If you loved David Sedaris' "Squirrel Seeking Chipmunk", then you'll feel right at home with "Sad Monsters: Growling on the Outside, Crying on the Inside" by Frank Lesser.
Who knew that monsters had so many problems? Well, besides Bugs Bunny when he gave that manicure to the big red monster in Looney Tunes. Apparently the monster's name is Gossamer...
"Sad Monsters" is a collection of short stories ranging from Godzilla's existential crisis, "tried to self medicate by eating a pharmaceutical factory" and "stacked all of the buildings in Los Angeles on top of each other, but before I could destroy it, I was filled with overwhelming ennui"; to the section on Unsuccessful Monsters. Our favorite- the Merewolf (half vicious wolf, half fish) and the Creature from the Mixed-Race Lagoon (he gets snubbed from the White and Black Lagoon).
Other sections of note?
Bigfoot's letter about illegals from Narnia and across the border (chupacabra) who are stealing valuable sightings from his kind. The witch who is trying to keep he kids on a steady diet of kale before eating them instead of stuffing them with cookies. There's more than your fair share of passive aggressive ghosts, goblins and poltergeists. And then there's the section about unicorn nuzzling, which feels like, "taking a bubble bath full of giggling puppies".
There are some stories that don't work quite as well; "Gremlin Owner's Manual", "Some Gorgons Have All the Luck" and "Kids Say the Darnedest Things" come to mind. These don't work mainly because you can figure out the punch line just by reading the title. Overall, Lesser's book is a good read, especially for those already familiar with the horror genre.
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