Meet Michael Snyder: Talented Author, Funny Guy, International Olive-Pitting Champion, and oh yes, My Nephew

...well, most everything in the title above is true.

Yes, we have a published author in my family. Michael is married to Alicia, the oldest of my six favorite nieces, and he doesn't know it, but I liked him before I ever met him. Fran and I happened to visit Alicia right after she started dating Michael and I could tell by the look on her face when she talked about him that he was someone very special.

Shortly after he became part of our family, he gave Ellen, the youngest of my six favorite nieces, a drawing, that if we had thought about it, would have been a tip-off of things to come. Somehow, this little 3/4 inch X 1 1/2 inch drawing came into my mother's possession, and I am able to show it to you here because my mother doesn’t throw anything away. Case in point: she still has taped on an index card half of a sewing needle that came out of my foot years after it went in. But, enough about me. Back to Michael’s drawing.

At first glance, you might think that the little man is holding a piece of paper behind his back. No. That white box is actually a cut-out, which is very important because, you see, if you take your index finger and bend it down at the second knuckle and strategically place it behind the picture, it will appear that the little man's little draaars have fallen down to reveal the little man's little bottom. (Now you can see how the addition of Michael to our family gave us the sophistication we so desperately craved.)

So, fourteen years and four children later, when he is not working his regular job, being a devoted family man and fixing things around the house, Michael writes (and drinks a lot of coffee).

His second book, Return Policy, published by Zondervan, was just released a couple months ago. I really liked his first book, My Name is Russell Fink, but I really, really enjoyed this new one. Michael's writing is wonderfully funny and I find myself resisting the urge to highlight some of his observations, memorize them and then drop these witticisms into conversation at appropriate times to impress friends and acquaintances.

















"Once a year my senile aunt tries to kill me." - That's how Return Policy begins. Over the course of the novel we are introduced to three main characters, Willy, Ozena, and Shah, whose narratives and complicated lives intertwine before too long. I won't tell you much more except to say that early in the story we find Willy trying every which way (and without success) to destroy his espresso machine.

I have to admit, I don't read a lot of Christian fiction, mainly because I find much of it predictable and preachy. But Michael's writing is edgy, and filled with humor and compassion. He tackles tough issues and causes me to examine my own life and charity toward others. I would classify the genre as contemporarily quirky, or quirkily contemporary. Hey, Michael, if you are reading this, what do you think?

At Amazon you can read some great reviews by folks who do a much better job expressing my sentiments about Michael's writing.

In a few days I will post an interview with Michael that I think you will enjoy. Perhaps you would like to know that I will be giving a signed copy of Return Policy to one lucky person. But more about that next time. Thanks for stopping by!