What Would Erma Do?: Confessions of a First Time Humor Columnist

by Gayle Carline

One humor writer's entrance into the world of newspaper columns, and how she juggled being a wife, mother, and full-time exaggerator.

Genres: Humor, Nonfiction

246 pages, Paperback

First published December 18, 2010

About the author

Gayle (G.S.) Carline has been an artist, a software engineer, and an author, mostly because she believes in reincarnation while you're still alive to learn a lesson or two. She loves to write mysteries, fantasies, and humor--and sometimes all together.
Currently, she lives in sunny southern California with her husband and a sassy Corgi. She also has a son and two horses, all of whom she enjoys even if they don't live with her.

Reviews

[Gayle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I laughed out loud when I read this book - oh, wait, I'm the author. Well, I laughed out loud while I was writing it, although I wasn't always laughing when the events I wrote about were happening!

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute collection of the best of Ms. Carline's weekly column combined with the background story (as she remembers it!). The story of Marcus and only one pair of underwear was priceless! Oh, why did she even ask?? There are some things a mom just doesn't want to know!!

Personal favorites: Adventures with SlugBoy; Stupidity for Dummies! and Canine Leakage.

Her rendition of Jingle Bells also begged to be sung aloud.

Oh, and your friend from the grocery store...she moved here. I met her while in line near the fish counter.

*This book was provided free through the Goodreads First Reads program with the expectation of an honest review. My opinions are my own.

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yay!! Thank you GoodReads for this book. I'm really excited to get it.

I received my book very quickly and read it just as quickly. I enjoy these types of books, a slice of life thing. This is a fun read and I'm now following Gayle's blog.

Plus, I was pleasantly surprised to find my book autographed. I don't remember if the giveaway said it would be but I love getting them signed. :-)

[Sue-Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved her writings! Hope she puts out another book soon.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I laughed so many times reading this book - it was a great view of life. I could relate to so many of the incidents that were described, they could happen, or do happen, to anyone.

[Joy Pixley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a light, fun read with a lot of heart. The book starts with some background and then presents the author's first two years of newspaper columns, in approximate chronological order, it seems. They strike me as the perfect small-town humor columns. You don't have to live in a small town, or have grown up reading Erma Bombeck, to like this book, but that certainly gave me great context for relating to these columns, and to Carline's life.

Carline's writing gets noticeably better and funnier over the course of those years, and she reveals more of her personality and life, making the humor even more endearing. She's just so positive, I had to smile along! I really liked how she also included "backstage" stories about how she got started, her early experiences working as a writer for the newspaper, and what it's like for her family to be exposed in public like that. As someone who'd like to get my own work published someday, I appreciated the vicarious thrill of Carline first running into someone who knew her from her writing, and of reading those first letters to the editor praising her work. I also found it amusing to compare what Carline titled the column with the title the editor had made up for it and published it under. (Let's just say it's clear why the editor wasn't writing a humor column.) Aimed for the middle aged to older crowd – and yes, it would be perfect for your mother or grandmother, especially if she lives in a small town.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

When it comes to humor, I'm a hard sell. I live with 2 people who believe they are comedians (my husband and my 12 year old son). I am constantly told so many jokes and quips throughout a day - I tend to stop taking them seriously at all (sorry guys!). I'd hate to know how many eye rolls I produce in a single 24 hour period. Hey...I've come a long way. I used to be so up tight I couldn't watch a Lucy rerun because her antics made me sad for her! How I ended up with my slapstick hubby...who knows?? I guess opposites attract??

So - now that I've made clear what a stick in the mud I am - I can emphasize how truly funny Gayle Carline must be to have had me laughing my a- off. Actually, the beginning of the book was sort of blah - but as this was an account of the first two years of her column - you can definitely see her work change as her confidence and experience grows. By the end I was reading the column out loud to my husband (I LOVE it when I find my own something funny to share - it doesn't come natural so I take it where I find it!). He thought she was funny too. We especially liked the story about Betty.

I have a few more of Gayle Carline's books loaded on my kindle and I will for sure go back to her writing looking for some more fun! If that was just the beginning and she gets better all the time...I can't wait to see what is in store in her next works.

[Li · Rating 2 out of 5]

Gayle Carline shares columns from her first two years with the paper and offers commentary in between some of them. Although it was a nice read, it was simply that and no more. I think I chuckled twice. I did not like that her original column titles were changed by the editor. I did appreciate her obvious love for family and animals, however. Keeping with MY rating system rather than GR's, I'd give this 2 1/2 stars.

[Kathryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

very funny to read. found bits to read to my hubby, and laughed out loud several times, had to quit reading at bedtime, as the laughing was keeping my hubby awake. :)