Could Have Been Worse: True Stories, Embellishments, and Outright Lies

In her introduction to "Could Have Been Worse: True Stories, Embellishments, and Outright Lies," Rebecca Rule writes, "Some people collect stamps or buttons or coins...I collect stories and make no bones about it." In her book, she shares her humorous, sometimes touching, and always interesting stories. She wrote, "Yankee is an attitude," and you get a taste of exactly what she means in the story, "Perley Gets A Dump Sticker: A Harrowing Tale." From the names she chooses for her characters, you get a feel of what they are like. Perley is not having the easiest day. He needs to get to the dump but his "new" truck that he got from a friend's falling-down woodshed doesn't have a dump sticker. Person after person gives him a hard time, each one more of a stickler than the last. You'll laugh out loud at the conclusion of Perley's harrowing tale. Another one of my favorite stories was "Thief." You learn so much about the characters that you feel you know them. Bunny could be the lady that lives diagonally across the street from you. Poor Bunny was innocently shopping, headfirst in a bin of fuzzy slippers looking for the perfect pair for little Beany, when a brazen thief wearing a pink sweatshirt with a glittery Santa on it, steals Bunny's pocketbook. So much action ensues that it is hard to believe that the story is only nine pages long. Once you start this book, you're not going to want to put it down. Whether you're from California or Canada, you'll be transported to down-home New England while reading Rule's stories.