Si-cology 1, by Si Robertson

Uncle Si, his wife Christine, and his daughter Mrs. Cobern.

I must be one of the last remaining Americans never to have seen the show Duck Dynasty.  Last year my son came home from school one day to report excitedly that Uncle Si was at his school, I had to seek further explanation.  Turns out Uncle Si is one of the stars of the hit TV show, and his daughter was one of my son's teachers.  Now that the Robertsons have firmly ensconced themselves at such a prominent place in popular culture, I decided to read Uncle Si's book and find out what he's all about.

So I learned that Uncle Si is a funny guy who tells good stories, which, apparently, why he is so popular on the show.  Would his life story merit publication, were it not for a reality show about a family business which makes duck calls?  Not likely.  He tells some entertaining tales from his childhood and his time in Vietnam, and he has plenty of pithy sayings and throw away lines.  I enjoyed his good-old-boy tone, and was amused by his take on the truthfulness of the tall-sounding tales he tells: "At my age, a few of the details are cloudy, but I'll recollect the coming stories as best I can.  Hey, just remember it isn't a lie if you think it's true!"

Duck Dynasty fans will want to read Uncle Si's wit and wisdom in Si-Cology 1.  But general readers will want to take this book for what it is: a celebrity book published to capitalize on a TV show's incredible success.  I will say this: if I ever find myself, for whatever reason, stuck in a duck blind, it would be much more enjoyable with Uncle Si along.

Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!