Below Average Genius, by Michael Buzzelli

Life is full of ridiculous moments.  The type and gravity of these moments range from making up drag queen names to blowing off George Clooney at a restaurant.  Whatever the ridiculous moments are, they are deliciously hilarious.  Read this collection of articles and prepare for some belly laughs.  Each essay is a nugget of humor, yet most are infused with wisdom as well.

I started reading this book yesterday afternoon, while my husband was at work.  By the time I made it to page six, I was laughing, out loud, so much it echoed through our house.  By the time I was finished, my dogs were looking at me like I had two heads, because I was laughing so much.  The book is simply that funny.  What makes this book so amazing, in my opinion, is that the author is so down to earth and relatable.  Many of the stories he tells are about everyday occurrences, to which we all relate.  He spends a bit of time talking about his life in Pittsburgh, a very down to earth, working class city.  However, when he talks about his life in  Los Angeles, a city that screams glamour and pretense, he still has that same down to earth quality.  

When reading many of the anecdotes, I literally could see them play out in my mind, because the author paints such a vivid picture.  See if you can imagine a comic bombing on stage and throwing cookies at the audience without laughing.  But besides the vivid storytelling and unconcealed funniness in the situations themselves, there were also moments of wry, witty, wonderful writing.  Probably my favorite line in the book comes from a story about trivia from the lids of Snapple drinks: "The word facetious contains all the vowels in the English language in the correct order. And sometimes facetiously!".  It is the type of sentence that might fly right by you, but if you stop for a minute to get the joke, it is like someone just reached out and tickled you.  Those little moments of pure genius writing are sprinkled all throughout this book, which is reason enough to read it.

As a read this book (all in one sitting), I was a great many things.  I was smiling, giggling, laughing so hard I was crying.  But most importantly I was happy that I was lucky enough to get to read it.  This book is perfect for anyone who loves to laugh, not only at other people, but at themselves as well.

I received a review copy courtesy of the author in exchange for my honest review.


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