The title of C.J. Carew’s book (LIFE STANDS EXPLAINED: The Simple Fun Book That’s All About You — and Why Something Like Nothing is Everything!) reflects its general style and tone: light, irreverent, and self-consciously grandiose. Best categorized as a work of humor and satire, LIFE STANDS EXPLAINED’s thesis has three pillars Carew refers to as “the Big Three Rules": "You have to like simple fun," "you can’t be a complete wee-wee," and "you have to be open to being more open."
Carew returns to the theme of fun (or “play,” as in a child’s penchant for playing) throughout. The third part of the book is in fact a play consisting of an extended dialogue between two characters. One is “the anthropomorphic manifestation of the creative intelligence of the universe” and acts as an omniscient psychiatrist to the other, who talks about his experiences and asks a lot of questions about life. Although it's well-written and amusing, some will balk at its length: it occupies 100 of the book’s 280 pages.
The two foregoing sections are a little more straightforward, though still eccentric. Carew writes in an unconventional voice that blends serious inquiry with a flippant tone and (one might say excessive) wordplay. Here is a representative example: "These invariably serious people hold the invariably serious view that serious matters should be considered seriously, and then seriously addressed with additional seriousness." At times it’s difficult to tell whether Carew is presenting a real argument or simply being a wag, as in this passage: "Perhaps that’s why the English word ‘logic’ is based on the Greek word, ‘logo.’ Which we, then, called ‘symbol.’ Which looks and sounds like ‘simple.’ The simple logic of it is hard to ignore."
Maybe that (the inability to distinguish earnest reasoning from mere jest) is part of the point of LIFE STANDS EXPLAINED, but it’s sure to polarize readers. On the other hand, Carew is certainly well-read and deeply concerned about his chosen topics. He inserts abundant references to support his ideas—from scientists and serious novelists to Dr. Seuss and gimmicky movies—all with a view to being as engaging and accessible as possible.
In writing LIFE STANDS EXPLAINED: The Simple Fun Book That’s All About You — and Why Something Like Nothing is Everything!, C.J. Carew has managed to take a bunch of overused notions and present them in ways that are original and entertaining.
~ Michael Howard for IndieReader