This is not an awful book but it is a mercifully short one.
There was a time when getting a book published required jumping through an awful lot of hoops. You had to impress editors and publishers and then wait to get all your feedback from those individuals who wanted you to change things. On one hand, it was a very heartbreaking system but on the other, it made you work harder to be a better author. The digital age has bought about a fundamental shift in this model and now, it seems, it is a lot easier to get your work published if you have a small modicum of talent and some cash to pay your printers.
Laura LeBrun’s book is a case in point. It is a series of memories about what a screwed up life she has had. There is little to find about this author online (which is, it must be said, incredibly strange) but her biography states that she is “a jack of all trades and a master of none” and that she will work as anything to “pay her by day and be a writer by night” which is probably one of the more astute observations in this book.
LeBrun’s comedy is best described as “appealing to the lowest common denominator”. It involves multiple stories about her bowel habits, her atrocious love life (including one failed marriage), growing up in a Mormon family and the many jobs she has had over her life. Nearly every story she tells involves faecal matter in some form and, given some of the topics she covers, that is no mean feat. She also has a severe case of potty mouth (indeed, one chapter is devoted to her favourite swear words and how to use them effectively).
Comedy is hugely subjective, to be fair, and I am certain that this book will appeal to people who like to laugh at the misfortunes of others or who simply get a kick out of flatulence stories (probably one of the funniest chapters in the book). There is no thread or logic to her stories and most of them feel rushed and blurted out in a random stream of consciousness. This makes for frustrating reading as you barely have time to gather your thoughts or invest in a story before it is over. It is also telling that there are numerous spelling and grammatical errors that have not been caught by the publisher.
That is not to say that there are not some good moments in this. A chapter on her father’s cancer battle is far more sombre than the rest and is a particular highlight that will resonate strongly with those who have lost loved ones to this insidious disease. Some of her anecdotes are also very witty when they hit the mark showing that LeBrun has some enormous potential for storytelling. I am also going to credit her with introducing me to the phrase “douche canoe” which will now be my new description of people I thoroughly detest.
This is not an awful book but it is a mercifully short one (a little over a hundred pages). The bite size chapters may indeed be helpful for readers who do not like their stories too long. Don’t expect too much high thinking and you should find a few laughs in the pages.
Reviewed by Rodney Hrvatin
Twitter: @Wagnerfan74
Published by: Austin Macauley Publishers and available through Amazon Australia
Released: August 2019
RRP: $14.25 paperback, $6.35 eBook
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