All Over Albany

Johnny Virgil at the Book House

Local humorist Johnny Virgil will be reading from his book The Snitch, Houdini and Me: Humorous Tales of Death-defying Childhood Misadventure Wednesday evening at the Book House at Stuyvesant Plaza. "Johnny" writes the blog 15 Minute Lunch -- if you haven't checked it out, you should. A quick recent post: how he helped a neighbor improve their chances of giving away an old recliner.

From the blurbage for The Snitch, Houdini and Me:

Join Johnny on this hilarious and irreverent romp through his childhood as he recounts the stories that made him what he is today - an unimportant cog in a vast, corporate financial services machine. But he wasn't always this way, and this book is proof.

Booby traps, severed deer legs, runaway bulldozers, young love and pilfered beer -- all this and more, brought to life by Johnny's sometimes twisted, sometimes touching but always hilarious tales of suburban childhood. If you have kids of your own, these are the stories you don't want them to read -- unless you enjoy spending countless hours in the emergency room saying things like, "I don't know how he got it stuck in there, just get it out."

Here are a few reviews on Good Reads.

Johnny will be appearing ahead of Saratoga author Glen Feulner, who will be reading from his sci-fi book Worlds Without End. As Johnny notes: "I honestly know nothing about [Glen's book] since he hasn't given me a copy yet. ... To be fair, I don't think he's read my book yet either, so this gig has the potential to be sort of like Jimmy Buffett opening for SlipKnot."

The reading starts at 7 pm.