Reviews of Life Seemed Good, But.... A Collection of Short Quirky Stories
by Richard Bell
A collection of short, humorous-surreal stories with unpredictable endings. Dedicated to all those who cared for someone suffering with cancer or any serious illness. It’s a picture of life as viewed by a rich array of characters, talking animals, and the author’s twisted perception of reality. Contains much hidden trivia.
Reviews of Life Seemed Good, But.... A Collection of Short Quirky Stories by Richard Bell
Richard Sanders
reviewed
on March 20, 2011
I’ve never read anything quite like LIFE SEEMED GOOD, BUT…, and I mean that in a good way. Certain comparisons almost come to mind: Mark Twain on mushrooms? Garrison Keillor with food poisoning? Maybe, but those examples don’t really capture the special, twisted magic of Richard Bell’s universe or his unique way of seeing things.
His world is a strange one, filled as it is with belligerent kangaroos, idiotic trolls, extrasensory potatoes, angry Cajuns, preoccupied Lithuanians, cribbage-playing dragons and various unhealthy obsessions with the mystical properties of tin foil. It’s a loopy place, for sure. And yet somehow, through stories that are by turns hilarious, wry, bittersweet and sometimes all three at the same time, this fractured fairy-tale world turns out to be our own.
I don’t know how he does it. Maybe he’s a genius, but why insult the man? All I know is that when I finished Life Seemed Good, But… I had an urge to scrawl something on the bathroom walls of the world: For a good time, call Richard Bell. Or at least buy his book.
Richard Sanders, DEAD LINE
(reviewed 2 days after purchase)