Book Review: Fun In the Garage on a Rainy Day

I am happy to share with you my review of a great new book for families and children (of all ages).

It is with great pleasure that I heartily recommend to any boy or girl—or to the parents of any boy or girl—the newly re-released book by Dr. Seymour Shrack, Fun In the Garage on a Rainy Day (©2011 Posthumous Press, Posternack, NJ, $24.99).

Shrack, long known for his long-winded speeches and his prolific scientific pontifications in numerous national medical and scientific journals, with this publication has managed to tame his usual sophisticated, academic and elaborate language and speak very effectively in the vernacular of children and tweens.

Children will thrill at the twenty "tricks," as he calls them (I say they are really more like “treats”) that Shrack describes in a down-to-earth manner.  For instance, he shows how to soften a wishbone so that it is impossible to break for the purpose of deciding who will be lucky.  Just imagine the fun that could lead to at Thanksgiving!  Other tricks describe how to create invisible ink (and how to make it visible again), how to make a cat's fur stand up on end (with no harm to the cat, of course), how to make gravel float (on water or in the air!), plus many more.

Shrack's little gem of a book will be the perfect antidote for those times when youngsters say they are bored, or when their parents are fed up with them playing video games or otherwise being glued to the computer.  Each trick is safe, uses no dangerous chemicals or matches, and can easily be preformed using common household items.

This reviewer especially appreciated the practical nature of the tricks Shrack describes.  Even though it is aimed at children, adults will find at least one trick which they, too, will want to try.  I found this particular trick to be very intriguing:  Shrack has devised a simple and effective way to pull an April Fools Day trick on a whole group of people; one trick, many victims.  You will want to get your own copy of the book to learn the trick.  But, here is a hint: it involves writing an article based on fictional characters gleaned from an episode of The Andy Griffith Show.  Perhaps you can already imagine how much fun that might be!

So be sure to look for your own copy of Dr. Shrack's book, Fun In the Garage on a Rainy Day, available at all the finest booksellers, as well as online book sources.  Looking for it is half the fun, and you will be glad you did, and so will your children.

This review is © 2011, James A. Harris