What I’ve Learned So Far Part III: Banjos, Boats, and Butt Dialing by Mike Ball

Posted June 20, 2013 by shooting in Uncategorized / 14 Comments

What I’ve Learned So Far Part III: Banjos, Boats, and Butt Dialing by Mike Ball

Review by Lauren

copy for review, but all opinions are my own

Official Summary: Banjos, Boats and Butt Dialing is the third installment in Mike Ball’s What I’ve Learned… So Far series of books. In it the Erma Bombeck Award-winning humorist grapples with topics ranging from becoming a grandfather, to rabbit hunting, to the Zen of a middle-aged guy trying to cope with cleavage. The book is a compilation of 74 entries from Mike’s nationally-syndicated column, What I’ve Learned… So Far.

Review: This is the perfect book for anyone’s summer vacation! It’s a collection of short essays, with most only lasting for a few pages. It’s something you can easily pick up, read an essay or two, and then put down again. I actually read most of the book in the pool…another fun place to enjoy Mike Ball’s thoughts – the perfect mix of sincere and humorous.

One of Mike’s essays that I found particularly amusing was called Santwilight, all about how Mike believes Santa is really a vampire. I must admit…he has some good points.

 
“Now I’m guessing that Santa has always felt like he had to disguise his true nature and hide the whole vampire thing. And to be fair, that made sense. I can see people getting a little bit uptight over a blood-sucking abomination of nature, even a jolly one, breaking in through the chimney and wandering around the house.”
– page 113

Another funny essay is all about Mike’s dealings with an airline company (Delta) and it’s sure to please anyone who has ever flown and had to deal with something unpleasant.

However, like I said above, some of these essays are quite sincere. They might have funny moments sprinkled throughout, but they touch on bigger moments of life, love, and family…like when he’s talking about his son’s wedding or the passing of his older neighbors who were always there with a helping hand and a kind word.

I love that none of these essays are too long, and that it’s not simply a running joke the entire time. It adds more to each essay and is much more suitable for a wider audience.

14 responses to “What I’ve Learned So Far Part III: Banjos, Boats, and Butt Dialing by Mike Ball

  1. I love books like these! They are so fun and are the perfect thing I need on a rainy day or anytime at all really..lolz..
    I love all of the funand informative things I am finding on your blog 🙂

  2. This does sound like a perfect read for summer when you can't always commit to a lot of reading time. Sounds funny! Wonderful review. 🙂

  3. This sounds like the perfect read for the beach! I love taking short story or essay collections so I can have bite sized bits of reading in between swimming. Glad you enjoyed this, it sounds wonderful (and that title cracks me up!). Lovely review 🙂

  4. Baha that title and cover art almost made me spit my drink. This sounds like such a fun read, though, and perfect for summer quick reads for sure!

  5. Sam

    Santa being a vampire! That's hilarious. This sounds like a wonderful holiday read. I was pretty much convinced with one look at that cover actually. 😉 Great review!

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