4In You Can't Make This Stuff Up, William M. Scovell writes, "Somehow, we all get through it and land somewhere." These stories find the mischievous and clever protagonist and a cast of colorful characters entangled in the web of life's perplexing dilemmas, against the nostalgic backdrop of 20th and 21st century Americana. We all know this character. His fortune never changes as he meanders through grade school, his trials in college, trying to one-up the Rolls Royce salesman, panning for gold in Colorado and coping with his IRS audit. Infused with humor and Steinbeck-inspired wanderlust, these stories explore cherished friendships and purpose and depict day-to-day moments in Pee Wee baseball, Yankee reunions, small-town kids hitting the Big Apple, and his commentaries on the state of the world. Although he adeptly weasels through this medley of muddles with a positive outlook, God only knows how he survived. Must say something about the human condition. The stories provide a spoonful of sweet comic relief and an immediate off-ramp from life's stresses as these whimsical tales draw readers along on the stirring adventures of that cute neighbor kid, we all knew had no future. Let's dig in and have some fun!