Customer Reviews

My Ten Years in a Quandary and How They Grew

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4 star:		(1)
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I have an old Penguin paperback which I constantly carry in my purse. Benchley has been my lunch companion on numerous occasions, and he never fails to please. One of the greatest humorists America has ever produced, in the same league with Mark Twain and James Thurber.

This book offers an array of emotions and feelings in a quirky little package. From the first time I picked up this book from the spare bedroom at my grandparents' old home, I knew I'd found a rare jem of a book. As my brother told me I was "a monster of a girl," a kept reading and reading until Sherman, the fiend of the Sea, chased me to the lake. These are the kind of feelings that this book brings out in people. From its terse discussion on the history of Budapest, to its harsh realization that there really were more than two composers named "Mozart," I believe all will find this an enjoyable experience!

I recall this book from our cottage forty years ago and still have it. These are wonderful flights of wit and fancy from one of the great humorous writers. I've read many of these essays and stories dozens of times now and they never grow stale. How McGregor lost a locomotive on the way home, fur-bearing trout, and the dangers of bass singing are just a few of the topics covered.

This is fun at its best! It is a pity that Benchley is not read more widely. This book takes us to extremes : it is crazy and "farfelu". You cannot get tired of it.

I love Benchley's irony and quirky humor, the non sequiturs. This is my favorite of all the collections, and I guess I like MacGregor the best.