Synopses & Reviews
andldquo;Lipman is always in top form as an essayist.andrdquo; andndash;
New York Times Book Review In her two decades of writing, Elinor Lipman has populated her fictional universe with characters so utterly real that we feel like theyandrsquo;re old friends. Now she shares an even more intimate world with usandmdash;her ownandmdash;in essays that offer a candid, charming take on modern life. Looking back and forging ahead, she considers the subjects that matter most: childhood and condiments, long marriage and solo living, career and politics.
In these stories youandrsquo;ll find the lighthearted as well as the serious and profound. Whether for Lipmanandrsquo;s longtime readers or those who love the essays of Nora Ephron or Anna Quindlen, I Canandrsquo;t Complain is a diverting delight.
andldquo;Engaging and moving . . . Whether or not one is a Lipman fan before reading this collection, he or she most certainly will be by the time the final page is turned.andrdquo; andndash; Publishers Weekly
andldquo;Full of wit and charm, along with some trenchant observations.andrdquo;andndash; Seattle Times
andldquo;A feast of bite-sized morsels of humor and wisdom.andrdquo; andndash; Kirkus Reviews
Review
Praise for Alexandra Petri
“The Posts go-to writer for laughs.”—Washingtonian
“Apparently single-handedly represents American women under thirty-five.”—Gawker
Synopsis
Jane Borden is a hybrid too horrifying to exist: a hipster-debutante. She was reared in a propert Southern home in Greensboro, North Carolina, sent to boarding school in Virginia, and then went on to join a sorority in Chapel Hill. She next moved to New York and discovered that none of this grooming meant a lick to anyone. In fact, she hid her upbringing for many years--it was easier than explaining what a debutante "does" (the short answer: not much).
Anyone who has moved away from home or lived in (or dreamed of living in) New York will appreciate the hilarity of Jane's musings on the intersections of and altercations between Southern hospitality and Gotham cool.
Synopsis
A moving collection of essays byand#160;the novelistand#160;Elinor Lipman whoand#160;"portrays our most painful emotions coexisting with the humor that makes them bearable." (Washington Post)
Synopsis
Washington Post columnist Alexandra Petri turns her satirical eye on her own life in this hilarious new memoir... Most twentysomethings spend a lot of time avoiding awkwardness.
Not Alexandra Petri.
Afraid of rejection? Alexandra Petri has auditioned for Americas Next Top Model. Afraid of looking like an idiot? Alexandra Petri lost Jeopardy! by answering Who is that dude?” on national TV. Afraid of bad jokes? Alexandra Petri won an international pun championship.
Petri has been a debutante, reenacted the Civil War, and fended off suitors at a Star Wars convention while wearing a Jabba the Hutt suit. One time, she let some cult members she met on the street baptize her, just to be polite. Shes a connoisseur of the kind of awkwardness that most people spend whole lifetimes trying to avoid. If John Hodgman and Amy Sedaris had a baby
they would never let Petri babysit it.
But Petri is here to tell you: Everything you fear is not so bad. Trust her. Shes tried it. And in the course of her misadventures, shes learned that there are worse things out there than awkwardnessand that interesting things start to happen when you stop caring what people think.
About the Author
Some people are born awkward. Some achieve awkwardness. Some have awkwardness thrust upon them. Alexandra Petri is all three. She is a Washington Post columnist and blogger, an International Pun Champion, a playwright, and a Jeopardy! loser, and shes been on your TV a couple of times. She is also a congressmans kid, if that will make you buy this book! When she remembers, she does stand-up comedy too, but shes been locked in her apartment for the past nine months making this book for you and hissing when exposed to sunlight.