Customer Reviews

Stuffed

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

There aren't many books I read where I fear wetting my pants with laughter. STUFFED is one of them.

A worthy follow-up to the cult fave PIPSQUEAK, STUFFED is even crazier, crammed full of moments where I almost hurt myself laughing. It's also a well done mystery, with a great ending.

Searching for the perfect summer beach read? Look no further. Wiprud is a genius.

Manhattan taxidermy collector fortyish Garth Carson is touring New England looking for treasures. He stops in Vermont where he purchases an albino crow that he plans to give to his girlfriend Angie for her birthday. As he leaves the store, a young man wearing a Portland College sweatshirt accosts him claiming the "raven" is his. A few moments later, the younger man Bret Fletcher collapses at Garth's feet. The local constable arrives and reluctantly allows Garth with his New York plates and the stuffed bird to drive away.

Angie thinks the crow is a remarkable one of a kind item though she teases her beau that he only gives her dead things. Not long afterward, Jim Kim enters Garth's taxidermy collectibles store insisting he has friends in the market for an albino crow. Soon others follow with each new player seemingly more dangerous than the previous one, which include the Feds. Garth has no idea what he wrought when he bought this present as this gift is for the birds.

As with PIPSQUEAK, STUFFED is a wild insane thriller starring a white crow in a jar, but kept together by the bewildered Garth who cannot understand why the Feds, thugs, and crazy "collectors" want Angie's birthday present. The story line is amusing and wacky as Garth receives offers from daft souls some of which he delicately better take careful consideration if he refuses them. Brian M. Wiprud provides a terrific thriller STUFFED with the zanies that showcase a likable collector who proves he is no PIPSQUEAK.

Harriet Klausner

Taxidermy collector and businessman Garth Carson has the most foul luck when it comes to buying and selling taxidermy. His girlfriend, Angie, is usually dragged into whatever mess Garth gets himself into.

During a buying tour Garth purchases a white crow under a bell glass for Angie's birthday present. Even before he gets it out of the store and into his car someone is trying to take it from him. When Angie receives it, she instantly loves it. Yet within a VERY short time Angie and Garth are locked in the basement while two thugs steal the white crow.

With Garth's talent for troubling trouble instead of allowing trouble to trouble him, he soon finds himself and Angie running for their lives from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife, a bunch of murderous pygmies, a funeral home director, various "carnies", special agents of all kinds, a crazed Penguin Boy, and (of course) Detective Walker who has wanted to arrest Garth for an extended amount of time now.

***** I did not believe that author Brian Wiprud could possibly do any better than he did with his previous book "Pipsqueak". Thankfully, I have been proven wrong. This novel had me laughing so hard at times that I had to wipe my eyes in order to keep reading. I found myself actually putting several bookmarks in spots just so I could go back later and reread some funnier sections! Now THAT is talent, Readers. So sit back and enjoy the most wacky, humorous, yet serious mystery story of your life. *****

Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.

I thought Brian Wiprud's last book, Pipsqueak, was a riot, and was looking forward to the return of Garth, the crime-solving taxiderist. It was well worth the wait. Wiprud has a unique style in a time when most of the mysteries out there are in a cookie cutter format. His humor is like a tidal wave, almost pushing you over the edge at times. It is a funny, funny book. It is hard enough to find a good mystery, but to find one that is funny to boot was a real pleasure. I highly recommend this book. I've since passed on my copy to two friends, and they loved me for recommending it. I can't wait for the return of Garth!

At last -- a man who is clever and entertaining and can make me laugh. I know I'm not the only one who has a lot of fun with Brian Wiprud....

"Stuffed (Dell, $6.99), by Brian Wiprud, marks the long-awaited (especially by readers and reviewers who like their humorous mysteries clever and artful rather than just zany or wisecracking) return of crime-solving New York taxidermist Garth Carson, whose debut in 2002's "Pipsqueak" was a cause for much pleasure. Carson buys a stuffed white crow from a shop in Vermont as a birthday present for his lady friend, and immediately all kinds of feathered hell breaks loose. When men in masks beat him up and steal his stock, Carson stiffens his spine and sets off into the dark underbelly of the taxidermy world to find out why the crow seems to be worth so much violence." Dick Adler, Chicago Sun Tribune

"Stuffed is a delightfully zany follow-up to Brian M. Wiprud's action-packed debut mystery, Pipsqueak, featuring professional taxidermist Garth Carson and his quest for strange and wonderful collectible stuffed critters...This award-winning new author really knows his taxidermy, from aardvark to zebra, and he has a remarkable flair for comic crime writing as well." Sue Stone, The Barnes & Noble Review

Suspense and Hilarity ... a dynamic duo!

Brian Wiprud's writing style is a bit quirky, but then, that is one of the things I enjoyed most about this book. Take a fairly mild-mannered dealer of Taxidermy named Garth Carson; his jewelry designing girlfriend Angie; Russian handyman Otto; state and federal agents; members of the NYPD; former carnival acts; and a few of Garth's friends and associates ... then shake them all up (but never stir!). Et voila! You get a wonderful book which is full of mysteries, interesting characters, and hilarious scenes which will have you laughing out loud.

All of this keeps you turning the pages in your quest for answers to important questions ... Would Garth lose one of his beloved stuffed penguins to the attack of a live one as had so tragically happened once before? Would Garth ever get Angie's stuffed white crow back? Would we lose Garth to the Pygmies? Would we ever understand anything Otto says?

If you are looking for something entertaining to read, I would recommend this for the mystery; the very light touch of romance; and most of all, the comedy.

Mr. Wiprud has written two other books ("Pipsqueak" and "Sleep with the Fishes"). The first, "Pipsqueak" is his first Garth Carson book; the second is described as a Mafia fishing story. I plan on buying both and hopefully laughing as much as I did with, "Stuffed". Thanks for the fun Mr. Wiprud.

"Wiprud's imagination runs wild here, and he skillfully brings the reader along as the plot moves more
and more out into left field. His protagonist's frequent and eccentric musings about everything from the joy of cheap moose
heads to the pain of parking signs add to the lighthearted tone" Publishers Weekly, April 2005

"STUFFED is a wild insane thriller ...Brian M. Wiprud provides a terrific thriller STUFFED with the zanies that showcase
a likable collector who proves he is no PIPSQUEAK." Harriet Klausner, BookReview.com

"This novel had me laughing so hard at times that I had to wipe my eyes in order to keep reading. I found myself actually putting several bookmarks in spots just so I could go back later and reread some funnier sections! Now THAT is talent, Readers. So sit back and enjoy the most wacky, humorous, yet serious mystery story of your life." Detra Fitch, Huntress Reviews

"This is a very different book, part caper, part comedy and part mystery, it makes a welcome change from conventional crime-fiction novels and indicates that Wiprud is an important talent in the genre. Recommended to those who like zany caper novels." Ali Karim, January Magazine

"STUFFED is an incredibly funny and adventurous story that pits the ordinary against the bizarre. Wiprud has created such an array of quirky characters that they give the word bizarre a brand new meaning. This book is hard to put down until you know why everyone's feathers are so ruffled by the white crow in the bell jar. A great read!" Jory Reedy, Fresh Fiction

"Garth, Angie and their sidekick, Otto, are the funniest, freshest characters youšll meet between the pages of a book.
If you like a little nuttiness and a fast-paced story, donšt miss this one." Lorraine Gelly, Romantic Times

"To call this novel hilarious would be a gross understatement. "Manic" might actually be closer to the truth. There are scenes in this book that will bust your proverbial gut. Along with their mad Russian factotum, a dwarf named Otto, Garth and Angie are two of the most loveable characters you are likely to encounter anywhere. Reading Stuffed is just about as much fun as you can have and still keep it legal. No lie. Bag a copy of this baby when it comes out. You won't regret it." The Mean Streets, May 2005

Garth is getting tired, which makes sense since the author seems to be feeling the same way.

Nothing new here, which is a disappointment.

No bite in the humor any longer, nothing to keep you wanting more, nothing to make you feel like you can't wait for the next installment.

Not awful, but not worth the read, either.

This is fun, fun stuff. Written in a Sam Spade style with Monty Python characters, this novel is a blast to read. The action is nicely paced, and the characters are great. It gets pretty weird, a fact that you fully appreciate when trying to explain it to somebody else. There are lots of inside jokes, but you don't have to get them to enjoy the book. Highly recommend.

Ok...i am CLUELESS as to what SOME of you reviewers are reading, but Brian Wiprud is AMAZING! The last time i laughed this hard over any book, (other than his "other" Garth Carson series) was when i read Laurie Notaro! How can you not appreciate this humor?! Maybe you have to be intelligent, over 30 and geez, have a sense of HUMOR! i, as a general rule, read anything Ancient History/Warfare, so these are a real "treat"...i WANT to be either "Entertained" or learn something when i read, and i read a book a day, so do not sell me short! These are simply a terrific "read" and Mr. Wiprud is GENIUS! i loved them all and hope he gets a chance to write many more and i do hope they will be available in CD so my Mom can enjoy them! If you want something fun, clever and UNIQUE in a mystery, Brian is the GUY!