Bachelor Brothers' Bedside Companion is third in a series. Bill Richardson might have quit at two. I found it dull and cerebral and largely lacking in the pleasure of the first and to some extent the second. These books are written on a premise that is sheer genius. They focus on twin brothers who operate a B&B in British Columbia. This eclectic collection of stories, poetry and falderal are variously written as though, by host, guest, or neighbor. Some are gathered from the wind, while others, from a plethora of books cluttering the shelves of the Inn.
While the format enabled Richardson free rein as to the content collected between the covers (an enviable opportunity to publish everything he ever wrote); the books successively lost my interest as his stuff became ever more distant from my imagination. There is one exception. Hector: In Came the Lady with the Alligator Purse may well be Richardson's finest piece, or rather masterpiece. This is Bill Richardson (not to be confused with the Governor of New Mexico) at his very best! I'll keep the book if for no other reason; well, that and to possess the whole set.
Hector and Virgil are great, enjoyable characters, as are Mrs. Rochester the parrot, Altona, the girl friend, Caedmon the hired hand and several others. And there's the rub. This volume largely abandoned the characters for other obscure and dusty detritus. You'll love the first book, like the second and if you're like me, tolerate the third, with the afore mentioned exception which, standing alone, may just be worth the price of the volume.
This one gets two stars.
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