Smashed, Squashed, Splattered, Chewed, Chunked, and Spewed

Lance Carbuncle
Virtualbookworm.com Publishing (2007)
ISBN 9781602640436
Reviewed by Leslie Granier for Reader Views (12/07)


“Smashed, Squashed, Splattered, Chewed, Chunked, and Spewed” is a rather interesting title for a rather interesting book.  The narrator is a loner who is most content just hanging around with his dog Idgit Galoot.  He is thirty-five years old and still lives with his mother.  As he and his mother prepare to move to Florida, Idgit disappears and they must leave without him (although they do ask a neighborhood kid to keep looking for him).  On the trip to Florida and a subsequent return trip to look for his dog, the narrator partakes in many adventures and encounters several colorful characters.  Basically, anything that could have gone wrong on these trips did.  Trouble with the law, injuries, and freak accidents were common occurrences.
 
The intriguing title of this book piqued my curiosity.  Never in a million years would I (or probably anyone else) have guessed as to what the title is referring.  I'm still not sure how it connects in the grand scheme of things, but it definitely caught my attention.  This book will appeal to males, ranging from teens to middle-aged men.  It contains an abundance of profanity and references to body parts and bodily functions which I found somewhat detracted from the story.  My favorite scenes were the ones in which the narrator's dog and his father appeared to him in his dreams and gave him advice on how to handle the situations he was experiencing.  I found myself laughing out loud at these hilarious interactions.  I also thought it was cute how the dog and the father were reunited in the end.
 
This book is obvious fiction and the author is up front with the readers, not trying to convince anyone the story is real.  The characters are likable but not very realistic.  He also includes many footnotes with “interesting facts.”  Some were interesting, but others seemed to have been thrown in for no apparent reason.  

If you are looking for an easy read that will entertain and provide many laughs, “Smashed, Squashed, Splattered, Chewed, Chunked, and Spewed” is the book for you.  However, those who dislike profanity or are easily offended will most likely have a difficult time with this book.

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