Title: Bedtime Stories for Grown-Ups
Author: Andrew Joyce
Genre: Fiction, Adventure, Short Stories
Book Blurb:
Bedtime Stories for Grown-Ups is a jumble of genres—seven hundred pages of fiction and non-fiction … some stories included against the author’s better judgment. If he had known that one day they’d be published, he might not have been as honest when describing his past. Here is a tome of true stories about the author’s criminal and misspent youth, historical accounts of the United States when She was young, and tales of imagination encompassing every conceivable variety—all presented as though the author is sitting next to you at a bar and you’re buying the drinks as long as he keeps coming up with captivating stories to hold your interest.
Comprised of 218,000 words, you’ll have plenty to read for the foreseeable future. This is a book to have on your night table, to sample a story each night before extinguishing the lights and drifting off to a restful sleep.
Mr. Joyce sincerely hopes that you will enjoy his stories because, as he has stated, “It took a lot of living to come up with the material for some of them.”
Andrew Joyce is the recipient of the 2013 Editor’s Choice Award for Best Western for his novel, Redemption: The Further Adventures of Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer.
His book Yellow Hair was awarded Book of the Year by Just Reviews and Best Historical Fiction of 2016 by Colleen’s Book Reviews.
My Review:
This is quite the compilation of stories. It is a fascinating read from start to finish. If you could highlight certain passages and flip between them it would be ideal as a passing read. I give this monumental effort 4.5 stars.
Not every story appeals to me and I assume not every story would appeal to every reader. With only one exception, every story is incredibly well written and there are parts of this book that are true gems. Having enjoyed other works by this author, it is fun to see the framework of some of those in older works by the author. The work done on Gold Rush activity and Old West lawmen might lead to a good series.
Highly recommend every single Danny The Dog story. The hitchhiking tales are brilliant too. A book solely about those two subjects would be stellar (hint, hint, Mr. Joyce).
Hot love was incredible. The story of John and Kris maybe my fave in the whole book.
I rarely cite a passage, but the Life Giver story was incredible...I will paraphrase: But when Life Giver explains he is Life Giver to the Apache, to others he is God, Jehovah, Allah or Krishna...many names...all the same. It is the truth that many will be greatly surprised to learn one day.
The reason this work lost a 1/2 star is the long Joanie story. It was just too disjointed, hard to follow, jumbled and confusing. I cannot fault it too much as it is likely just a very early bit of work but it pales compared to the rest of the book.
I recommend this book to everyone. Please keep in mind that this is often Very Grimm Fairy Tales rather than bedtime stories but they will give you a lot to think about.
My Rating: 4.5 stars
Buy it now:
Amazon US http://amzn.to/2BmokDT
Barnes and Noble https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/bedtime-stories-for-grown-ups-andrew-joyce/1127140837?ean=2940154563922
Author Biography:
Andrew Joyce left high school at seventeen to hitchhike throughout the US, Canada, and Mexico. He wouldn’t return from his journey until years later when he decided to become a writer. Joyce has written five books. His books have won awards and become best-sellers on Amazon. He now lives aboard a boat in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, with his dog, Danny, where he is busy working on his next book, tentatively entitled, Mahoney: An American Story.
Social Media Links:
Website http://andrewjoyce76.com/
Goodreads Author Page https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7242284.Andrew_Joyce
Reviewed by: Mr. N