false 73967 2 <p> The author of <i>Population: 485</i> returns, delivering a truckload of humor, heart, and . . . gardening tips? Think <i>Zen</i> and the <i>Art of Motorcycle Maintenance</i>, complete with stock cars, sexy vegetables, and a laugh track. </p> <p> "All I wanted to do was fix my old pickup truck," says Michael Perry. "That, and plant my garden. Then I met this woman. . . ." <i>Truck: A Love Story</i> recounts a year in which Perry struggles to grow his own food ("Seed catalogs are responsible for more unfulfilled fantasies than Enron and Penthouse combined"), live peaceably with his neighbors (one test-fires his black powder rifle in the alley; another's best Sunday shirt reads 100 PERCENT WHUP-ASS), and sort out his love life. But along the way, he sets his hair on fire, is attacked by wild turkeys, takes a date to the fire department chicken dinner, and proposes marriage to a woman in New Orleans. As with <i>Population: 485</i>, much of the spirit of <i>Truck: A Love Story</i> may be found in the characters Perry meets: a one-eyed land surveyor, a paraplegic biker who rigs a sidecar so that his quadriplegic pal can ride along, a bartender who refuses to sell light beer, an enchanting woman who never existed, and half the staff of National Public Radio. </p> <p> By turns hilarious and heartfelt, a tale that begins on a pile of sheep manure, detours to the Whitney Museum of American Art, and returns to the deer-hunting swamps of northern Wisconsin, <i>Truck: A Love Story</i> becomes a testament to the surprising and unintended consequences of love. 1006 </p> 71564 17 10 2006 Truck: A Love Story total:517|5:138|4:227|3:117|2:30|1:5| 517 2014 844 162 5 2 false false Thu Nov 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Tue Jan 08 12:58:58 -0800 2008 Tue Jan 08 13:15:11 -0800 2008 I enjoyed Perry's self-depreciating wit and felt as though he found the story of a year in his life cathartic to pen. It seemed very personal and I appreciated his willingness to not only expose his faults and challenges, but to show c...more...]]> 4 1 false false Sat Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Fri Mar 21 12:28:35 -0700 2008 Sat Mar 22 05:08:56 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 1 false false Tue Jul 29 12:55:18 -0700 2008 Mon Aug 04 13:46:48 -0700 2008
His original plan was to write a "year in the life" story about his two greatest loves -- gardening ("Seed catalogs are responsible for more unfulfilled fantasies than Enron and Penthouse c...more...]]> 5 0 false false Fri Jan 23 16:40:44 -0800 2009 Fri Jan 23 16:48:50 -0800 2009 more...]]> 5 1 false false Tue Apr 24 04:55:36 -0700 2007 Thu Apr 26 05:04:56 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 1 false false Fri Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Tue Feb 05 05:40:40 -0800 2008 Fri Feb 08 23:17:57 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Jun 30 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Jun 15 05:47:49 -0700 2009 Wed Jul 01 00:18:58 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sat Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Wed Jan 14 09:18:14 -0800 2009 Wed Jan 14 09:21:49 -0800 2009
And through it all, there's "the...more...]]> 3 1 false false Sun Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Mon Dec 29 10:39:38 -0800 2008 Fri Mar 06 20:39:16 -0800 2009 5 1 false false Fri Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sat Apr 12 12:42:19 -0700 2008 Thu Apr 17 18:10:18 -0700 2008 4 1 false false Mon Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Sat Dec 22 20:48:32 -0800 2007 Sat Dec 22 21:54:00 -0800 2007 5 1 false false Sat Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Mon Dec 31 08:21:29 -0800 2007 Mon Dec 31 08:38:23 -0800 2007 4 0 false false Wed Aug 05 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Aug 05 19:28:21 -0700 2009 Wed Aug 05 19:36:46 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Thu Jan 29 10:54:32 -0800 2009 Thu Jan 29 10:58:48 -0800 2009 more...]]> 5 1 false false Sat Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Tue Apr 29 08:06:54 -0700 2008 Tue Apr 29 08:07:29 -0700 2008 ]]> 5 1 false false Thu Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Wed Sep 19 18:01:22 -0700 2007 Wed Sep 19 18:29:40 -0700 2007 5 0 false false Sat Jul 11 16:15:37 -0700 2009 Sat Jul 11 16:23:17 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Tue Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon May 18 19:54:28 -0700 2009 Fri May 22 10:55:02 -0700 2009
His humor is prompted by the day to ...more...]]> 0 0 false false Fri Jul 17 18:32:58 -0700 2009 Sat Jul 18 21:11:41 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed Sep 10 07:59:44 -0700 2008 Fri Sep 19 11:17:06 -0700 2008 more...]]>