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Stuntology

You don't have to be bored when the power is out, the cable is disconnected, or the wireless goes down. All you need is the book, The Best of Stuntology, by Sam Bartlett. The stunts range from the silly (eating lettuce like a lizard) to the weird (fatigue-based phobia removal) to the amazing (nail-balancing stunt) to the annoying (plastic wrap over the toilet bowl).

I've only tried a couple of the stunts, but I have read all of them twice. I love his self-taught drawing style, which is perfect for a subject that was self-taught as well.

And indeed, the stunts do work. Years of research went into the making of this book. Clearly, if there's a degree program for stuntology, Sam has earned a Ph.D.

I recommended reading the instructions all the way through before trying them. Personally, I avoided stunts that ended with the following:

"...and then they will want to hit you."

"You might want to check out the mop situation before doing this."

"Run."

No wonder the author's blurb includes the statement that he "has been kicked out of restaurants throughout the United States." Depending on which stunt you are talking about, either these restaurants need to lighten up, or Sam had it coming. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.

Note: This review was done from The Big Book of Stuntology, Stuntology Press, 2007. 97% of these stunts can be found in the Workman Press edition, The Best of Stuntology, which came out this year. Both books are compilations of stunts from his 'zine, The Journal of Tuneology and Stuntology.