Free boots and mattresses

Amazon reviews, mattress-flippers, millennials, data, and why I've wound up with the same boots five times in a row. Also, 7 other things worth a click.

It's weird being a writer.

Case in point, I have a friend and former colleague named Melissa. She's talented, acclaimed, fun to read, and wrote a big bestseller called The Girl's Guide to Absolutely Everything back in 2006.

But then, she hit a rut. How did she get out of it? By writing an Amazon review, of all things. This one: "Mattress is hard & hot, buy with caution."

It's entertaining, and describes her saga of buying, then testing, then rejecting a mattress from Amazon. As of last night 2,969 people had found it "helpful."

Melissa being Melissa, she turned the whole experience into a still-longer essay called "Most Helpful Critical Review," that was ultimately published in a literary journal and won an award.

‘If you wanted to scam a mattress company…’

My wife and I remembered this story yesterday, after we were talking about buying mattresses online. Specifically, returning them.

Because it turns out that Melissa might have been just a bit ahead of her time.

The Wall Street Journal's …