Review: That Bear Ate My Pants! by Tony James Slater

That Bear Ate My Pants! is an entertaining coming of age story involving more wild things of the non-partying variety than those that drink beer.

After some introspection admitting his acting abilities weren't the best and examining his options, Tony decided that a trip to Ecuador as a volunteer at the Santa Martha Animal Rescue Center was in order. At any given time, the rescue center is home to a variety of animals from monkeys, parrots, tortoises, big cats, to the bear that ate his pants and more. And according to Tony most of them seemed to want a piece of him, including the plant life.

The coming of age part involves the motivation that the ranch owner used on Tony on multiple occasions. When he wanted Tony to do something that he was reluctant to do, he asked him, "Are you a man?" And Tony would find himself doing whatever it was, no matter how absurdly dangerous he thought it was. And the funny thing is, by the end of his time at Santa Martha, after doing all these manly things and from some of his other experiences, he might find that he had indeed become more mature.

Honestly there is a lot more to it than that. His descriptions of their activities on and off the ranch are humorous for the most part and at the same time fascinating. He also makes a good case for learning more Spanish before a trip like that to Ecuador. There is a definite language barrier that he has to fight.

You need to read the book for the humor, the adventure and for the gems of characters such as Lady, Machita, Jimmy, and Toby. I gave this book 4 out of 5 stars for making me laugh out loud on more than one occasion.

Epic Kindle Giveaway Melted the Internet

This was part of the Epic Kindle Giveaway promotion that the authors did. As of now, they are in the process of contacting the winners. They had so many reposts and entries that facebook decided that some of the links were spam and not for real. They were for real. 

I downloaded some of the books. Currently I'm reading Drummer Boy by Scott Nicholson. Spooky and good so far. I love that Sharyn McCrumb wrote about his writing: “Scott Nicholson explores the dark legends of the southern end of the Appalachian mountain chain, a nightmare country that ends in Stephen King’s yard.”

Review: Don't Shoot Me in the Ass and Other Stories by Michael Stephen Fuchs

Don't Shoot Me in the Ass and Other Stories by Michael Stephen Fuchs is a hit selection of short stories. There are 10 tales in the collection varied from action/adventure to humor to philosophical and emotional. He shows that he can write diversely and do it well.

When I picked up the book, I was afraid that it would be simply a wise cracking collection. To my surprise it opened with a what if action/adventure story based on the idea of rioting immigrants in response to the passing of the newer immigration laws. It's quite believable, yet told with liberal dashes of humor. As to what happens, no spoilers here. You'll have to read it for yourself.

Other examples of stories include high tech corporate espionage, hijacking airplanes, a relationship tale in a corporate setting, and still there's more.

I gave this book 4 out of 5 stars. I read it in about 3 sittings. I hated to see it end!

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased opinion. This is a Kindle edition.