Review: The Way I Heard It

The Way I Heard It by Mike Rowe
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

If you remember radio voice Paul Harvey, you probably recall one of his radio shows called “The Rest of the Story”. In this show’s episodes, Harvey told a story with one aspect, usually the main actor, described in some vague way. About half way through his story, he laid out “The Rest of the Story” and spilled the beans on just who or what he was talking about. For instance, he might start a story about a fellow named Archie who worked in the circus, and in the end you find out Archie was actually Cary Grant. Well, in Mike Rowe’s “The Way I Heard It”, Rowe writes a number of these identical types of stories, even crediting Paul Harvey for the concept. What Rowe adds is a bit of personal autobiography in between each story. Sometimes these snippets are tied to the main stories, sometimes not so much. Rowe has had a twisty path through the entertainment industry. I found his life story quite interesting, unexpectedly so given his travails in television shopping networks and hosting shows about difficult jobs. Rowe is an entertaining writer, and seems to be a genuine guy.

I had read and enjoyed most of the books that Paul Harvey and his son put out based on “The Rest of the Story”, and because of that Rowe’s book felt very familiar. But while the stories had moments of interest, Rowe’s own stories were fun and well told. I’d easily read more by him. By the way, I listened to this in audiobook format, with Rowe narrating. The author has a very casual and friendly way to tell his stories, and I believe his narration added to the interest I had in the book. Well done.


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