Who doesn’t love a good (nearly) mad scientist?

I picked up this book because of Pajiba but in a somewhat circuitous fashion – the story about Faleena Hopkins trademarking the word “cocky” included a link to Marc Whipple’s blog, Legal Inspiration. The sidebar on his blog includes a blurb about the fact that he also writes books with a link to his Amazon writer’s page, so I took a look. His blog post was very informative and since one of his books looked like something I would enjoy I decided to pick it up and kick a few dollars his way.

My Mother Had Me Tested!: Tales of (Nearly) Mad Science was a fun, breezy read that reminded me a great deal of the science fiction short stories I used to devour when I was a girl. The book is quite short – I read it all over a lunch break – but very enjoyable. The first part of the book are stories about Doctor Solomon, a super genius with numerous advanced degrees but marginal interpersonal skills, and his assistant Ted. “A Beautiful… Something” introduces the characters and tells the story of how the two of them came to work together. “Skinny-Fingered” explores Doc’s solution to his frustration over the difficulty he has using a touch-screen with his chubby fingers. “Science-Factional” is only a few pages long but provides a very entertaining payoff. Part two of the book moves away from Doc and Ted with a look at a transdimensional visitor in “Incursion” and an alien visitor in “One Night in Science City.” I was very pleasantly surprised by how much I liked the stories (particularly given that the purchase was such a random impulse buy) and would happily read more from the author in the future if it becomes available.