When Wally Prichard receives a diary for his ninth birthday, he has no idea what a valued confidante and adviser his diary will become, as it chronicles his increasingly bizarre journey through life. Wally's mind runs rampant with non-stop imagination, perverse wit and escalating madness, taking the reader to oft-times unbelievable reality. Born in the small town of Lark, Iowa in the mid forties, Wally has it made. Orphaned in his teens he inherits more money than he will ever need, with all the time in the world to follow his heart's desire: doing nothing. Watching the tube, journalizing and giving in to every instant gratification he can lay his hands on, Wally leads a meaningless existence, filled with endless excess and fantasy. The town's perception of Wally as a lazy good ole boy with money is only partially correct. Lazy? Absolutely! Money? You Bet. But Good? You'd better check with Gil Joy, Iris Skiddaul, Otto Pertz, Raymond Burr and the others about that.
*****5 star review/Excellent
January 30, 2019
"It was an excellent book with an amazing ending. It kept me interested all the way to the end. Give it a try." CW
Five stars. A fun romp with absurdist situations, memorable characters with very clever names. Totally enjoyable.
January 8, 2018
*****When you figure it out, surprise.
Nice read. Dark humor and terminology./Christine Tracey
August 29, 2019
Great read - a tribute to the eccentric South. Wallace takes you along on his journeys, introducing the many colorful characters in his family, friends, and community. Flawed people, doing what they do...7/9/17
Hilarious. Wonderful wit and laugh out loud dark comedy. Reading this on Kindle was the best part of my day. Great twisted sense of humor throughout with inventive puns hiding all through.
April 24, 2018
I enjoyed this crazy ride. Ron Hellard has a knack for creating characters that feel familiar and at the same time seem strange as well as wonderful. What a fun read.
January 3, 2018
DEAR JO depicts the unraveling of the mind of Wally Prichard from childhood through his crazy (literally!) adulthood and all the interesting and odd characters he meets along the way. You won't be able to put it down as he pulls you through his weird thoughts and actions, some things real life and others leave the reader wondering if it is all delusions, all from the pages of his life-long journal that he named JO. I hope we see more books from Ron Hellard in the future.
July 3, 2017
Buy & read...you will be glad you did! You won't want to put this book down....more twists & turns makes this an exceptional read!!!
June 5, 2017
DEAR JO is first-rate fiction: sometimes serious, sometimes seriously dark comedy, and full of surprises. The author's keen and unique sense of humor is a consistent part of the narrative. A delightful read that is really, pardon the clche, hard to put down.
October 2017
Amazing. Mindbendlingly creative trip from Post WW11 to a very dark place indeed! Great writing, great characters, great fun to read!
April 7, 2018
What a fun book! I enjoyed the absurd way the story kept taking care of problems that arose. Ha! Maybe like some of our darker fantasies. I also liked the names of the characters.
October 16/ 2017
Wow. "Dear Jo" has so many clever turns of phrase...in such an odd yet familiar world...and geez, there are just a few hundred surprises!
March 4, 2018
Will recommend. Blew through this book with a bloodlust for more. Wally's depraved confessions to JO personify our own suppressed, self-serving wickedness. He's not exactly an antihero, but I did find myself sympathizing with this devil.
March 20, 2018
Lewd, creepy, funny, with one of the most interesting characters I've ever come across. Ron Hellard has threaded a needle here, and I couldn't put it down.
July 27, 2017
Eccentric & brilliant. What a journey! Fine writing and a story like no other.
December 24. 2017
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John Sexton:" Awesome book! A must read for everyone!"/August 25, 2018
Larry Shaw: "I got the book on Saturday morning and am almost finished reading it, but I don't want it to end. This is the most riveting and entertaining fiction I've read in years. Thanks, Ron Hellard for a most exhilarating ride through someone else's madness."
January 4, 2018
Sharon Peters "I read my copy! 2 days (20 hrs)! Reviews are right can't put it down! good read! Not what I expected! really enjoyed!"
June 19, 2018
"Ron Hellard is my dear longtime friend, one the funniest people in the world, writer of hit songs (such as 'I'm No Stranger To The Rain') and he has now written one hell of a book. It's in the form of a diary kept by a very strange dude. Dark comedy, but often very hilarious dark comedy. And sometimes serious. Like most first-rate fiction, it's full of surprises."
BOBBY BRADDOCK/Hall Of Fame Songwriter/Producer/Author
September 23, 2017
Gwyn Moores/GKS Creative: "As a book designer, I read a LOT of manuscripts. DEAR JO is one my top 10....fantastic story and great writing!" 7/20/17
New Review 9/5/18
"This book is warped! (and I LIKE warped!) Aptly described as a dark adult comedy (the prudish, squeamish or humorless need not apply!), I loved the Where's Waldo style hide and seek puns and absurd lol plotlines. You've got to read this to believe it!"
Lauren Braddock-Havey
THE BEST DARK HUMOR JOURNAL JULY 2019
Based on the analysis of 538 reviews.
#1Top Choice
#1 Best Value
Read Reviews and Compare - Dear Jo: Excerpts From The Bizarre Journals Of Wallace Dean Prichard 1954-1987
By RON HELLARD
www.amazon.com/author/ronhellardnashville
The Best Dark Humor Journal August 2018 DEAR JO: EXCERPTS FROM THE BIZARRE JOURNALS OF WALLACE DEAN PRICHARD 1954-1957By Ron HellardRank #1 Top Choice/Best ValueThe best dark humor journal. Compare the products, read the reviews, find the top rated, best value and most popular products.
DEAR JO: EXCERPTS FROM THE BIZARRE JOURNALS OF WALLACE DEAN PRICHARD 1954-1987
A novel novel by RON HELLARD
#1 Top Choice/#1 Best Value April - October 2018
THE BEST DARK HUMOR JOURNAL by ReviewTap
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