A Bedtime Companion: An Anthology of Humorous Americana [Paperback]

Robert E. Bell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1, 2001

The book is a collection of quotations and cartoons that Mr. Bell has saved over the past sixty years or so added to anecdotes of eccentric and interesting characters that Mr. Bell has known, some from his childhood on an Ohio farm, some from his career as an engineer in several states in the Eastern United States.

The writing style in the anecdotes is reminiscent of Garrison Keillor's stories of "Norwegian bachelor farmers" in his fictional community of Lake Wobegon, Minnesota. Mr. Bell has the same gentle type of humor, the type that makes the reader smile and enjoy the stories rather than laughing out loud. The cartoons likewise are mostly colloquial humor rather than the slapstick type of cartoons one sees so often.

The book is a mixture of items in no particular order and is ideal for reading on a train or airplane where one's concentration is broken so frequently and reading material that requires deep thought is not suitable. This is material that is amusing and sometimes inspiring, but requires no great effort to assimilate. It makes a great gift book, one you can read first and then give away.

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About the Author

Robert Bell first retired in 1982 after a long career as a professional engineer and pursued a second career as a free-lance technical writer. In 2000 he retired a second time intending to travel, relax, walk the dogs, read, do crossword puzzles, and just generally loaf. His wife of half a century said, "And what are your plans for the next day?"

From early years, Mr. Bell has collected cartoons, amusing and interesting anecdotes, almost anything that caught his fancy. To amuse himself and save money on Christmas gifts, Mr. Bell prepared several booklets of these items to give to friends and relatives.

At the urging of friends, Mr. Bell then compiled the items into one book. So much for retirement.

Over the past fifty years, Mr. Bell and his wife Martha have reared two sons and two daughters to responsible and independent adulthood and the whole group is still friendly with each other. During that time the Bells have lived in several different parts of the Eastern United States and have been in their present address near Richmond, Virginia for over twenty-five years.

Product Details

• Paperback: 334 pages
• Publisher: Penrith Publications (December 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 097105195X
• ISBN-13: 978-0971051959
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,294,177 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)