Review: ‘He always gave it his best when it came to home repairs, but my dad was in way over his head.’
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 05 31, 2014
This is a collection of eight short essays reflecting on some of the wryly humorous aspects of life.  ‘A Trip to the hardware store’ is a reminder that those of us without the handyperson gene are not alone.  It’s a reminder, too, that failures can be amusing but costly.  ‘Dinner is served’ shows just how hard it can be to organise a dinner party - organising people is the easy part – but food?  Forget it.‘Gadget Girl’ reminds me of my younger self; a time I really believed that it was essential to own and use task-specific tools.  I may still own some, but they are never going to wear out through over use.My favourite was ‘High Finance’ which involves four sisters working out who owes what to whom and for what.  I’ve seen versions of it played out over bills for groups at the end of meals, but that is usually embarrassing to observe while Barbara Venkataraman’s version is fun to read.The other four essays are: ‘Your account is past due’; Lazy bones’; Where did the time go?’ and ‘Beyond belief’.  Each is funny because it is easy to relate to; each relies on observation and situation for its humorous impact.  There’s neither sex nor violence here.  I believe  this is Ms Venkataraman’s second collection of humorous essays: I’ll look out for the first.I enjoyed Ms Venkataraman’s style: these are perfect essays for reading in those small interstices of time available to each of us as we spend time (in queues and waiting rooms) waiting for the next event in our own lives.Note: I was offered an accepted a copy of these essays for review purposes.Jennifer Cameron-Smith