The following review was contributed by: TAMMY COOK

Caught Dead & Other Catastrophes is a collection of 25 anecdotal essays by T.G. Browning. The book could be classified somewhere along the lines of ""warped memoirs."" Discussing topics as variable as high school sports, home ownership, car ""maintenance,"" and getting lost while driving, Browning's essays are very readable because many of his incidents will sound rather familiar to most readers.

In addition, the book is full of invaluable lessons, such as the following comment made about his wife; ""Irritated as she was, if she had something to say, I'd better be able to paraphrase what she said if I wanted to sleep in safety over the next week."" Excellent marital advice for all ages.

Full of irony, exaggeration, and wit, even the most off-the-wall stories had that unmistakeable ring of ironic reality to them. For instance, Browning's hysterical description of how his wife committed acts of eco-terrorism in order to regain control of their yard (after deciding that Astroturfing the yard would just be too much of a financial burden).

Browning recommends James Thurber's work in his foreword, and fans of My Life and Hard Times will definitely see some influence on Browning's writing. A couple of the essays had a weak beginning, making it a bit hard to set the story initially. Yet overall, the essays were quite funny, interesting, and more credible than I care to admit. (Except I only wish I had ditched my over-large luggage on the streets in some foreign country and bought new, more manageable suitcases.)

Lovers of memoirs will likely get a kick out of Browning's collection. One final note of advice - if you ever meet author T.G. Browning, and he should offer you some corn curls - decline.