Reviewer Comments:
With the Wisdom of Owls By Max Yoho
ISBN 9780970816054
130 pages at 11.95 paperback
Dancing Goat Press
3013 SW Quail Creek Dr.
Topeka KS 66614
— Review by Laurel Johnson
I'm happy to report that award-winning writer, Max Yoho, is back with a new, humorous literary adventure. With the Wisdom of Owls answers the question that has plagued adult humans for eons: What on earth do babies think?
As Baby Harry is conceived, an owl circles overhead, almost as a harbinger of an unprecedented event. Sure enough, Harry's parents swear he looks exactly like an owl but hope he will grow out of it. What they don't realize is that Harry also thinks like an owl, talks like an owl, and speaks many owl dialects flawlessly. In fact, the owls who visit him daily make more sense to Harry than his parents, grandparents, or the adults who populate his world. The three semi-wise owls who mentor Harry's first year of life are:
- Wyatt, Harry's godfather, a Heath bar loving, homily spouting owl who gets high on reading the book of Isaiah;
- Shy Clayton, a soft spoken owl who finesses his fellow owls and Harry through awkward situations;
- Metcalf, the brains and brawn of the group.
According to Harry, being a human baby is the most boring job in the world. When his owl mentors aren't visiting, Harry entertains himself with the humans around him. He soon discovers that adults aren't completely useless and can even be amusing if properly trained. The adults in Harry's world include:
- Sweetheart, Harry's mother, perhaps the most perfect human who ever lived, the devoted provider of food and comfort. Harry spends most of his waking hours wishing he were back in his warm, quiet Old Home Place – Sweetheart's womb;
- Daddy Dung Beetle, Harry's somewhat befuddled father who is prone to fits of temper and cussing as he shepherds his odd assortment of relatives through life;
- Grandma Area Code 512, a beer swilling Texan and proud of it, who delights in throwing beer bottles and tormenting Daddy Dung Beetle;
- Grandpa Area Code 512, divorced from Grandma and tried to hang himself from a tree shorter than he was, thus giving him the distinction of being the only living suicide victim in Texas;
Thanks to his owl mentors, Harry is smarter than the average baby. He assures readers that the wisdom of discovery can be wonderful but is often cruel. The bane of his young existence is Violet, the evil octopus who teases him telepathically as she busily redecorates the Old Home Place. And one awful day he discovers that the same s.o.b. who circumcised him after birth also removed the stump of his belly button. Harry's first few months of life are full of such discoveries and he generously shares each new tidbit of knowledge with us so we'll understand that a baby's life is not as simple as it seems.
As life wears on, some adults lose their sense of fun and adventure. Financial worries, job stress, and daily trials dull our imagination. Max Yoho has not lost his fun-loving spirit or imagination. Through Harry and his owl mentors, the author takes readers on a humorous journey that reveals, at last, what babies think. Thanks for the laughs, Max!
In Check out Max Yoho's funny book Dalton writes, “The first sentence in the book is, ‘Never let reality limit your life.' And this book stands as a testimony that Max Yoho practices what he preaches. The fun I had reading it proves I have elbowed reality into its proper place in my life."
— Dalton Roberts, Life/Entertainment section, Chattanooga Time Free Press , June 29, 2010.
“Anything Max Yoho writes is worth reading so you must not miss this slim, new volume. Every page offers something unique, humorous and different and, as with Max's other works, the reader will benefi t from reading it more than once.”
— Bill Shaffer, Producer/Director, KTWU-TV, Channel 11
"Kansas author Max Yoho makes a departure from his "usual" book category in With the Wisdom of Owls, creating a warmly funny and entertaining world populated by newborn baby Harry, a few baby girls and, most importantly, owls. Max's trademark creative wordsmithing abounds in his latest novel -- there is no way you can get through it without laughing.
"I loved one line in it so much that I put it on Facebook (but maybe only another writer will appreciate it): ". . . her beauty mark failed in the only thing ever asked of it." Max is brilliant at twisting words and creating images that stay with you.
"Read this book for a little wit, a little wisdom and a lot of fun!"
— Morgan Chilson, Authors' editor, Exactly Write
Richard Brautigan?
Salvador Dali?
The Theater of the Absurd?
Perhaps Samuel Clemens on Acid?
"Nope! It's Topeka’s Max Yoho, storyteller extraordinaire, introducing infant Harry, and his Owl mentor Wyatt. Despite Harry’s desire and best laid plans for return to “The Old Home Place,” life offers other twists and turns. With a cast of quirky, though delightful, characters, most whom we all know from some past life, he is welcomed to the “human,” if not-quite-real world. Harry’s thoughts, observations, and interactions are simply not anchored by reality or the constraints of adulthood. Through his eyes, the reader sees the bizarre and comical conundrums of daily life, and along the way, what it really means to be alive. Not everyone’s cup of tea, but a fast paced, delightful and mostly hilarious (and often hysterical), romp through infancy (or perhaps adulthood with NO ego constraints?). I found this tale hard to put down, but had to do so in order to catch my breath and dry the tears from laughing so hard…customers kept asking me what was wrong with me (Ok, more than they normally do...???) Impeccable timing! Rated PG for infantile (adult) situations and mild profanity. Now available for $11.95"
— Lloyd Zimmer, owner, Lloyd Zimmer Books & Maps,Topeka
