10, we took turns reading the limericks. They won't put the book down! My oldest daughter is memorizing the limericks and walking around repeating them to her friends . My youngest reads them (with a little help) and not only does she laugh and enjoy them, it has helped her develop her reading skills !!! Thanks Mr.Poffo for your kind heart and vision to create such a versatile book, that children and adults both can enjoy, in addition,the message behind it all is so very important, smoking causes health risks and death ! What is the value (price) of one soul that is saved?

Mr. Poffo takes a near cliche, often ribald form and employs it in a positive manner to his great advantage. He elevates a meter considered vulgar to the highest levels of art and education. This book is a gift, not only to the life expectancy of our youth, but to the postmodern poet disillusioned from the harbor of conventional structure and set adrift on a sea of muddled antischemes. Bravo, Mr. Poffo. They called you "The Genuis" with good reason.

Thanks Lanny, purchased this book for the grand children and they love it. They share it with all their friends and the parents all thank me for purchasing this great book.

Reading to your children is one of the greatest things that you can do for their education...Reading Lannys book aloud to your kids teaches them good healthy habits and makes it fun! Bravo Lanny! You entertained us 30 somethings as kids in the wrestling ring, and now you're helping to keep our children healthy...Parents, for your childs health and education, BUY THIS BOOK!!!

This book is highly entertaining. It is virtually impossible to pick up the book, read a limerick or two and not feel good. Lanny is such a positive guy and it comes through very clearly. Lanny weaves in historical references, cultural icons and some silliness in driving home his anti-smoking stance. He accomplishes all of this without ever coming across as preachy.

Belle Poitrine... literally the beautiful bust, but in reality the big bust. The biggest bust of all time.

Is it tongue in cheek? Did it happen?? Did it happen just that way?? Or has time, booze and a "happy outlook" altered the history of the most ridiculous success story ever told? I'll never tell, but intent historian that I am, I constantly read and reread this irreverant tale of trickery, chicanery and outright unapologetic greed. And I mean that in the best possible way!!!!

Humble beginnings, fortuitous marriage after marriage, brides in black and a crackjack whip smart brain that thank goodness was used for the good of mankind. Belle tells you girls how to spin assets into stocks, bonds and real estate. The Suze Orman of her time. It's a bit of The Women, a smidge of Auntie Mame, a heaping dose of Lorelei Lee without the heart of gold all undressed with pictures to chronicle the life and times of the greatest legend in her own mind. Lemonade without sugar!!!!

Keep it by your bed. It's my favorite bedtime story. Pull it out time after time and open it anywhere once you've read it through. The sheer ridiculousness of it all makes it one of the best reads as told by one of our best creators of giggles, belly laughs and overt hyucks and guffaws. Mame Dennis without proper restraint(s).

I discovered this book after the Auntie Mame duo and I couldn't stop laughing. It was an excellent combination of pseudo-memoir and wacky photographs that fit and enhanced the tale of Belle Poitrine (look up the French) perfectly. Her rise and decline was so familiar based on the autobioraphies of that time but with much more absurdity and hilarity. It seemed pretty outré even given the greater censorship strictures of that day.
A wonderful read.

When it comes to the "classics" of gay/camp literature, I always seem to find myself behind the curve. My friends can praise and recommend a camp classic year after year and I just can't muster enough enthusiasm to read it. In fact, it wasn't until the early 1990s that I finally read the entire TALES OF THE CITY oeuvre - blasphemy in gay circles, and considerably beyond the heyday of 28 Barbary Lane. I guess I just need to come to the gay classics in my own time and can't be lead to them by other people's tributes, no matter how emphatic. Anyway, it was just yesterday that I finally read LITTLE ME by Patrick Dennis (circa 1961- making the book only slightly older than me): this, despite the fact that this novel was re-released and embraced by a third generation of gay men as recently as 1989. And I have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed it, laughing out loud on nearly every page - all the while asking myself why I didn't read this one sooner. Maybe then I could have appreciated and participated in some of the jokes and one-liners that were all the rage among my circle of friends back in the late 80s and early 90s. This is my punishment, I guess, for always feeling like I have to boycott the latest gay trend. On the bright side, reading LITTLE ME now has given me an opportunity to remember my old friends from that bitter-sweet period in gay history - many of whom are no longer with us. And finally, I can laugh along with them, even if only in spirit. For others out there like me who have not yet picked up a copy of LITTLE ME ... if you don't want to read it for yourself, read this one for your friends! And for the newest generation of gay/camp devotees, read this one together with YOUR circle of friends ... you'll be glad you did.

So Campy, so Fabulous, so hilarious. Could also be titled "memoirs of a woman who wanted to be a drag queen".
I had seen the stage play of the same name and laughed to the point of near incontinence. The book brings all of the memories back into the present state of mind. Thankyou so much for the pictures too.

My God - I don't even know where to begin on how great this book is - pure hilarity from start to finish. If you are familiar with the work of Patrick Dennis, than you're in for a real treat. If his writings are new to you, well, you're in for a crash course.

Written with perfect, tongue-in-cheek camp humor, the autobiography of Belle Poitrine is the perfect send-up of the best Hollywood autobiographies - hysterically self-absorbed, condescending and - best of all - full of absolutely hysterical photographs by the great Cris Alexander. Belle's rise to fame from her childhood black sheep status, mid-life trials and tribulations, countless marriages (most often ending in widowhood) and more are all represented - once you're under the spell of her life story, the book is impossible to put down. And, please, do not rush to find out the ending - it's utterly priceless, and worth the wait, but to get the full, hilarious effect, you have to read everything leading up to it.

Read at your own risk - if you do, you'll surely be telling everyone you know about it - the humor is most contagious, and you'll be compelled to share. Enjoy!!!

Oover the last fifteen years I have been meaning to read certain authors. H.E. Bates, Anthony Trollope, P.G. Wodehouse, E.F. Benson and the like.

Last week I succumbed to a nasty bout of influenza and E.F. Benson. I had grabbed the slender volume of "Mapp & Lucia" from the library shelf and it had rested in my bookcase for almost a week. Not wanting to dull my brain with endless hours of television, I cracked open "Mapp & Lucia".

Ten pages into the book and I was hooked. Lucia, her period of mourning almost over is looking to regain her iron control on her hometown. First action, regain her star role as Queen Elizabeth in the village fete.

As I read Lucia's plots and plans, a strange thought hit me. Lucia is the creature Hyacinth Bucket (the main character of the BBC's Keeping Up Appearances) secretly dreams of being. Having taken over the fete from her dazed and confused friend, Lucia goes onto greater pastures, the hometown of Miss Elizabeth Mapp, reigning social goddesss.

Miss Elizabeth Mapp (known as Mapp) plots with her friends to rent out their respective homes a profit. Lucia and her best friend (a gentleman who brings to mind a cross between KUA's Richard and AYBS Mr Humphries) move and slowly begin to take over the town. Mapp is not pleased and a genteel war of one-upsmanship begins between the two ladies.

Drawings are rejected from the art exhibit, parties given, ownership of produce and fruit desputed with the poor town in the middle. Matters come to a head on Boxing Day (December 26) when Mapp decides to steal a longed for recipe that Lucia refuses to give to her.

Lucia stumbles on her rival in the kitchen and both women are swept out to sea on Lucia's kitchen table (yes, Lucia's kitchen table, this is a not a mis-type). The town mourns the two ladies as lost and the Great War of Mapp-Lucia as over.

Okay, enough said. You'll have to succumb to the collective charms of the ladies Mapp and Lucia yourself and find out all the bits I've left out. Now, I'm off hunt down and read the rest of E.F. Benson's wonderful books.

"Mapp & Lucia" is like reading Trollope's "Barchester Towers" with the gloves off. The teacup may be small, but the battles rumble like thunder on the bay. Lucia is incredible. She combines absolute self-absorption with ironclad charming resolve to succeed in her every endeavor. She really is wasted being queen of Society in a small English village when fulfilling the duties of Lord High Admiral would not cause her so much as a tiny frown.

Lucia is a newly minted widow in this hilarious outing. Her fires have been banked, and she is anxious to get back in the swing and show her mettle. She rents a house for the summer from the formidable Miss Elizabeth Mapp of Tilling. Miss Mapp is clearly the leader of society in Tilling and revels in her role. Lucia eyes the situation, and the lines are drawn in the most charming but resolute way possible Lucia is the richer of the two and possibly more clever, but Miss Mapp has some powerful advantages of her own. She has pride of place, a town full of quaking allies, and indomnable perseverance. When these two square off, the fun begins and doesn't let up.

This is a delightful read, a mood lifter of the first magnitude. "Mapp & Lucia" is my introduction to Lucia, and I cannot wait to further my acquaintance with this fascinating lady.
-sweetmolly-Amazon Reviewer

This is the first book I've read in E.F. Benson's "Lucia" series, and it is fun-filled ride indeed. For Benson novices, Lucia Lucas is a middle aged, recently widowed (in this novel), perfectly nice upper middle class woman who just happens to have the mind of Machavelli. Missing her obvious calling for World Domination, she is instead content to rule the social life of her small English village with an iron fist. As "Mapp and Lucia" begins however, Lucia has long since deposed any serious threat to her social dominance in her immediate vicinity, and decides fresher pastures are in order. She packs up her things (including , of course, best friend and right-hand-man Georgie) and moves to Tilling, where she expects she will be made society Queen in no time flat. Unfortunately for Lucia, Tilling already has a Queen, one Elizabeth Mapp, and she has no intention of relinquishing her crown.

The scene is thus set for a true Battle Royal, only in Tilling the battelfields are luncheons and dinner parties, and the weapons fruit gardens and lobster recipes. The results are very very funny, as the genteel of Tilling spend a breathless year thoroughly enjoying each swipe, snub and put down. The hilarious climax has our heroines floating out to sea on an overturned kitchen table, with Lucia's last audible words promising delicious gossip just as soon as she gets out of her current mess.

Benson draws his characters exquisitely well, I found myself flat out liking her. She is an Englishwomen of the 1930's, past her prime but still youthful, who just happens to be blessed (cursed?) with the personality of an Alpha Male. The resulting battle of wits with the formidable Mapp is fascinating; Mapp is clearly not her intellectual equal but through a mixture of deviousness and and cunning manages to pull the carpet from underneath Lucia's carefully laid plans time and again. The supporting characters are equally well written, with best friend Georgie and Mapp's crony Diva especially amusing.

All in all, a funny, entertaining and biting satire that is well worth reading whether you are already a Lucia fan or are picking up a Benson novel for the first time. Highly recommended!

Read these books and discover the truth. It's all there -- the vanity, greed, passion, jealousy, and exultation. Don't let the objects of all these towering emotions fool you (lobster recipes, psychic bridge, red currant fool, babytalk Italian, dead budgies, suspect gurus, the Moonlight Sonata), it is the stuff of life!

E F Benson's characters are just sublimely and achingly funny, it seems with Mapp and Lucia he was aiming to scrutinise and satarise the nosensical heirarchy and rivalry of bored and over privelaged upper middle class folk.
This aspect of the British Class system was one he knew well and which was breathing it's last in the times in which Mapp and Lucia live, witness the somewaht irritating coldness with which the Ladies treat their Maids, Drivers and Shop staff.
Lucia is the dominant character, lithe, fashionable and razor sharp while Mapp is clumsy, mumsy and opts for bulldog tactics.
The two appear in many novels, Lucia more often and one cannot help wonder if she was based on a Lady whom Benson was ever so slightly in love with, but here they meet for the first time, as Lucia moves to "Tilling" for the summer in Mapps rented out home "Mallards". The array of colurful charcters they surround themselves with and draw into their delighfully bitchy and cunning war agaisnt each other, are of equal delight, of particualr note are Quaint Irene and Georgie. Perhaps seen as little more than bohemian in their day but doubtless these characters would now be seen as obviously Lesbain and Gay; with the former being in love with Lucia. A daring inclusion in Benson's time but subtle and beautifully inclusive one.
Fans of these deliciously naughty pair should see the 1986 TV series which is available on DVD. Geraldine McKewan (of current Miss Marple fame)is petite, pretty, acid and simply perfect as Lucia while Prunella Scales (Cybil of Fawlty Towers) brings Miss Mapp to dusty, dowdy and bullish life! Excellent stuff!
The series was filmed in Rye in Sussex, home town of Benson, it used many locations close to his home (Lamb House), such as the lovley houses of Watchbell Street (My favourite being No 11 which was used as Godiva's house) and "Twistevens" shop on Mermaid Street, actually a Tea Room in reality.
WELL WORTH A VISIT! Literature fans may also wish to know that Lamb House was once home to American novelist, Henry James before Benson's time. One can also visit Benson's Grave in the town. Benson was Lord Mayor of Rye for a while and the river "Tilling"-ton flows through the town.

"My brother would get grounded for being 10 minutes late for dinner. By the time they got around to me, it was pretty much 'No heroin in the living room.'" (3)
-Mike Dugan, joking about being the youngest child in a big family and his parent's possible leniency.

By the time I read the sentences above, I had laughed six times already and I was only on page 3. To say this book is some of the best good natured humor anyone can read is an understatement. Mike Dugan delivers his mature and personal message about becoming the "right kind of man" with what is often knee-slapping, belly-rolling, and even telephone-your friends-and-pretend-you-made-it-up-yourself, comedy. (If you're not good at telling jokes I suggest you use text messaging and simply copy these jokes word for word from this book.)

In, "Men Fake Foreplay...And Other Lies That Are True", Mike Dugan shares his introspective quest to discover the dynamics involved between men and women in order to develop his own personal philosophy. He begins this quest by asking two simple questions: "What makes a man?" and "What do women want?" He addresses these two insightful questions throughout the book with chapters and headings such as: Communication; Domestic Priorities; Blame; Commitment; Boxing, Bubble Baths, and Big Boys Crying; to name a few.

Mike Dugan is no relationship expert and doesn't claim to be. If anything, he comes across in this book as an average guy with normal thoughts, healthy desires, and realistic expectations and emotions. He is the first to point out his own mistakes, misconceptions, and misadventures in the area of relationships and his interactions with the opposite sex. These misunderstandings have caused him much pain and regret in his own life, and he often displays a more serious side to these issues when they subsequently inflict pain upon the women he's been associated with:

"...if you choose to avoid your own ignorance when it reveals itself to you, it becomes arrogance..." (65)

These are immensely profound words from someone who comes across as an "average guy", but that's why this book is so enjoyable and worthy of reading. From a man's point of view, it reads as though two guys are sitting around having a deep and meaningful conversation about women. Men won't talk without laughing, and they will surely lose interest if it is nothing more than the typical feel-good group therapy session. Mike Dugan is a man's man, and he has done an expert job (as a non-expert) in this book of sharing his experiences and personal philosophy. Men seem to shy away from experts, and men don't even read the books by experts; but men talk to each other and laugh, and realistically most men will listen to reason. Sometimes, men just need to hear the right words from someone like Mike Dugan, who has obviously put a great deal of thought and good intention behind becoming the "right kind of man".

According to Mike Dugan, "the right kind of man" will honestly listen to a woman and nurture her. He will develop his character and create an environment of trust with the actions he takes and the words he uses. "Men Fake Foreplay...And Other Lies That Are True" really isn't about sex, it's about what a man does when he's NOT having sex. With this great little book, Mike Dugan points MANkind to the next level of social evolution. Every man should own a copy of this book, and then he should pass it along to his sons.

Brian Douthit
Author Of Perfectly Said: when words become art

My sense reading this was that the author believed that all men tend to devalue women and treat them badly. I know that not to be the case. The early pages were humorous & fun, but the last half of the book seemed pretty apologetic to me.

"Ultimately, the forces outside of us have little significance other than being a distraction. If men look to an illusionary outside world for answers, we will continue to get illusionary answers. There are challenges we need to face, alone in the dark, to learn to channel our strengths." ~Mike Dugan

Mike Dugan reveals all the challenges he faced in the past and how he thought his way into an intimate and fulfilling relationship by taking an honest look at male sexuality. He takes on the lone wolf, the dragon and the problems of antisocial behavior.

"Men Fake Foreplay" is an honest look at male sexuality. This book will not only lead men to deeply fulfilling and profound spiritual moments, women will find the insights and understanding to be intellectually satisfying and emotionally fulfilling. It is rare for a wildly funny book to also steal my heart.

Mike Dugan succeeds where many fear to even begin. There is insight into why women don't want you to change who you are, but instead want you to become more aware of who you are. He asks: "Where are the gentlemen?"

Though a variety of intellectually intriguing examples, Mike Dugan shows the need for male role models in our society. I loved the story of the elephants and his comments about defeating inner dragons. This book is not just an analysis of the male/female connection; it is more an analysis of how men connect with their deepest self. Mike Dugan reveals how a boy becomes a man and explores the choices a man makes once he takes on the responsibility of caring for the women in his life.

There is a deep, penetrating intimacy throughout this work. While this book is also wildly funny, I laughed my way right into an understanding of some profound male wisdom. One of the best lines in this book: "A man's power should be wielded compassionately." Like a true comedian, he entertains you with a few jokes and then once he has your attention and respect, there is a place to discuss communication, feelings and sexual ethics.

It took me a few minutes to get through the last two pages. I couldn't see the words. This is what I wanted from all the men in my life. I want to feel safe and nurtured. I want there to be safe places in my life where I'm loved as a soul.

~The Rebecca Review
Author of Seasoned with Love: A collection of
best-loved recipes inspired by over 40 cultures

This tale is short, sweet, funny, humble, and serious all at the same time. I think men and women equally should read it. The other positive reviews were on target and there's not much more I can add. Enjoy!

This is an excellent quick book. It really should be required reading for any male wanting to be a real man. Unfortunately, if the reviewers are representative of the general readership, it looks like more women than men are reading it, though. *sigh* That's really too bad and a disservice to all.

I thought about writing a long and detailed review of this book. But the following will suffice: I have bought three copies of Moondog, as previous purchases have been loaned to freinds who adamantly refuse to return them! One of the funniest books I have ever read. Don't read it on a train, you'll have everyone staring at you as you burst into fits of laughter. Can the stories be true? Who cares...

Great book. Couldn't put it down. A must read !!!
Funny if you are a pilot. It might not be for young children, though, due to a few words used however, it is a great book and I highly recommend it.

Most books that are self published or turned over to a POD service have a deserved stigma attached to them. Mr. Fusco's engaging account of the first part of his aviation carear from flight instructor to charter and cargo pilot defies any such preconception.

This book is about pilots and flying, not in the technical sense of _Stick and Rudder_, or in a philosophical way like _Fate is the Hunter_. It's a reminder of a time when engineering safety margins were there to be used and confindence counted alongside experience. Although the book is humorous, it pulls a little at the heartstings to read about planes being broken for salvage-- made slightly better when you realize that these planes are being flown right up to the end.

This book is also a good picture of an industry that isn't the same and never will be. Current charter and cargo operations operate under FAR part 135, which effectively requires a pilot to have 1200hrs of flight time. Most pilots get this by being a flight instructor, but the days of a $50 solo in 4 hours are long gone (and that's a good thing!). Still, it doesn't hurt to remember our roots.

Probably the funniest flying book I ever read. Found myself laughing out loud over and over. Especially for people who learned to fly in a Piper Cub. I've given many copies to my old flying buddies.

If you enjoy good humor, you should read this book. If you are a pilot, you should definitely read this book. If you are a pilot who enjoys good humor, you MUST read this book. I laughed aloud so much that my wife bought a copy for our friend, a retired airline captain. He laughs aloud continually as he reads it. The vignettes are over the top, but within each chapter are aphorisms that you will recall with a grin long after you have finished the book. The plot line is aviation, but the humor is universal. Those who are not pilots will enjoy it; those with any aviation experience will love it.

Great book! The stories you related, made me laugh and cry with you.It was truly a walk down memory lane. You have successfully memorialized Cote St Luc, forever.Sheila

I just finished your book I loved it so much that I just didn't want it to end.
I related to just about everything you went through. My parents also went through the war as Partisans in the woods of Poland and White Russia and then came to Montreal.
Thank you so much for writing this book. I must confess that
I laughed and cried but the last 100 pages of your book brought back so many memories for example singing to my father on his death bed \"OYFIN PRIPITCHEK BRENT A FAYERL, UN IN SHTUB IS HEYS. UN DER REBELY LERNT KLEYNE KINDERLEKH DEM ALDF-BEZ.\"
I saw you at Lynn University when you were in Boca Raton and had the
pleasure of meeting you and Fabrizio,gee I hope I remembered his name, but you know who I mean the cute Italian. You signed my book and I will cherish it forever.
Again, thank you so very much this book really made a difference to me.
Lots of Luck, from one survivor to another Sarah Johnson.

The title grabs you - humor? Holocaust? Then, you begin reading and Hanala grabs you- envelops you, fastens your seat belt for you and takes you on the ride that is her life. And what a ride.

For the general public, it is a story, written with wit, humor, turns of phrase, expressions which you know you have heard before and are comfortable with but which are neither trite nor cliche, in a style that holds your attention. It is the history of a little girl clamoring for something which is impossible to receive due to no fault of her own, a "normal" childhood, filled with love, affection, nurturing, complements, structure, safety, sibling support, reliable friends, - just like in the 50s and 60s TV families into which she delves for comfort; who, not surprisingly grows into a young adult with physical addictions and emotional insecurities - making bad choices, entering into troubled relationships and behaving in a self-destructive manner bringing her near death; and finally, just as you have almost had it with her and want to read her the riot act, but knowing that nothing you say could bring her out of her messed-up life, she surprises you and takes a small step which becomes a deep reach into herself and pulls herself out of the spiral - building inner strength and finally maturing into the positive, healthy person you would be thrilled to have in your life. Hanala lays open her soul to the core, describes behaviors and experiences that most would be embarrassed and ashamed to admit, and demonstrates that we have the ability to heal ourselves, with the help of others, if we only give ourselves the chance. You laugh, you laugh a lot, and you cry, you find yourself repeating statements out loud that you have just read which may well hit deep in your own soul. Frankly, you don't want the book to end and when it does, you are OK, because you know that Hanala's story is continuing and because it is a real life that you feel connected to.

And, for the readership which is made up of the children of Holocaust survivors/escapees, it is an even more special story. Hanala, through her experiences, and her insights gained through therapy, A.A. and Al-Anon programs, gives us answers as to why her parents, and so many other such parents just could not do a better parenting job - whether due to their guilt for not being able to save family or friends or for the simple fact that they survived, magnified by the relative comfort in which they are living; why they too were and are leading lives that are not filled with what many would consider "normal" actions and reactions - which behaviors many have unintentionally passed on to their children. "It is not because she won't, it is because she just can't." For Holocaust survivor/escapees' children, Hanala provides answers to questions we might not even know how to ask.

What a book! As a daughter of Holocaust survivors, I typically think twice before picking up a book on this topic but after passing it by a number of times, I finally bought it and was rewarded with the sound of a truly original voice. Actually the book spoke to me in many voices including the sing-song Polish-accented voice of my mother with her Yiddishisms and her mangled English. Hanala Stadner uses her sense of humor to make a painful subject accessible and her whimsical drawings provide a glimpse of the spirit she brings to her struggles. This book moved me so much that I contacted the author directly, something I have NEVER done before, I highly recommend this book.

At first, it's hard to know what to make of Hanala Stadner, author of the My Parents Went Through the Holocaust and All I got Was This Lousy T-Shirt. Does she realize the title of her book is offensive to some people? Is she as superficial as her celebrity photos suggest? Is she making fun of Holocaust survivors?

I discovered the answers to those questions when I interviewed the personable, glamorous 51-year-old Stadner in a booth at the back of Corky and Lenny's last week, shortly before her booksigning at Barnes and Noble.

The answers are, respectively: yes, she realizes the title offends some people; no, she's not the walking Barbie doll she appears to be; and no, she is not making a joke at the expense of Holocaust survivors.

Beneath her polished surface, Stadner is a puzzle whose parts don't always seem to fit together. She's a popular L.A. fitness instructor, a television personality, a former alcoholic and drug abuser who has been sober more than 20 years, a chemical dependency counselor, a comedic writer, and a popular speaker on second generation Holocaust survivor lecture circuit. As Suzan Stadner, she hosted a popular long-running cable-access show which attracted a celebrity audience that included Marlon Brando.

Then (just to confuse things) she changed her name from Suzan to Hanala, the diminutive of her middle name, Hannah. Stadner's mother named her Hannah in honor of a sister (Stadner's aunt) who died in the Holocaust, along with most of Stadner's relatives.

The pieces fall into place when you hear Stadner speak or you read her book -- and the key to the entire puzzle lies in her childhood as a second generation survivor.

Stadner grew up before anyone had done studies or even spoke in whispers about the now well-documented syndrome that often occurs when survivors of trauma and loss become parents. "My parents survived Hitler. I survived my parents," Stadner explains in the book's opening.

As a child, Stadner assumed there was something wrong with her -- nothing she did or said or wanted had any significance in the face of her parents' history.

"I had a special form of childhood Attention Deficit Disorder," she notes wryly. "I can't hold Ma and Daddy's attention. The Holocaust, dancing a polka in their heads, distracts them."

In comparison to the trauma of the Holocaust, children's problems seem neglible. When Stadner confided to her mother that she was scared of school, her mother responded, "`You're scared? Vhat, is a Nazi chasing you? Do you live in a hole in da ground? Did your family die in da gas chambers?'"

(Looking back as an adult, Stadner quips, "Yes, technically. And the ones still alive are in no state to raise children.").

Later, Stadner understands that the shadow of the Holocaust looms over not only her parents' lives but hers as well. "I wasn't crammed in a boxcar headed for Auschwitz," she explains. "I came later. I grew up in a bungalow in Canada watching Captain Kangaroo and eating Alphabits. Yet, if you and I were to speak for five minutes, I'd work into the conversation that my parents are Holocaust survivors."

Stadner's parents spent several years on the run from Nazis. Newlyweds when the Nazis came to take their families away, they escaped to the woods, where for months on end they hid with other young adults they refer to as "da group." Those experiences were imprinted upon her parents' thoughts and personalities forever.

Although some survivors never speak of their experiences, Stadner's mother was a talker, burdening the young Hannah with tragic, ironic stories inevitably became imprinted on Stadner's thoughts and personality as well:

"'Oy... Hanala, you know da vay you love babies? Vell...' she sighs, needing strength to go on, 'I loved my brodder's children like dey vere my own, and because I couldn't save dem, dey got chapped up mit an ax, what can I tell you?'

"Ma gets up and starts with the dishes. Like a hit-and-run driver who doesn't realizes she's flattened someone, Ma hits and cleans. She's oblivious of the impact. She leave a head of emotional rubble without a speck of guilt. ... One minute her niece and nephew are being axed, the next, she's dashing off like the white knight from the Ajax commercial, brandishing a shmatteh. ... I'm frozen. I've been Mummy-fied. Can't talk."

Stadner is describing the "secondary traumatization" experienced by the children of Holocaust survivors. According to the American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress, children of Holocaust survivors are at higher risk for psychiatric symptoms, including depression, anxiety, nightmares, emotional numbing, irritability, and hypervigilance. The causal relationship between the Holocaust and these symptoms is so well documented that last summer thousands of Israel's second generation survivors sued Germany for reparation to pay for the psychiatric treatment they have required.

If you were to hold Stadner's book up against a clinical description of secondary trauma, you'd find a direct correspondence.

But Stadner's version would be funnier. She moves with mordant briskness through the symptoms and consequences of life with her parents, giving pithy accounts of her food addiction, agoraphobia, alcohol and drug addiction, and her predilection for men who belittle and lie to her -- without pitying herself or blaming others.

Even the event that propels her on the path to sobriety is funny, if painful. Drunk at a holiday party, she falls into the Christmas tree. When she calls the next day to apologize to the hostess, the hostess tells her it's OK, but was she aware that it was an AA party and she was the only person there who was drinking?

Stadner sees comedy as the antidote to trauma - particularly the secondary trauma which is inadvertently thrust upon you by the people who are supposed to care for and comfort you. ("Tragedy + time = comedy" declares her website, Traumedy Central, which is also the title of her new television show on the new Jewish Life TV network.)

Which brings us back to the title of the book - is it funny? Stadner says she didn't anticipate anyone would think the implied whine in the title was meant to be serious, but she has had interesting dialogues with people who do find the title disturbing.

"Once they begin reading the book, they understand" that the tone of the title isn't one of complaint but of self-deprecating, Stadner explains.

The book jacket blurbs certainly testify to how much other second generation survivors appreciate Stadner's candor and irreverence: after all, she's giving a voice to all those things that could never be talked about, the pink elephant no one was supposed to notice.

Long before the book's end, Stadner has accepted her mother's meshugas. As we sit in Corky and Lenny's, she recites some of her mother's funniest lines, until her sister, Akron resident Sylvia Levinson, is in stitches.

Levinson confesses to Hanala that reading the book helped her through the grief after their mother died. "Really?" asks Stadner, obviously touched.
"You describe exactly what Ma was really like," Sylvia replies. "It helped me remember."

(This review appeared in shortened form in the Cleveland Jewish News.)

This is a great book for the new parent. Mostly because it helps you laugh at those situations that would otherwise make you cry, and know you aren't the only one who has been through it. The author could have had a widow into my house seeing as how scary accurate his experiences compare to mine. Not one to sugar coat anything, or go with the political correct one, the author gives a great representation of what a new parent has to look forward to in a funny and informative way. A great read and sure to be a parenting classic.

Simply the funniest, most honest book about raising an infant ever written. Jeff Vogel is a genius. No other book has both reassured me that I can handle this and made me question my own sanity. Even if you have no children and plan on never having them you should read this book.

I am 9 months pregnant and received this book from my father as a gift. I laughed so much reading it that my husband thinks it's my hormones and not the book. Somehow I enjoyed just seeing the most delicate of subjects (brand new baby) - that everyone takes seriously all the time - brought out into the light for everyone to see all of the gross bits and the bits that no one wants to admit exist! It's been great to see the lighter side of our upcoming bundle of joy! lol!

This book gives you a realistic peek into what it's really like and what to expect. Many books try to do that, but what I think makes this book so great is that the author is so honest about what he went through: the not knowing, the mistakes, and the feeling that you are a terrible parent. By reading what this guy went through and felt, it puts you more at ease about what's happening to you as a new parent. The book sort of tells you, "It's ok... things like this happen to everyone," and "no, you're baby is not weird because it just did that." But, it does it with heaps and heaps of funny!

If you are expecting, planning to be expecting, or even just know someone who is, this book is a fantastic read. It's my standard baby shower present for my friends and family.

Although this book will not help you with any of the practical matters of the first year of your child's life, it does help with the most important thing of all: keeping your sanity when you have a newborn in the house, and letting you know you are not alone.

This is one of the funniest books I have ever read. I laughed until I cried, many many times. Then I loaned it to my sister, and she thought it was so funny that she would call me just to read her favorite bits to me over the phone, and we'd both laugh hysterically.

Vogel just has a gift for picking out the things that everyone thinks or wishes during the first year of their child's life, and putting them on the page with such wry wit that you gasp and laugh at the same time.

I have re-read this book several time (my daughter is now 10 months old), and I still laugh hysterically. You know it's good when it's still funny the third time you read it!

In Andrew Roe's Retreat, we're introduced to David, a character who yearns to fall into the cracks of everyday life where he can detach, listen to his music, do his mundane job and just be left alone. He even struggles with the point of "don't you need to be somebody first" to then disappear and have it produce the "maximum effect." Maybe his search for solitude is really just his way of reaching out?

David has been through a stage we can all relate to; a place where he can't seem to gain momentum in any aspect of life - work, relationships, creative endeavors and the like - and reaches a point of disconnection where even one of those points of "demarcation" for the entire planet isn't enough to rouse him from his perpetual slumber.

This story made me laugh, pause to reflect a bit and even think twice about saying "hello" to my neighbors when picking up my mail each day (so who's the loner in my building???). I had an instant connection with the character and the settings and stages of his experience are made to seem all too familiar (I hate cubicles too). Andrew Roe has that rare gift every writer seeks - a witty and engaging style that makes you want to read on.

I'm hooked - I want to know more about my new friend David and his plight. Will he succeed in his plans to disappear from society? Will he find solitude and peace? Will he be able to keep his sanity deep inside the gray fabric walls of corporate America? I want to know...

These brief chapters from Andrew Roe's novel are concise, insightful, and funny. He has a great sense of life in a giant mega-corporation, a place where, after four years, someone can still ask the narrator if he's new to the company, and where our narrator can work all morning and not realize until lunch that the building has been abandoned because of news of terrorist attacks. Essentially, Roe is exploring the many ways it is possible to be invisible in our society, and he does so with warmth, humor and honesty. I would recommend this to anyone who has ever had a job.

'Retreat' is a glimpse of a guy named David, whose life is a melancholy cycle of one living as a meaningless figure within a corporate cube-farm. In a sad way, he's a poster-child for an entire populous of single men who are stuck in the monotonous daily cycle of 'work, microwaved lunch, more of the same work, home'.

David lives for nothing of great substance, and doesn't stop his routine of samedom, even as the entire nation stops. In a poignant moment, David realizes (after remembering to remove his ear-plugs the he uses for sleeping) that his entire office is devoid of life--and this realization not only sums up this character in a few short sentences, but also makes me think that his internal narrative must be incredibly loud (even if his external self doesn't reveal as such)...for him not to realize that the lifeless day at his office is Sept. 11, 2001.

This is a brilliant read, and Andrew Roe should be commended for creating this truly touching piece of literary art.

Retreat by A. Roe offers a witty insight to one young professional's disenchantment with everyday life. American culture has lead to a disenfranchisement with the immediate world around him. Rather than have have his obscurity be based on not being 'somebody first', David Leiter takes charge of his own social withdrawal.

This is a funny and well written take on the dilemmas of the modern fabricated-for-you life. It easily conjures up the humor seen in other pop-culture favorites as 'Office Space' and Dilbert, yet doesn't get carried away with its levity.

I found that many of the authors lines were filled with a simple blend of comic poignancy and general observation, such as:
~'...later turn out to be this big before-and-after demarcation, when your life forks elsewhere and you aren't even aware of said forking at the time.'
~'...the cube next to mine had been vacant ever since the welcomed departure of the satanic Matt Henderson...'
~'...yet another report, this one about the cognitive ability of young children to recognize company mascots and logos.'

While this excerpt overall read as the slow downfall of David's worldly involvement, I was lost at times with regard to chronology. If this was meant to be linear, then I missed that. I missed what order this presentation was in, generally speaking.

It starts with an overview of things, then starts to recollect his time from college graduation onward. After the 'are you new here' piece (establishing he'd been there for 4+ years) and the bit about his apartment neighbors, we find out he has a new cube-neighbor. From there, David's still thinking on the new cube person, when, in short order, he's approached by Casagrande (lovely name) about his editing. There's mention that David's 'new' at this point. I reread this sequence four times wondering if I missed the indicator for time shifting. Is this still four years later? Did he start thinking about when he was new again? Did his direct supervisor really think that David was new? It was rather confusing.

Outside of this time slip, I enjoyed reading this piece. The humor, pace and character had a general appeal that kept me engaged as a reader and wanting to see how David finally manages to escape it all.

David Leiter - an anonymous and typically dissatisfied, uninspired and dismayed resident of corporate cubeville, one document processing specialist in a veritable army of hundreds of lacklustre wordsmiths, an English major whose sole editorial task (in the words of his domineering tyrannical supervisor) is "to make shit stink less" - takes us on a meandering, hilarious Seinfeld like tour of the existential angst of his unchallenged intellect and rather forlorn, mundane existence.

Andrew Roe has chosen to let David Leiter tell his own story in his own words - a particularly engaging first person style in which I felt as if I was sitting on a bar stool beside David as he told the story directly to me, a very private and entirely engaging one on one session. Despite David's obviously retiring, introverted personality in which he almost shuns human contact, David is also a VERY funny guy. He is self deprecating, utterly charming and it would seem blissfully unaware of his own wit despite his sparkling mastery of the craft of words.

If Andrew Roe can maintain that style and level of interest throughout his entire novel, wherever it may be headed, then he will have penned a literary prize well worth the reading.

Thanks so much, Mr Roe, and good luck with your writing efforts. I'll look forward to reading the finished product.

Paul Weiss

A good pal of mine downloaded this story.

I was pretty impressed as I read it on his computer.

Miss Dravis has a slithery way of writing as I have found out. Miss Dravis' style of writing is unique.

I think she will write many more unique Amazon Shorts. At least I hope she will.

I highly recommend this read and anxiously look forward to MORE of her writings.
Highly recommended.

What a clever short story this is. It is based on an odd premise--that Janis Joplin's "Bobby McGee" is alive and well--in Salinas, California. Things are not always as they seem, and this short story weaves a nice tale.

A husband and wife are on an apparently dreary bus cruise when they stop at a place where they understand Bobby McGee to live. The husband is willing to go along with his wife's quest to meet the legend.

This 9 page story speeds by to its surprising conclusion. I doubt that most readers will anticipate where this work ends!

Anyhow, if you are interested in Janis Joplin's world and willing to be caught up in this tale, I'd recomment it.

Just when I was about to make my appearance on CNN for an interview about my help in solving the disappearance of Bobby McGee, the station cancelled it! I was distraught. How dare they. I have always been the one to walk off news stations if it wasn't to my liking, and now they were being downright rude to me! How silly of me to think that I was the only one who could get away with this. Believe me, next time I will surely light more spiritual candles for help.

Anyway - I was told that there was no need for the interview because of something that came to their attention. The t.v. director handed me this short story and, after reading it, I totally understood.

This is a cute but telling tale of how two retirees take a bus trip and, as they stop in Salinas, recall that old Janis Joplin tune "Me and Bobby McGee". Winnie, who has a firecracker attitude, tells her husband Virgil of all the great times she had listening to the music and wouldn't it be fun to search for the one and only Bobby McGee that broke Janis Joplin's heart so long ago? Virgil is cranky but he goes along with it.

What I find remarkable here is the talent to bring these two characters to life. You get a feel that, even though they have both entered the twilight of their years, that they are still both madly, deeply in love with each other. This comes across in the way these two respond to each other. Certainly, the dialogue reveals so much. But, it's in the thoughts and actions of the two main characters. Winnie still finds Virgil attractive, after many years, in blue jeans. And he admires his wife's "not dull" spirit for all the travel trips they took together, and especially how she maneuvered her way through snowbanks like "Tonya Harding's grandmother".

It is in witty and pinpoint passages such as these that bring the richness of the characters to life. So much of their affection for one another can be conveyed in such an economical way. Virgil is willing to overlook the inconvenience of Winnie's hair-brained scheme because there is true love. But, in the end, the result is not what we expect at all.

This is a cute, comfortable tale, but there are underpinnings that support a greater, wider reality. In many ways, this tale is about fantasy, and what we want to believe as opposed to what's true. There are many things here: the idea that love keeps us eternally young ( and somewhat naive), that after a long journey through life and experience, all things can be cast away for the idea of a journey for youth. It is the encroachment of harsh reality upon the wonder of belief. And in this the author, this Betty Dravis, succeeds on a level that is so difficult, and so hard to achieve.

This is a short, cute little tale. But, it opens up many avenues to the nature of all mankind and how the heartless can take full advantage of the innocence of aging youth. So splendidly done. And, I won't reveal the twist (not that there is one), and you can't make me!

An interesting, satisfying, thought-provoking tale. One that examines where you are at on the spectrum of the inner soul morality of humanity. Confused yet? Don't be. Investigate for yourself and ask yourself the hard questions this story offers.

Now, I must get out of this studio and search for a bus stop. I am sure that there are people there that desperately need my enlightenment! Great tale people!

Break it! Take another little piece of my heart now baby! - Metamorpho ;)

I simply adore Betty's short stories because she is a chameleon who can morph her writing styles into any genre and category, romance, horror, humor, you name it she can masterfully weave words into a believable story. Even though all the pages are rich with action my favorite part is always the ending, you can expect a clever twist that leaves the reader in awe.

In this tale, a married couple who's bored of their usual vacations that include safaris, whale watching and trekking through Europe decides to take a detour and do something different for a change. Following the rumors that the famous lonely ex-lover of the late Janis Joplin is still possibly in the area of their breakfast stop- Denny's in Salinas, they decide to track him down. Virgil's wife Winnie is still smitten with the dreamy heartthrob and relentlessly he follows his wife like the good husband that he is...Their search turns up successful but with very surprising results, it seems that Bobby is as famous as his famed mistress and people will do anything to meet him.

Short and fun, a must read for lovers of surprise endings!

- Kasia S.

With her trademark use of irony and good-humor, Betty Dravis spins a yarn about two retirees who get on a bus on their way to Monterey for whale watching. Virgil's a curmudgeon, and Winnie is a sweet romantic. They've been everywhere and back as they reflect on the meaning of the titled Janis Joplin song and look for new adventure. Always able to put a smile on her readers' faces, Betty Dravis has plenty of warmth to create for her stories and sympathetic characters, whether she's working with fiction or nonfiction. Having loved her Profile freebies, it was about time to get on board and enjoy some more short fiction. Nice one, Betty! :>)