OnlineBookClub.org

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Something Happened Today" by Paul E. Kotz.]

Have you ever had a day that you just weren't feeling it? Maybe a day that you just didn't feel like "adulting" any more? We've all been there, whether we admit it or not. Something Happened Today might be just the pick-me-up you're looking for.

Paul E. Kotz has filled this book with lessons he has learned, humorous incidents, apropos sayings and cute stories. The book is about 100 pages split into 8 sections. It's perfect for those days when you're in a hurry as you can pick one short story or saying to read from the most appropriate section. Or it is easy to read all at once.

One of my favorite stories was entitled Let the Light Emerge. The author was trying to start a fire in the fire pit in his yard. He was doing all the proper things but not having any success. His wife, who was of course a girl scout, comes along and uses gentleness to fan the flame. He applies this to our lives in the following way. "If only someone would send a gentle breeze our way, instead of blowing too hard and extinguishing our flame--we might actually burn brighter, and be subjugated to darkness less."

The author has much to share with his audience and does so in a Chicken Soup for the Soul format. This collection helped me to remember to seize the day, to set boundaries and to always pay it forward. The mood was lighthearted and fun while still communicating important truths about life.

However, the sheer number of punctuation errors in this one made my head spin. There were run-on sentences left and right. Commas were missing between two independent clauses and inserted where they didn't belong. In addition, there were a few incorrect words here and there. All in all, it was a bit distracting to the message the author was trying to convey. For example: "Sometimes, a metal ball bearing, or machine part hidden in the grass blades; or those pesky sticks, which generally fell from one of our trees., would cause the mower blades to sputter." A good proofreader or editor would be invaluable in this instance.

Overall, I think many would enjoy the wisdom contained in Something Happened Today. Even so, the lack of editing leaves me rating this book 3 out of 4 stars. If you enjoyed the Chicken Soup for the Soul series, this would definitely be right up your alley. While a bit shorter in nature, the personality of the author shines through, making this one rise to the top.

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Something Happened Today
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I am not a fan of the self-help genre but this one seems like a truly resourceful book. Pity that it contains so many punctuation errors. Thanks for the review!

Sounds like a good option. Pity about the grammatical errors tho, but hopefully the wisdom shines through. A convenient book, I think, for when I’m commuting or short of time...and we can all use a bit of self-help now and then! Thanks.

I think I would go for this one despite the editorial issues. I liked the concept behind the book, and the pieces of wisdom it conveys. Thanks for the wonderful review.

One of my favorite stories was entitled Let the Light Emerge. The author was trying to start a fire in the fire pit in his yard. He was doing all the proper things but not having any success. His wife, who was of course a girl scout, comes along and uses gentleness to fan the flame. He applies this to our lives in the following way. "If only someone would send a gentle breeze our way, instead of blowing too hard and extinguishing our flame--we might actually burn brighter, and be subjugated to darkness less."

I really love this! As a task-oriented person, I can really relate to being frustrated by the type of day when nothing feels "done." I'm adding this one to my reading list. Thanks for the recommendation and great review!

Sounds like a book that I could benefit from right now. Thanks for the review.

Debjani Ghosh wrote: ↑25 Sep 2018, 01:30 I am not a fan of the self-help genre but this one seems like a truly resourceful book. Pity that it contains so many punctuation errors. Thanks for the review!

Yes. Normally I can bypass punctuation errors pretty easily. Nevertheless, this one got on my nerves. Thanks for your comments.

sonya01 wrote: ↑25 Sep 2018, 02:16 Sounds like a good option. Pity about the grammatical errors tho, but hopefully the wisdom shines through. A convenient book, I think, for when I’m commuting or short of time...and we can all use a bit of self-help now and then! Thanks.

Absolutely! There's a lot of wisdom to be gleaned from others if we are willing to listen.

Ruba Abu Ali wrote: ↑25 Sep 2018, 03:25 I think I would go for this one despite the editorial issues. I liked the concept behind the book, and the pieces of wisdom it conveys. Thanks for the wonderful review.

You just have to be willing to overlook a few (or several) run-on sentences and misplaced commas. It's worth it, though. Thanks.

Cecilia_L wrote: ↑25 Sep 2018, 06:20

One of my favorite stories was entitled Let the Light Emerge. The author was trying to start a fire in the fire pit in his yard. He was doing all the proper things but not having any success. His wife, who was of course a girl scout, comes along and uses gentleness to fan the flame. He applies this to our lives in the following way. "If only someone would send a gentle breeze our way, instead of blowing too hard and extinguishing our flame--we might actually burn brighter, and be subjugated to darkness less."

I really love this! As a task-oriented person, I can really relate to being frustrated by the type of day when nothing feels "done." I'm adding this one to my reading list. Thanks for the recommendation and great review!

Definitely! That story really spoke to me. I hope you enjoy.

AmySmiles wrote: ↑25 Sep 2018, 07:10 Sounds like a book that I could benefit from right now. Thanks for the review.

We could all use a bit of a boost from time to time. Thanks

I love how the author's wife was a girl scout, so of course she came along and fixed is problem. Girl power! Gosh, I haven't read a Chicken Soup for the Soul book in a long time, but I used to really enjoy them. I think this is exactly the kind of book I need to put on my nightstand and read a bit of to let go of the stress of each day. So disappointing about the errors though. They seem to be a bit too extensive to overlook easily.

kfwilson6 wrote: ↑25 Sep 2018, 09:34 I love how the author's wife was a girl scout, so of course she came along and fixed is problem. Girl power! Gosh, I haven't read a Chicken Soup for the Soul book in a long time, but I used to really enjoy them. I think this is exactly the kind of book I need to put on my nightstand and read a bit of to let go of the stress of each day. So disappointing about the errors though. They seem to be a bit too extensive to overlook easily.

That would be perfect for this book! It would be great for your nightstand to read a couple of stories before bedtime. Sadly, the errors were a bit excessive. Perhaps the author will have it edited.

Because of its brevity, I'm likely to pick this book up as a holiday read, particularly if I'm travelling alone and hence needing the 'pick me up'.

I would hope by the time I came to read the book that the author had sorted the errors as that would cause too much distraction for me.

You had me at 'don't feel like adulting'. That's my general persona This seems like a solid read - as always, pity about the errors. We all need to be reminded to seize the day every now and again