This book is a compilation of awesome stories that all talk about past adventures of the one and only Patrick McManus. He loves the outdoors so that is what he primarily writes about. Pat loved to fish, hunt, and do other crazy things in his childhood and even when he was an adult. Unlike most stories, these stories do not go in chronological order. They jump around from his childhood enterprises with Rancid Crabtree, Retch Sweeney and Crazy Eddie Muldoon to his adult mishaps (many) and his triumphs (few). But with Patrick McManus writing, he can turn a plain old, everyday story into an awesome tale that will bring many a tear to your eye from laughter. In this book, Pat writes about many things from what happens when you combine a powerful, homemade slingshot named Whopper with Rancid Crabtree and Gram's giant pumpkin, to how he became an outdoor humorist, all the way to telling the reader about his successes of creating a one mile radius between he and the deer he is hunting. The stories are all completely different but they all relate to outdoor adventures, his main form of fun.
This book is simply hilarious. Although it doesn't quite compare to the likes of some of his other books, I still really liked this book. If you haven't read any of Patrick McManus's other books, you will probably think this is one of the funniest books that you have ever read. It was entertaining and I got lots of weird looks from different people as I just laughed my head off. Surprisingly, Pat isn't just a funny guy. He is an extremely talented writer because he paints a vivid picture of what he talks about in his books. The whole book was like watching a movie. It was cool how much you could visualize the story.
If the author is trying to pass along an opinion or bring up issues, they are as follows: enjoy yourself, have a little fun here or there, take risks (as in take dangerous roads in the woods), go on plenty of camping trips, go hunting and fishing often, and do crazy stuff as a kid. I agree with his philosophies, especially the fishing part but I'm still not all the way there on the dangerous, mountainous roads. You should probably live life with a more serious outlook than Patrick McManus or his pal Rancid Crabtree, but some people live life too seriously so this is a good reminder not to make life too stressful. I totally agree. Just reading this book helped me to have a little fun, relax and laugh my cares away. This collection of tales clearly had a purpose and that was to make people laugh. I laughed. If you read this book you will also laugh. Patrick McManus shows the world the importance of laughter. He shows how sad life is without laughter by making you laugh. Sounds kind of weird but trust me, it works.
Overall, I thought How I Got This Way by Patrick McManus was really good. It doesn't have the action or suspense that most books these days have but it sure has the right amount of humor. I would recommend this book to all, but some of Patrick McManus's other books were much better. If you would like to know some of his better books, just ask.
2 comments:
I hope it didn't bring too many tears to your eye logan. I guess I would like to read his books . They sound funny but you never really say what its about.
Luke, someday just walk across the street, ring the doorbell, and I will hand you one of Pat's books if you wish to do so. Make sure to look both ways when you cross the street. You could get hurt.
Post a Comment