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Little Man, Big Mouth, 30 Years: Newspaper and Magazine Columns by an Average Dad in Cargo Shorts
Extra! Extra! Read all about Chicken Has Two Butts. Haunted Honda Spews Pumpkin Goo. Pea Does Not Save Constipated Fish.
“Little Man, Big Mouth, 30 Years” is packed with true stories that, despite better news judgement, made it into print. Dave Schlenker explores epic husband fails, basket cults and Presbyterian squid. These are the stories of a doting dad navigating newsroom nonsense. They are as fun as they are familiar.
“Little Man, Big Mouth, 30 Years” is packed with true stories that, despite better news judgement, made it into print. Dave Schlenker explores epic husband fails, basket cults and Presbyterian squid. These are the stories of a doting dad navigating newsroom nonsense. They are as fun as they are familiar.
- GenresHumor
187 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 18, 2022
11 people are currently reading
8 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
November 27, 2022
Shortly before his wedding (Dave Barry had helped him propose to a fellow fan) Dave Schlenker started having very bad headaches. They were caused by a not-so-very-benign cyst, for which, Schlenker says, he had three surgical operations. Even after the surgeries he had headaches, which were relieved by medication, and depression, relieved by more medication. Despite the disease, of which he only skims the surface, he was able to enjoy marriage, fatherhood, and a full-length career of writing about the funny side of those.
The short essays in this book grew out of those of his 600-word columns that Schlenker found most likely to appeal to today's readers. Though he describes himself as a "bumbling" father of "brilliant" children, he obviously maintained good relationships with his wife, children, pets, and neighbors. Some of his neighbors happen to be famous; in this book we learn that Ken Block and even John Travolta at least showed nice-guy sides to him.
The book includes pieces from the whole length of his career, from the early efforts to produce the older child to the younger child's being old enough to snap that professional-quality author photo inside the book. Schlenker dutifully takes a walk-on part in his daughter's ballet performance, demonstrates how to avoid being beaten up by a crayon, shares memories of his pets, meets the inevitable Florida alligator and a rare, apparently conjoined-twins chicken, and more.
What's not to like? Nobody could possibly begrudge Schlenker's best-case experience with antidepressants but I could wish that the people for whom these drugs work would at least acknowledge that antidepressants don't serve everyone well. They don't help every patient, cause painful side effects for some, and are the common factor in the homicide-suicides that have become so common since Prozac reached the market in the 1980s. Schlenker does at least allow that he's a very lucky man.
If you're in the mood for gentle, heartwarming chortles about the funny side of being a decent responsible gentleman, this book is for you. It runs about 95% comedy to 5% disease memoir. You will like Schlenker, his family, his friends, and his town. Having read this book at the messiest and grumpiest stage of a head cold, I can testify that it's funny enough to be used for laughter-as-pain-management.
The short essays in this book grew out of those of his 600-word columns that Schlenker found most likely to appeal to today's readers. Though he describes himself as a "bumbling" father of "brilliant" children, he obviously maintained good relationships with his wife, children, pets, and neighbors. Some of his neighbors happen to be famous; in this book we learn that Ken Block and even John Travolta at least showed nice-guy sides to him.
The book includes pieces from the whole length of his career, from the early efforts to produce the older child to the younger child's being old enough to snap that professional-quality author photo inside the book. Schlenker dutifully takes a walk-on part in his daughter's ballet performance, demonstrates how to avoid being beaten up by a crayon, shares memories of his pets, meets the inevitable Florida alligator and a rare, apparently conjoined-twins chicken, and more.
What's not to like? Nobody could possibly begrudge Schlenker's best-case experience with antidepressants but I could wish that the people for whom these drugs work would at least acknowledge that antidepressants don't serve everyone well. They don't help every patient, cause painful side effects for some, and are the common factor in the homicide-suicides that have become so common since Prozac reached the market in the 1980s. Schlenker does at least allow that he's a very lucky man.
If you're in the mood for gentle, heartwarming chortles about the funny side of being a decent responsible gentleman, this book is for you. It runs about 95% comedy to 5% disease memoir. You will like Schlenker, his family, his friends, and his town. Having read this book at the messiest and grumpiest stage of a head cold, I can testify that it's funny enough to be used for laughter-as-pain-management.
February 29, 2024
An emotional high! Laughing, crying, and the sheer pleasure of reading these heartfelt stories.
Dave Schlenker’s book contains a sampling of stories he had written over his thirty-year career as a newspaper and magazine columnist. Not only are Daves's stories hilarious, but they are always punctuated with pearls of wisdom, humility, and the life lessons he learned from each experience.
Read his book; you will be glad you did! I was!
Dave Schlenker’s book contains a sampling of stories he had written over his thirty-year career as a newspaper and magazine columnist. Not only are Daves's stories hilarious, but they are always punctuated with pearls of wisdom, humility, and the life lessons he learned from each experience.
Read his book; you will be glad you did! I was!
October 31, 2022
This book makes the mundane into novelties
Little Man, Big Mouth celebrates the silly everyday events that turn into major touch points of living. It shows that life is lived in incidental happenings that out pace the bigger celebrations on a daily basis.
Little Man, Big Mouth celebrates the silly everyday events that turn into major touch points of living. It shows that life is lived in incidental happenings that out pace the bigger celebrations on a daily basis.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews