By Ian Rice, Arts and Lifestyle Editor

Kevin Smith has had a very unique career in the world of film. Since his 1994 cinematic debut “Clerks,” a low-budget black-and-white feature concerning a day in the life of convenience store staff members, the writer/director has received a puzzling mix of positive and negative reviews for each successive release. There are those who love Smith’s work and those that hate it. Never have each extreme been so equally and drastically represented on such a consistent basis. His sophomore effort, 1995’s “Mallrats,” was critically lambasted yet has become a gigantic cult hit since its release on home video. His 1997 reel concerning gay and lesbian issues, “Chasing Amy,” garnered both negative GLAAD attention for using stereotypical depictions of the aformentioned groups and positive homo- and heterosexual attention for containing very powerful and heartfelt messages. The list goes on from here, each time with the same result: Smith is one of the most loved and most hated filmmakers of all-time…simultaneously.

Many naysayers point to Smith’s writing abilities as their major cause for complaint. In “Clerks,” they said nothing happened. In “Mallrats,” they said he was too low-brow. In his most recent effort, they said he was too preachy. All of these statements are untrue, of course (with the possible exception of “Mallrats,” which was low-brow but intentionally). Smith is one of the most intriguing writers of the last twenty-five years, crafting spiky dialogue around a slue of realistic, touching, heartwarming and amazing situations. And while his debut book, “Silent Bob Speaks,” is written in prose as opposed to his usual screenplay format, it provides a clear example of said talent with the written word.

“Silent Bob Speaks” is a collection of Smith’s columns for an assortment of print and online publications, beginning circa 1997 and carrying through the present. Their subject matter runs the gammut, touching on pop culture, his native New Jersey, comic books and their fans, the trials and tribulations of making a motion picture and the ups-and-downs of being a loving father and husband. Each are brutally honest, sarcastically on-point and thoroughly hilarious. It is a writer’s dream to be this on the money with every piece and by the end of the book, one is left craving more.

What are the satisfying aspects to reading this book? Well, the list is endless. A few of the highlights include Smith’s recap of his experiences with the apparently self-important Reese Witherspoon (who he dubs “Greasy Reese Witherspoon”), his experiences using a fat-blocking drug with disastrously hilarious side effects, interviews with both Ben Affleck and Tom Cruise and a devastatingly funny recap of his experience at a San Diego comic book convention (which is quite possibly one of the most brilliant pieces of humor ever committed to paper). Each of these stories possess something that few writers seem to be able to master these days: honesty and hilarity.

The best aspect of Smith’s writing is that he fully realizes the luck and proper timing that accompanied his sheer talent in getting him into the spotlight. While most who experience celebrity and notoriety allow it to go straight to their heads as if they had invented the cure for the world’s most life-threatening disease, Smith is sure to note time and time again that he considers himself lucky to be where he is. The truth is that while he may be lucky to have captured a piece of the world’s heart for so long, we are much luckier to have him around. With more writing like that included in “Silent Bob Speaks,” Smith is certain to be a success for many, many years to come.