Chicken Soup for the Soul: Well That Was Funny - Amy Newmark - ★★★★.½

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EDITOR: Amy Newmark

GENRE: Real-Life Anecdotes, Humour.
SERIES: Chicken Soup for the Soul - Standalone book.
RATING: 4.5 stars.

In a Nutshell: Exactly as the title and blurb promise. Feel-good stories that make you laugh—sometimes with others and sometimes at others—without guilt. Add in some excellent quotes and you have a lovely family-friendly package.


You might surely have heard of the Chicken Soup series. The latest addition to the plethora of ‘Chicken Soup’ titles is this amazing collection. The book follows the traditional Chicken Soup format of collecting real-life anecdotes by theme, and interspersing them with suitable quotes. The theme this time is the misadventures and mishaps of everyday life.

As one of the quotes in the book says, “Life literally abounds in comedy if you just look around you.” (credit: Mel Brooks.) You have surely gone through at least a few embarrassing incidents and regrettable life choices. Maybe you can laugh at the cringe-worthy memories today, but while actually going through the incident, you must have wanted the earth to open and swallow you up whole. Well, this book will tell you that you aren’t alone.

This collection brings together plenty of anecdotes contributed by Chicken Soup readers, with every tale highlighting some truly embarrassing or funny moment in the life of the narrator. The stories range from animal/pet adventures to spousal struggles to pranks gone wrong to festive mishaps. Some made me feel sorry for the narrators, but most made me laugh. A few were so painful while being funny that I even felt guilty at laughing, though admittedly, the guilt didn’t stop me from chuckling hard. Only a few left me feeling meh.

Laughing at yourself is the best medicine, and that is the spirit inculcated by most of these writers. If ever you want a feel-good anecdotal collection, this would be perfect. Before every anecdote is a quote. Most quotes were excellent!

Definitely recommended. The number of excellent stories far outnumbers the average ones, and thus this would make for a perfect humorous and relaxing addition to your library.

4.5 stars based on my overall enjoyment of the book.

My thanks to Simon & Schuster and Edelweiss+ for the DRC of “Chicken Soup for the Soul: Well That Was Funny: 101 Feel Good Stories”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

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