Hometown Humor, U.S.A. (review)

Abstract

Book Reviews Loyal Jones and Billy Edd Wheeler, eds. Hometown Humor, U.S.A. Little Rock: August House, 1991. 220 pages. Hardback. $19.95. Trade paperback . $9.95. Loyal Jones and Billy Edd Wheeler have done it again. They have compiled another delightful collection of stories to help us enjoy one of the greatest gifts we have ever been given, the gift of laughter. It is my opinion that if you can read Hometown Humor, U.S.A. and then honesdy say that you did not enjoy it immensely, you may be one of a small group known as the humor impaired. If this is the case, maybe you should seek professional care. However, if you are like the rest of us who are suffering from the stress and strain brought on by a rapidly changing and uncertain world, then I recommend several doses of Hometown Humor, U.S.A. I especially enjoyed the book because it took me back home to my roots. It took me back to a time when I was growing up at the edge of the Appalachian Mountains. It was a time before television (with very little radio), but we had great entertainment. My family and I, and usually a few neighbors, would sit around the fireplace after supper and engage in the wonderful art of storytelling. The stories we told were very much like the ones that Loyal and Billy Edd have gathered for us in their book. So when I started reading it my mind went back to a simpler time when the world moved a little slower. Hometown Humor, U.S.A. is not a joke book, it is a book of funny stories which are filled with grains of truth. It has been said that humor is just another way of getting at the truth. Well, that is the case with many of the stories in this book. For example, consider the following story from the collection. A city fellow was conversing with a farmer and asked him what time he went to work each morning. The farmer replied, "I don't go to work. I just get up and I'm surrounded by it." Having grown up on a farm, I not only saw the humor in the farmer's reply, but I knew it was the truth. Being a former schoolteacher, I also related to the following line that comes from a section of the book labeled "Church Bloopers." The "eighth graders" will be presenting Shakespeare's 'Hamlet' in the church basement on Friday at 7 p.m. The congregation is invited to attend this tragedy. Any schoolteacher who does not see both the humor and truth in that line should spend more time in the classroom. 62 Along with the stories that give us both a chuckle and a deeper meaning there are those designed solely for the purpose of providing a relaxing belly laugh. One in that category is: A fellow goes to the doctor on behalf of his grandmother back a long time ago and says, "We're worried about Granny's smoking. We know she's ninety and all, but we want her to last a long time. She just smokes all the time." The doctor says, "Well, she's lived this long. I wouldn't worry about it." The fellow says, "Yeah, but she inhales." The doctor says, "Well, lots of people do." The fellow says, "Yeah, but Granny, she don't exhale." These are samples of the humor and meaning that fill the book. The material is laid out well and the stories are categorized with titles for each group that will arouse your curiosity. Two of them are "I'd Hate to Feel This Bad and Then Find Out Pm Well" and "A Shotgun, a Big Plott Hound, and A Pair of Handcuffs." With titles like these, you know you are in for some laughs. As you are about to finish the book and the laughter is subsiding, you will come upon some good reasons why you should have read Hometown Humor, U.S.A. in the first place. These reasons are included in speeches given by Dr. John Combs and Dr...