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camillew's review
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
2.75
Essays
Some were funny but a lot required cultural knowledge of the 1990s that I don’t have.
Favorites: A very Hanson Christmas (1996-1999) breakfast at the Kennedy, the new Judaism, pen pals, the recipe, Adolf hitler: The Larry King interview
Some were funny but a lot required cultural knowledge of the 1990s that I don’t have.
Favorites: A very Hanson Christmas (1996-1999) breakfast at the Kennedy, the new Judaism, pen pals, the recipe, Adolf hitler: The Larry King interview
ckrush's review
4.0
Best stories: "Breakfast at Kennedy's", and "Adolf Hitler: The Larry King Interview".
chloekg's review
3.0
Almost like a more gregarious, pop-cultured T.C.Boyle, Stewart's glimpses of celebrity exaggeration are playful and chuckle inducing. Some essays are mildly audacious. Some are "so-so, at least they were short." It's a fun little collection and an easy read.
draculaura21's review
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
3.5
At some point after graduating college and moving back home, my roommate and I were playing a bit of book tag. I gave him my copy of Fight Club and he mailed me this. It's Jon Stewart's first book and is a collection of 19 pretty hilarious satirical essays. It was the perfect airplane/balcony read for my honeymoon.
Thank you, Drew, for sending me this all those years ago. I, too, do not have enough Kennedy family history knowledge (sorry, Mom) to get all those first chapter references. My personal favorite was "Local News: Well-Known Taco Bell Chihuahua Killed in Bar Fight."
Thank you, Drew, for sending me this all those years ago. I, too, do not have enough Kennedy family history knowledge (sorry, Mom) to get all those first chapter references. My personal favorite was "Local News: Well-Known Taco Bell Chihuahua Killed in Bar Fight."
eriynali's review
2.0
"non-fiction" is a bit ridiculous as a genre-tag for goodreads.
the three essays i quite enjoyed were: "the devil and william gates", "Da Vinci: The Lost Notebook" and "Adolf Hitler: The Larry King Interview" ... the others were boring, bland and predictable.
the three essays i quite enjoyed were: "the devil and william gates", "Da Vinci: The Lost Notebook" and "Adolf Hitler: The Larry King Interview" ... the others were boring, bland and predictable.
tommyhousworth's review
4.0
A very funny book and, along with Steve Martin's "Pure Drivel" and Chris Buckley's "Wry Martinis", my impetus to write my first (quite sloppy) collection of essays on pop culture, "Smirking into the Abyss".
Jon juxtaposes some great cultural icons, such as the correspondences between Princess Diana and Mother Teresa, Vincent Van Gogh trying to communicate with his brother in an internet chat room, The Last Supper taking place in a trendy restaurant, Hitler guesting on "Larry King", and my favorite, the progression of the yearly 'Christmas form letter' from the mom of the kids from Hanson.
The only pitfall is, as with any pop culture-driven book (as I quickly learned) is that the shelf-life can be very brief, so some references are stale, unless you can take yourself back to the late 90's as you read to appreciate the pith with which Jon nails the reference. But, for the most part, the pieces hold up remarkably well. This is a very funny book.
Jon juxtaposes some great cultural icons, such as the correspondences between Princess Diana and Mother Teresa, Vincent Van Gogh trying to communicate with his brother in an internet chat room, The Last Supper taking place in a trendy restaurant, Hitler guesting on "Larry King", and my favorite, the progression of the yearly 'Christmas form letter' from the mom of the kids from Hanson.
The only pitfall is, as with any pop culture-driven book (as I quickly learned) is that the shelf-life can be very brief, so some references are stale, unless you can take yourself back to the late 90's as you read to appreciate the pith with which Jon nails the reference. But, for the most part, the pieces hold up remarkably well. This is a very funny book.
reickel's review
3.0
The collection of stories goes past now-dated references and some writing struggles to elicit humor and thought.
hollyragreads's review
3.0
Some of these stories were over my head, but others had me cracking up.
The humor style reminds me of Me Talk Pretty One Day by Sedaris
The humor style reminds me of Me Talk Pretty One Day by Sedaris