Review: LIFE OBSERVED: REALITY MEETS FICTION by Margo Candela

Who said a wife is obligated to have a passionate opinion regarding bedroom drapes? What do you say to a friend when you can't stand her husband? When is okay to encourage a friend to lie to her new boyfriend? Where is the line between being friendly and flirting? How do you prove to your parents that you really are an adult?

The who, what, where, why and how about friends, family, marriage and life in Los Angeles slightly fictionalized to protect the innocent, the not so innocent.






Reviewed by: Bela
Rating: 4 stars

Review: Funny and smart—two things Margo Candela once again delivers in this collection of short stories, anecdotes, and essays. Reading more like blog entries, like something out of a diary, I was still enthralled by the quirky bluntness of Candela’s “life observations.” She basically says the loud part quiet and the quiet part loud.

My favorite anecdote came from “Baby Steps: When Friends Ask Uncomfortable Questions.” In this one, Candela’s friend is uncomfortably walking on egg shells around a baby some co-worker brought in, and she asks if she should have a baby. Knowing her friend, Candela suggests having a plant or a pet first. Then her friend comes back saying, “If I do pop one out, I'll never bring it to work…I don't need to force people to tell me my kid is the cutest thing they've ever seen. Most babies are ugly or at least real weird looking.” [Life Observed: reality meets fiction. SugarMissile, LLC. Kindle Edition.] Not being a baby person myself, I totally agreed.

One question that stuck out at me was: Where does Margo meet these people? Even though I know “the characters’ names have been changed to protect the innocent and not-so-innocent,” as it says on the back cover, they are still based on people she knows. It seems to be that her life has a soap opera revolving around it, which makes for some pretty addicting reads.

Once again, I will keep an eye out for the newest release from Ms. Margo Candela.