After reading Mr. Halpern’s first book, Sh*t My Dad Says, I was excited for the chance to visit again with my (now) favorite neurotic. His first memoir, detailing some of the things his dad has said was one the most hilarious books I read in 2010 and is one of the funniest books I have ever read. His father, a retired Oncologist, has a unique, honest, unvarnished opinion about whatever the subject at hand and the author has done very well in reporting some of those opinions. In this edition, the author seeks his father’s in put regarding his plans to ask his girlfriend to marry him. His father’s suggestion, take a day to consider “what he had learned about (himself), and about women up to that point in (his) life” (p. 9) and then decide what he wants to do.What follows is part memoir, part love story and all humorous. The structure of the book is similar to the first. Mr. Halpern recalls his relationships to the female gender beginning in elementary school. His father’s influence, observations and commentary regarding this process is profane, profound, without rancor, straightforward and, as he is not intending to be humorous, makes his statements riotously funny. The book is actually a genuinely sincere account of the author’s search for the core of himself and his being ready for the commitment of marriage. There is much with which the average person to connect in this book. Mr. Halpern does not hide his eccentricities, foibles, neuroses nor does he seek to make any effort to make himself look like anything but the person he is. His father’s unconditional love for the author, shown in his father’s repeated confrontation of the author’s peculiarities while fully accepting that his son is okay as he is, gives “Justin” the safety to completely accept himself. The freedom of being so transparent can only be found in complete acceptance, even if the transparencies reveal a textbook case of Self-Doubt.This book is NOT for those of: youthful eyes, sensitivity to harsh language or anyone who cannot see humor in the absurdity of life. It is a book easily read but not one to rush through. Anyone reading this book will want to allow plenty of time for hearty laughter and to ponder at what, exactly, is being said while being so funny. The book is not meant to deliver “a message,” by the time I reached the end, however, I was left feeling I had learned something of importance.Now, the wait begins for his next book begins; I expect this one to be when his first child arrives. Now THAT will be a read of extraordinary significance.
