Customer Reviews

The Sterling Huck Letters

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I learned of this book from Bill DeMain of Swan Dive at one of their performances. Unbeknownst to me, Bill has had a very active "other life" penning witty letters to companies under the pen name of Sterling Huck. One page into this most unique book and I was on the floor laughing uncontrollably. Sterling Huck leads us through a vast array of letters that he penned to various corporations and famous personalities. Although his letters are total gems of creative genius, much of the hilarity comes from the responses he receives in return. This book is a great read and one that you'll be telling all your friends about.

I've collected many of the prank letter books over the years, including The Lazlo Letters and Letters From A Nut, but I think this is my favorite. The combination of politeness, surreal humor and convincing detail make Huck's letters not only laugh out loud funny, but compelling to read. Also, the photos are a hoot. My favorite letter: he writes to a fancy health spa, tells them he's a ventriloquist, and that he'd like to visit with his dummy, Little Sir Pitney (who is girl crazy). This is the perfect gift book.

This is a great book to take along on a long flight, or keep next to the can. The letters are outlandish, yet somehow believable, and you'll be laughing long after you put the book down. My favorite was his offer to The Seattle Mariners to work at their games as a "roving barber," shaving the fans in the stands.

... but a little goes a long way. This is not for a prolonged read, but rather, for the bathroom, or somewhere else where you are only going to read a page or two at a time. His letters TO companies, corporations, resorts, etc., are funny. But how many bizarre made-up stories can one read, at a time?

I haven't read all the prank letter collections out there, but from what I've seen I think that Sterling Huck's brand is a cut above. In general, his efforts tend to be brilliantly subtle, impressively creative, and often refreshingly innocuous as well (most of the recipients can be seen as playmates rather than victims). His voice is a compelling -- and varied -- one, and he always fleshes out his correspondence with the extra little details and digressions that make the absurd worlds he creates surprisingly plausible and vivid.