Customer Reviews

Romance, Riches, and Restrooms: A Cautionary Tale of Ambitious Dreams and Irritable Bowels

5 star:		(13)
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Bravo to this refreshingly bold and risk taking young new author! Phelan is clearly able to take a subject that so many of us are horrified by and make it not only ok to talk about, but ok to laugh about as well. Through his private, emotional and often hysterical journey we come to realize that often the life we envision for ourselves and the life our bodies have planned can be two very different things! Phelans ability to draw comparisons between everyday situations and places around him with those within him are hilarious, enlightening and often gut-wrenching (literally!). This rookie author has a comedic writing style that is unique and oozes talent! This is a must read for anyone who has ever had to "make a run for it", or knows anyone who has!

I have had IBS since I was 11 years old, and am now 28. I could really relate to this guy's story and could not put the book down. I didn't think anyone else was just like me, as far as strategizing my entire day around bathrooms. I would like to see more memoirs on this topic, and would kind of like to tell my story someday. What an inspiration Tim is to put it all out on the table. As a female in our society, I'm so embarrassed to have these symptoms, and feel so isolated dealing with them daily. Even my boyfriend doesn't want to talk about my issues, and I get little support. Tim was able to convince me to lighten up a bit and be positive when finding new ways to manage. Everyone should read this book!

I've never, ever written a review on any of the thousands of books I've read, but this one I must offer an opinion of. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Tim - your mother must read this review - YOU ARE A FABULOUS WRITER! Screw being an "investment banker." With this book you have made a difference, and a very positive one, in a lot of people's worlds. You've taken a subject that no one, I mean no one, dare talk about, and you have provided an indepth dialogue that is helpful, sidesplitting funny, and insightful. I am sharing this book with a friend tomorrow who has Crohn's Disease, and happens to be blessed with a great sense of humor. Me...well, I've visited more than my share of restrooms throughout the world (including the buses that we share a common resistence to). I read your book in it's entirety today, laughed so hard I cried, and shared with my husband so many ancidotes, that I ended up almost reading your entire book outloud...several times laughing so hard while reading, I couldn't be understood. Like they say, "you have to be there, baby." While we folks out here in the world suffer in complete and utter silence (well...maybe not...if you happen to be lurking near the restroom door...) we wonder and hope about our future and what kind of help we can obtain for IBS or whatever name we figure this problem is. It becomes an obsession, a life-style, and sometimes a frightening prison. Thank you for letting me laugh with you about this weird little world. And, thanks for letting me know that I'm really not alone.Romance, Riches, and Restrooms: A Cautionary Tale of Ambitious Dreams and Irritable Bowels

This book:
1) comforted me by letting me know others struggle with IBS as much as I do (at times I felt like author Tim Phelan was reading my mind);
2) made me laugh out loud;
3) explained my gut-controlled life to my boyfriend in a much more eloquent way that I have ever been able to.

For anyone who suffers from IBS-D, this book is a must read. It doesn't offer any absolute answers to life with IBS, but gives great levity to a very private topic.

After I read this book, I handed it to my boyfriend. While he understands the physical symptoms of IBS (he's a doctor), the author's very personal story offered lots of insight into the mental and emotional anguish IBS can cause. Our relationship has certainly suffered at times from my IBS. I think this book helped us both understand and accept that if I could snap my fingers and get rid of IBS, I would -- but that it just doesn't work that way.

Tim Phelan deserves lots of credit for being brave enough to publicly tell his story, but also for providing some wonderful humor to those who suffer with similar life issues.

Great, fun read!!!! I thought I was the only NUT who would not get on a bus without a toilet...Was truly able to relate...Thanks TP...

What a great book for such an underground topic! IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) affects so many people and yet, no one talks about it. Reasons are obvious - who wants to discuss their poop??? Yet, Mr. Phelan does so with wit, humor, directness, and honesty! I was relieved to discover that the things that are on my mind about IBS, and how that impacts my life, is common amongst sufferers! I'm not alone anymore, and I may not have a cure, or an effective treatment, but I know that there are some things that can help. I felt hopeful after reading this book, and would like my family to read it as well. It is a great book if you need to bring up this topic to family or friends and want them to gain some insight into REAL LIFE IBS, not stuff someone things we made up or make too much of... I'll spare the details of my own life; read Tim's accounting. I've felt like that, Tim, and I am so grateful you shared your struggles, fears, and concerns. A fellow IBS sufferer!

A few years ago I realized that I will never visits the pyramids of Egypt, trek the wilderness of Yellowstone or stride across the Great Wall of China. The reasons? There are a distinct lack of toilets in these areas of the world. For over 40 years my life has been dictated by my tyrannical intestines. Thank you, Tim, for writing about what we IBS sufferers have endured and making us laugh about it.

I read Tim Phelan's book in preparation for his appearance on my podcast Writers in the Sky (iTunes). I felt sorry for this poor guy who couldn't leave home without a bottle of Immodium AD--not that it worked all that well. I laughed with him for sure, but I couldn't help but gain a better understanding of irritable bowel syndrome and those who suffer with it.

During our interview, Tim was witty yet he gave some great information about the symptoms of IBS and how this condition has affected him through the years. Deciding that honesty is the best policy, he's given us his heart and spilled his guts on paper. Loved this book and this author!

Few times does life throw you a curve ball that in the midst of it all you find a gem, such as this very book, that helps you improvise, adapt & overcome. I was diagnosed with Crohn's Disease in the autumn of 2006 and felt no one could understand some of the things I was dealing with. I'd always been a firm believer in "laugter is the best medicine", but nothing proved that very fact as much as when I ran across this book at just a time when I needed to find it the very most. I assure you...you will not regret one single moment you put into reading this book. You can sympathize, you will smile, you will "call shotgun" and ride along with Tim and you will laugh, probably even aloud as I did. I HIGHLY recommend it and have purchased not only the copies for myself (one personal & one as a loaner), but have also purchased copies as gifts for dear friends who also have IBS &/or Crohns. It's a great comfort to know when you struggle with this type of thing you're not alone. It's an even greater comfort to smile & laugh as you deal with it. Great book & looking forward to more adventures by this fantastic & brave author!

Reviewed by Lisa Bullert for Reader Views (3/07)

How far is too far? How much information is too much information? Tim Phelan has certainly broken the "barrier" as far as pushing the envelope -- actually, as far as "pushing," period. Phelan took on the taboo social topic of his irritable bowels and "ran" with it!

"Romance, Riches, and Restrooms" takes the reader on a journey through the author's life full of social and business turmoil. Tim Phelan is an intelligent, educated, civilized young man who apparently chooses not to allow political correctness or social boundaries interfere with sharing his ongoing expedition in finding the solution to calm his irritated bowels. From "building a dam' to a girlfriend's kind concern of his psychological state, to "avalanche blasting," Phelan never gives up. He continues on, knowing that somewhere out there lays an answer, a "solution" to his physical problem that affects his life from every aspect.

As we join Tim on his journey through his life, we learn about what not to do if you have irritable bowels or another treatable condition as well as how a problem can become so large in our heads that it engulfs our entire life and begins to change us, turning us into slaves to our problems instead of people who are able to enjoy day-to-day life.

Tim Phelan's use of words is very colorful, the ability to let you see what is happening (whether you want to or not) is superb. The audience this book is for is definitely limited. If you like satire and were looking for a "bathroom" book, this may be for you; if you are suffering from irritable bowl syndrome and are looking for ways to get out of going to the doctor, this book is not for you. However, if you are a comrade-in-arms of this disease and would like a humorous twist on it, if you need some comic "relief" about the situations you may face daily; this is definitely the book to read.

In this book, "Romance, Riches, and Restrooms" I found myself wondering if I was that gullible. How is it that I could feel such repulsion of the subject as to have kept turning the pages even cheering for this young man in all of his problems? However, there I was page after page, thinking I have to put this down. How revolting, nauseating, pick your own adjective and place it here. You get the point. Yet, I continued to read. I am not sure if I was hoping he would find an answer to his problem or the meaning of life, or the moral of the story, or maybe I was just a "glutton" for punishment. Whatever the reason, I stayed true to the end. The end seemed a long way away and when it came, it seemed like I had been on the journey of a lifetime.

Book received free of charge.