I enjoyed reading this book. I laughed out loud often, even when my stepdad was in the room. And I liked that. The story is told in letters that are sent which relay stories from the small town that are being sent to a friend who wants to write a book. It doesn't have the arching type of plot or plot-line and part of that comes from the fact that this is a little like a creative nonfiction book with a bit more fiction. The one issue I had with the novel was that it just sort of ends at random. All of a sudden it's over and I wish there was a paragraph or so that felt more like a conclusion.

Still, I liked the book, overall. The voice, the little stories, and the humor were very enjoyable. I definitely recommend this book for people who have lived in small towns, especially in the west, though I bet others will enjoy reading it too. ( )

The epistolary format is a good fit for this folksy tale. The anecdotes seem a bit too folksy in parts and seem to be condescending to the small town people’s ignorance or gullibility (e.g., Columbia University in New York as the source of drugs; sex-starved and naïf Reverend Sycamore).

The book ended rather abruptly, without any indication of it being Fred’s last letter to Amelia. There was no closing to the last letter or any summation. The book ended just as did the episodic chapters and sections.

The author incorporated humor throughout the book.

The chapters focusing on the small towns camaraderie or banding together were strongest (“Waving,” “Gus,” “Speed Demons”).

Sex: None
Violence: None
Language: None ( )