MODERN MANNERS: Etiquette for Very Rude People

by P.J. O'Rourke ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 1, 1983

Manners are a way to express altruism in daily life. Either that or manners are a way to fuck people over without their knowing it."" With those opening lines, you know what you're in for here: heavyhanded, sophomoric parody--which, when unable to be genuinely funny (about 95% of the time), reaches for a laugh with such push-button punchlines as ""masturbation,"" ""erection,"" ""cocaine,"" ""asshole,"" and ""fart."" A section on Table Manners, for instance, tells you how to play with food: ""'Masturbate' with an eclair, and squeeze the cream filling out at the appropriate moment."" ""The Hip Funeral"" includes this suggestion for displaying grief: ""You can stand on top of the floral arrangements and urinate into the open grave while screaming, 'Piss on you for dying, you asshole.'"" Travel Etiquette warns: ""Don't bend over in Turkey. Who knows what they might think it's a polite invitation to do?"" The chapter on nuptials advises: ""Wedding rings should not be worn in pierced nipples."" And there's etiquette for rapists, suicides, and murderers: ""When sniping from the top of a building, try to pick people who seem to be having a bad day anyhow."" With chapters on dating, sex, parties, drug use, and clothing: too limp to be zestfully tasteless, too tin-eared to get more than a half-laugh every 20 pages or so.

Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1983

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Dell

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1983

Categories: NONFICTION