“Many mordant one-liners . . . Scheft is a skillful writer who can find laughs in unlikely situations.”
—Janet Maslin, The New York Times

“I have lived this story in real life, though mine wasn't nearly as funny, poignant, or compelling as his. On the other hand, I believe I'm much better looking than the fellow in this book and could probably take him in a fight.”
—Larry David

“A wincingly funny, honest, and sardonic novel.”
—Booklist

“How rare it is for a novel to be both hilarious and profoundly moving. In Everything Hurts Bill Scheft is firing on all eight rumbling, throaty cylinders.”
—Richard Russo

“Like [Woody] Allen, Scheft seems to know his way around the psychiatrist’s couch; he has a keen sense of the emotional pathways of depression and of how therapy awkwardly leads people into and out of their worst experiences. . . . Scheft’s rendering of family dysfunction is consistently sturdy. Much like Phil’s fictitious self-help book: meant as a gag, but with enough smarts to be taken seriously.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“Letterman writer Scheft skewers physical and emotional pain with a mercilessly comic touch and a bit of poignancy. . . . Phil is a wonderful protagonist, and Scheft’s biting wit coexists nicely with the undercurrent of uplift.”
—Publishers Weekly

“[Bill Scheft] plays both ends against the middle, satirizing our glib and cynical pop culture in a glib and cynical novel. Phil grows on us despite himself.”
—Amanda Heller, The Boston Globe

“The writing is swift and breezy but with an underlying message that deals with guilt and pain. Because it's a novel, it’s more sit-down comedy than stand-up. . . . Sometimes you laugh only when it hurts.”
—Charles Lee Boyd, The Post and Courier (Charleston, SC)

“A painfully funny novel.”
—The Daily Beast

“Pain is king and laughter is his fool. . . . The book achieves a subtle poignancy.”
—Chicago Sun-Times

“A hysterical journey of self-discovery. . . . Falling-down funny.”
—Kurt Rabin, The Free Lance-Star (Fredricksburg, Va.)

“A stylistic cross between Don Rickles and Michael Chabon.”
—Ben Kaplan, The National Post (Canada)

“Satisfying as it is quirky . . . Scheft knows how to create characters which stay in your head long after you finish the book.”
—ArmchairInterviews.com