It was a hot humid day and as Deal looked down at the flower covered coffin he could feel the sweat running down his forehead and temples. All the while wishing the minister would hurry and end the service. Deal hates funerals and does everything he can to avoid them including this one, his mother's funeral. Life didn't turn out the way Deal expected. His life is in shambles. Something in his past is deeply embedded in his soul that makes him unable to cope with everyday life. Most people reminisce about a time when they were young, but Deal is obsessed with it. It's his escape from reality. After the funeral at his mother's home he drifts into a deep sleep. It all comes back, all the adventures he and Benny had the year he turned eleven and Benny turned nine, back when life was so much simpler. The story is an amusing account of Deal and Benny's adventures, trials and tribulations filled with plenty of nostalgia to remind the reader about the simple life of the 1950's before the onslaught of technology.

WINNER OF THE 2021 NORTHBOUND BOOK AWARD 'Adam Farrer is a bold new voice in nonfiction writing. His keen observations are as gentle as they are wry, as attentive to the bleak truths of loss and deprivation as they are to the eccentric humour of humans being entirely themselves ... Witty, charming, moving and real.' Jenn Ashworth Before Adam Farrer's family relocated to Withernsea in 1992, he'd never heard of the Holderness coast. The move represented one thing to Adam: a chance to leave the insecurities of early adolescence behind. And he could do that anywhere. What he didn't know was how much he'd grow to love the quirks and people of this faded Yorkshire resort, in spite of its dilapidated attractions and retreating clifftops. While Adam documents the minutiae of small-town life, he lays bare experiences that are universal. His insights on family, friendship, male mental health and suicide are revealed in stories of reinvention, rapacious seagulls, interdimensional werewolves, burlesque dancing pensioners, and his compulsion towards the sea. Cold Fish Soup is an affectionate look at a place and its inhabitants, and the ways in which they can shape and influence someone, especially of an impressionable age. Adam's account explores what it means to love and be shaped by a place that is under threat, and the hope - and hilarity - that can be found in community.

SOON TO BE A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE FROM 20TH CENTURY FOX Two reckless but lovable all-American bros make a strong case for maturing slowly through their outrageous yet enlightening misadventures. My brother and I are looking for wedding dates for our cousin's wedding. We've been told by the bride that bringing dates is "mandatory" so we "won't harass all of my friends all night" and "stay under control." Rather than ask some fringe women in our lives to go and face the inevitable `does this mean he wants to take it to the next level?!' questions, we'd rather bring complete strangers and just figure it out...We're both in our 20s, single, dashingly tall, Anglo-Saxon, respectfully athletic, love to party, completely house trained...love our mother, have seen Love Actually several times...raw, emotional, sensitive, but still bad boys....You should be attractive or our aunts will judge you, but not TOO attractive or one of our uncles might grope you. Dave and Mike Stangle thought nothing of it when they boozily decided to turn to the "activity partners" section of Craigslist to solicit dates to their cousin's wedding. The hilarious, out-of-this-world ad that they came up with-featuring a picture of the two brothers as centaurs-immediately went viral, eventually landing these Wayfarers-wearing, moped-riding, completely reckless but ultimately loveable bros in the annals of the "Internet famous." With the incredible comedic chemistry of Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson in Wedding Crashers and the uncensored honesty of Tucker Max, Mike and Dave insist there's nothing wrong with just seeing where life takes you.

Take a break from the rat race and catch a glimpse of life in Brown County, Illinois. You'll laugh at the crazy antics, and even funnier - these stories are based on actual happenings, but you get to guess which ones are real. Don't underestimate what could really happen if you had a skunk wander into your deer blind, or imagine the insane situation if you were on step number 7 of an 8-step, unbalanced stepladder with a hornet nest in your hands! Now, kick back and enjoy the tails.

Looking through his crystal clear rose colored lenses, Arner examines his boyhood as he searches for the answer to the age old question each of us asks from time to time, "Why am I who I am?" Through his warm, rich, engaging, and humorous style, readers meet and get to know unforgettable characters like The Mastermind, Jerry Yellsalot, and Claude Hopper as they explore and relive hilarious life-altering events told through the eyes of the boy who actually lived them. Hilarious and thought provoking, stories like Fudge? What Fudge?, The Stagecoach, Setting Pins, and Trust Me, This Won't Hurt, lead the reader through the maze we call childhood and the pattern-maker's mold of our teen years through which the die is made and cast that shapes us into the adults we become. Travel back now to a time not so long ago when the world seemed to spin a little slower and life was a lot simpler; a time when dreams were dreamed and adventures were lived and a boy grew into a man.

I've Had Enough Of Being Nice So Here It Is, is a hilarious insight into the things that most people have thought about but are too apprehensive to say. These precious statements, phrases and photos are put together to allow readers to share chuckles, quotes and moments with friends, co-workers, relatives, spouses, but more importantly. themselves. This book is based on true encounters from the author's daily life; the silent yet lovable everyday issues. Above all the goal is pure and simple.. to make people laugh!

Moving from hospitable Atlanta to provocative Las Vegas, Stefany Holmes must find her way in a new town. In this collection of short essays, she details the everyday experiences and landmark explorations as they unfold before her. She occasionally reminisces about the South while embracing her unexpected and newfound life in The Entertainment Capital of the World. Stefany celebrates the differences between two distinct slices of Americana, illustrates relationship dynamics, weaves in painless Vegas history, and muses of other things interesting and irrelevant. Stefany s inspired approach to storytelling blends stream-of-consciousness thoughts with a unique style of observation. Through wry humor and witty candor, she delivers a fresh and spirited tour of Sin City. And whatever else she feels like sharing.

The Cheeky Monkey is written by one of Australia's most accomplished performers and writers of comedy. The book is an analytical study and practitioner's guide to the art and provides useful exercises to aid developing writers' comedy-writing skills. It explores the seven distinct principles that have evolved for sitcom and takes the reader through each stage and how to apply it to their own writing.

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL
This year I am six years old.
My parents are delighted.
Today is my first day of school,
But they're the ones excited
They're dancing around the kitchen,
And I would like to know:
Are they happy school is starting,
Or just glad to see me go?
So begins this collection of witty, whimsical verse that anyone who ever covertly shot a spitball in class will love.
The quirky teachers, bizarre events and embarrassing mishaps of Roby School are all wonderfully captured here with only one purpose in mind: to make children laugh and adults giggle. And they do. Chartier's tidy poems bring back the days when reading poetry was fun.
"My First A," "Toilet Problems," "Mean Mrs. Green" and "Ode to a Substitute" are just some of the poems that trigger universal memories of those odd daily events in an elementary school that sometimes seemed only to have been designed to baffle young, otherwise uncomplicated minds.
Karen Gosselin's line drawings provide a perfect and delightful running narrative of their own for each of the amusing "educational" moments captured so richly here by Chartier in Roby School.
Linda Chartier attended Roby School in Saugus, Massachusetts and these verses are a whimsical sojourn back to that place where students and teachers laughed, played and learned. Ms. Chartier lives in Laconia, New Hampshire, where she teaches karate and skiing and enjoys hiking, biking, kayaking...and, of course, writing.
Karen Gosselin lives in the wilds of New Hampshire where vacationers trample the unwary and moose wrestle cars for fun. When she's not trying to keep her daughter from pushing random buttons on her laptop, she's illustrating games and stories for other small companies. She is now creating an on-line comic with her husband, Tom, titled Chaos Express, on her site Chibikarenstudios.com.

This collection offers an overview of British TV comedies, ranging from the beginnings of sitcoms in the 1950s to the current boom of 'Britcoms'. It provides in-depth analyses of major comedies, systematically addressing their generic properties, filmic history, humour politics and cultural impact.

'Absorbing, funny and oh-so-romantic. I loved every page!'When Lily's husband dies, she moves to the edge of a tiny village, settling into a solitary life, her only real company her brother and his family. A quiet life becomes her safe space, with no risk of getting hurt. When her brother offers her spare room to his oldest friend, Jack, Lily's reluctant - but knowing how much she owes her family, can't say no. A lodger takes some getting used to but to her surprise, Lily begins to enjoy Jack's company. Slowly but surely, Jack encourages Lily to step outside her comfort zone. But taking risks means facing the consequences, and telling people how she really feels, means Lily might have to face losing them. But as the saying goes - you only live once - and being brave could mean Lily gets a second chance at love... 'Read yourself happy' with Maxine Morrey's latest feel-good, unforgettable and utterly uplifting love story, guaranteed to make you smile. Perfect for fans of Mhairi McFarlane and Sophie Kinsella. Praise for Maxine Morrey: 'An uplifting read that stops you in your tracks and makes you wonder "....but what if?" Absorbing, funny and oh-so-romantic, I loved every page!' Rachel Burton 'A super sweet read, guaranteed to warm any winter evening' Samantha Tonge 'A lovely story that kept me turning the pages' Jules Wake 'A stunning, perfect novel - it literally took my breath away.' The Writing Garnet, 5 stars 'A warm hug of a book.' Rachel's Random Reads, 5 stars

"We left our Maine and our United States at home and we journeyed amongst other peoples with courtesy to them and credit to ourselves." That is John Gould's definition of good travelers; and he and his wife are charming examples of this as they tour through Germany, Denmark, Austria, Italy, France, England, and Scotland. You'll discover what a delight it is to travel Gould family style, for that is Maine style with the extra sparkle of Gould's wry Down East humor. It's a friendly book, but Gould lets no country, group, individual, or menu get away with pomposity or an unearned reputation. There is much to discover, both good and bad as the Goulds search for the quality of European life and bring readers into the presence of ordinary, and fascinating, Europeans.