125 ratings | 37 reviews | avg rating:4.52

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Mike Ball

Goodreads Author

Born

in South Bend, IN, The United States

Website

http://learnedsofar.com

Twitter

tagmike

Genre

Humor and Comedy, Nonfiction, Ebooks

Influences

Mark Twain, Robert Benchley, Erma Bombeck, Kurt Vonnegut ...more

Member Since

May 2012

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/mikeball

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Mike Ball is an award-winning humorist who writes the internationally popular weekly syndicated column "What I've Learned So Far..." He lives and writes on the shores of Whitmore Lake, Michigan, sharing a roof with his wife and a psychotic Siamese cat. He is a member of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists, the recipient of the 2003 Erma Bombeck Award, and a finalist for the 2011 Robert Benchley Award.

Mike's first book, "Bikes, Docks & Slush Nuggets," is Part I of the "What I've Learned... So Far" trilogy. Part II, "Angels, Chimps & Tater Mitts," was published in April, 2012.

In addition to cranking out his humor column and books, Mike is a musician. As front man for the band Dr. Mike & The Sea Monkeys, he plays guitar, banjo, ukulel ...more

19 posts
Mike Ball's Blog: What I've Learned... So Far

Lost Voices at Vista Maria

We don't know their stories, but each girl has one. They are tall and short, thin and not-so-thin, brash and reserved. Some of them show a sadness in their eyes deeper than you want to imagine, and others wear a mask that most of the world will never penetrate.

And they are children.

These are the young women living at Vista Maria, a foster care facility for at-risk girls in Dearborn Heights, Mich

Combine Editions
Mike Ball’s books

Average rating: 3.85 · 176 ratings · 53 reviews · 12 distinct works

	What I've Learned... So Far Part III: Banjos, Boats & Butt Dialing 3.39 avg rating — 77 ratings — published 2013 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	What I've Learned So Far... Part I: Bikes, Docks & Slush Nuggets 4.64 avg rating — 11 ratings — published 2009 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	What I've Learned... So Far Part II: Angels, Chimps, & Tater Mitts 4.30 avg rating — 10 ratings — published 2012 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Olympus, Indiana: A Story of Gods, Goddesses and the Underpants of Zeus 4.44 avg rating — 9 ratings — published 2015 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Danger Uxb 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings — published 2015	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Tiger Boy 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Gratitude of the Elves 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Going Up in the World 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Vet 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Country Incident 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Mike Ball…

Mike is Currently Reading

Mike Ball is currently reading

Every Last Word

by Tamara Ireland Stone (Goodreads Author)

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Aug 18, 2025 09:38PM

Mike Ball is currently reading

Love Conquers All

by Robert Benchley

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Jul 21, 2025 11:14PM

Mike Ball is currently reading

The Story of Humanity: Ecology & Consequence

by Ishi Nobu (Goodreads Author)

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Nov 21, 2022 08:21PM

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Mike Ball is currently reading Every Last Word by Tamara Ireland Stone (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
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Mike Ball is currently reading Love Conquers All by Robert Benchley	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jul 21, 2025 11:14PM · like