Book Description
A national bestseller, Snobbery examines the discriminating qualities in all of us. With dishy detail, Joseph Epstein skewers all manner of elitism in contemporary America. He offers his arch observations of the new footholds of snobbery: food, fashion, high-achieving children, schools, politics, being with-it, name-dropping, and much more. Clever, incisive, and immensely entertaining, Snobberyexplores the shallows and depths of status and taste -- with enviable results.
Customer Reviews:
Very interesting topic. There are not many books written about Snobbery in all it forms........2006-11-06
We've all experienced snobbery in one form or another. Its interesting to see the categories of snobbery broken down.
Joseph Epstein has an insight and intelligence I have not experienced before, reading his books is like being let in on the secrets of human interaction in its many forms.
Even better than "Snobbery", in my opinion is his book "Friendship: An Expose".
Looking in the Mirror.......2006-08-27
I loved this book! Criticized for being entertaining...as if this were a bad thing and mutually exclusive with being informative...I enjoyed chuckling along with Epstein, who openly shares his snobbery, while also deepening my understanding of snobbery in my life and in America.
Epstein has it right when he says that snobbery is a result of a fear that we are not enough. And, of course, the culture we live in goes to any lengths to reinforce those fears. The ongoing anxiety of "trying to get it right" would be hilarious if it were not for the outcomes of this way of living: cruelty to others, debt, domestic violence, mistrust of each other, depression, and spiritual disconnection .....to name a few.
For more information on this topic, there is a wonderful PBS documentary from a few years ago, PEOPLE LIKE US, which still has a web site with fun, informative quizzes etc. for kids & adults.
Simply annoying........2006-07-22
To mimic a sentence structure that Mr. Epstein employs ad nauseum throughout his book, a perfect storm of smug vapidness, this. The author seems to think that he can innoculate himself against the charge of being a snob himself, by admitting to it once in a while. Fair enough. But it doesn't keep him from coming off as mean (as in his treatment of the author Phyllis Rose--how ironic that he would talk about her coming across as a snob in her wonderful memoir!) and judgemental (as in his treatment of vegetarians whom, and he annoyingly waffles on this one, he seems to conclude are a self-righteous lot who has made throwing dinner parties a nuisance).
Mr. Epstein is at his worst when he goes on about his fascination with fashionable coats and cigarette lighters. Boring. And pitiable, really.
Sorry, but Mr. Epstein's own glaring snobbery overshadows this book of warmed over observations on the subject.
An enjoyable way to spend an afternoon.......2006-05-24
This is a delightful, refreshing, and strangely insightful book. What it lacks in scope and grandeur it makes up for in readability. I'd recommend it to anyone who has been on either end of the snobbery spectrum...or perhaps to anyone who has ever spent the odd moment pondering this odd, yet irrepressible, part of human nature.
The Snobbery snob already knew all this.......2005-10-10
Epstein covers many areas exhaustively, showing just how many different ways you could be a snob in regards to: food, family, money, career, material items, name dropping, schooling, clubs, intelligence, race, religion, politics, and more. Though Epstein explains at the beginning that he is merely trying to share with the reader his own faults of snobbery, at times it comes across as his genuinely being a snob! Though I suppose it is probably hard to be specific about, say, names you namedrop, without actually namedropping.
Some of the tidbits were good, but overall the book was rather uninteresting.
Book Description
At last! An A-to-Z reference guide for readers who want to learn the cryptic language of Rock Snobs, those arcana-obsessed people who speak of "Rickenbacker guitars" and "Gram Parsons."
We've all been there--trapped in a conversation with smarty-pants music fiends who natter on about "the MC5" or "Eno" or "the Hammond B3," not wanting to let on that we haven't the slightest idea what they're talking about. Well, fret no more! The Rock Snob's Dictionary is here to define every single sacred totem of rock fandom's know-it-all fraternity, from Alt.country to Zimmy. (That's what Rock Snobs call Bob Dylan, by the way.)
Customer Reviews:
Fun but inessential!.......2006-03-19
Ok this is a very funny concept and makes for great reading on a trip. HOwever it is somewhat short. Some stuff is really true about rock snobbery but to some degree it falls short of its ambitions. Still it is worth a read.
Not essential but a lot of fun indeed.......2005-09-02
The subtitle reads "An Essential Lexicon," but it isn't. "Essential" connotes a comprehensiveness that this lacks, which indicates that this book was not meant for education so much as fun and humor, and in this it succeeds admirably.
So, what is a rock snob? Evidently, somewhat to my surprise, I am not. I'm a music fanatic, and I would have imagined that sufficient to gain rock snob status, but apparently not, since the book defines "rock snob" as: "reference term for the sort of pop connoisseur for whom the actual enjoyment of music is but a side dish to the accumulation of arcane knowledge." For me the actual enjoyment of the music has been paramount, so I am imagining that anyone who truly loves the music first is exempt, on technical grounds, from rock snobbishness.
The joy of the book comes from the way they simultaneously elevate and then deflate various figures and artifacts from the world of rock. Many of their characterizations are dead on. I've never understood the esteem in which many hold Burt Bacharach. Folks, it really is just elevator music, and I don't care how much Elvis Costello tries to pump his reputation. The authors write about such figures with wit and derisive humor. The lists that litter the book are marvelous, and usually dead on.
Plus, the book is fun to argue with. If you are a serious fan of music, you will spend a lot of time flipping through to see if your own candidates were included in the book, and a surprising number of the more arcane folks I searched for were to be found. For instance, I was amazed to see that Jim Dickinson, Dan Penn, The Fugs, and the Louvin Brothers showed up. I was somewhat disappointed that several of the folks I would have nominated were not, including: Can, Greg Sage and the Wipers (a monumental oversight), the Shoes, Moby Grape (though Skip Spence gets a nod), Robert Quine, Jack Logan (a shocker), R. Stevie Moore, the Buzzcocks (with an especial mention of their EP SPIRAL SCRATCH), the Mekons, Les Paul, the album HAVE MOICY!, guitar pioneer John Fahey, the Flying Burrito Brothers (though Gram Parsons, of course, has an entry), Rory Gallagher, and Second Edition (Johnny Lydon's aka Rotten project after the Sex Pistols). But like I said, this book isn't about completeness, but humor. There also is a cut off point. Few very recent bands receive a mention, even such crucial Rock Snob bands as Yo La Tengo (which inspired the wonderful ONION headline about a few dozen record store clerks dying at one of their concerts when the roof collapsed, crushing the crowd) fail to receive mention.
In the end, the book really isn't for aspiring rock snobs, but actual rock snobs who get all the references, know all the books and movies mentioned in the lists, and "get" the self-mocking nature of the whole affair. My only real disappointment with the book is that if you have a pretty good knowledge of rock, you aren't going to learn much new. But at least you can laugh about your own pretentiousness about imagining that to be the case.
Snobs and Snarks.......2005-07-20
The Lester Bangs Cosmological Sincerity Argument for Short Attention to an Entertainment (as espoused here by "Brock Pemberton") is so dull.
Laugh at the reference format of this book? Perhaps the suggested use is to, ah, reference it. While reading an encyclopedia of any sort is not the intended use it is a wonderful way to learn things that you don't already know. Not to confirm one's own opinions can be enlightening. Self-received wisdom is called solipsism.
Any claim to authority in the post-post-historical era is worth at least a half-smile, isn't it?
If the universe of content is suspended between the poles of Lester "Big" Bangs and the large, diffuse, glossy mags, then it has stopped expanding and no new content is possible. This being along the lines of saying "there will never be another Leslie West".
All truly hip writing is plagiarism, get over it. Ask any dead writer you care about after that five minutes is over.
I don't agree that the "Snob" humor is dull, perhaps a little mean at times. But if we can't dance on graves there will soon be no floor upon which to boogie; I find rather that Kemp and Daly do a fine job of meta-snobbery. Without being in on the joke which is also on them, they couldn't have written the book. This isn't nihilism, this is just the way we do things around here, as they say wherever things that are not online reviews are done. The Big Bangs Sincerity after the "'n' roll" was lost for him, now there's a nihilistic joke, with meth.
If you can't laugh at your own snobbery, you won't find this funny, and if you aren't entertained by an encyclopedia, have a TiVO partially full of old sitcoms, and use the word snark in any form then your universe is actually contracting, along with at least two corporeal aspects of it, one of which is your cerebellum.
The format is repetitive and the jokes plagiarized from Lester Bangs.......2005-07-19
I know that I am supposed to laugh at the reference format of this book, but after 5 pages I had to set it down because my attention drifted. Let's face it guys, reading an encyclopedia (even a jokey one) is just plain boring. It's also old soup - warmed over. Lester Bangs did these kinds of insider jokes 30 years ago and the authors here are doing nothing more than the usual hipster plagiarism of a better dead writer's work.
Daly and Kamp are probably very clever to some (see the suspect gushing reviews above) but to me, their humor is as dull as the people that they are mocking. Perhaps they have just fallen prey to the snark o' the times as Vanity Fair cool are prone to do. Also, at $14 (USD) this slim work is definitely overpriced.
One very large part of this book's problem is that it is dedicated to ridiculing music snobs and music neophytes alike. What's the big idea? To ridicule everyone? That's useless to me. I have a TiVo full of crappy network sitcoms and old South Parks to satisfy the most devoted nihilist. I depend on books for actual ideas. This book has none that are original. At least Bangs was sincere in his viewpoint, even when he did complete 180s on them; yet somehow he still was funnier than all the Vanity Fair smurf boys.
Kamp and Daly don't have the guts to stand firm on any side, and if that's cool to you then this is your book.
File on shelf between "Psychotic Reactions..." and "Shakey" .......2005-07-04
This is a fantastic, compulsively readable little book that's both funny, snide and surprisingly informative. But, then again, I'm one of those jerks this was apparently written for.
It's safe to assume a pair of rock snobs also wrote it. Only a rock snob could write, and appreciate, entries such as:
"Drake, Nick: ... Was frequently photographed standing dolefully among trees...."
"Eno, Brian: Egghead producer and electronics whiz with appropriately futuristic name and aerodynamic pate."
"Big Star: ... recorded tunes that, while catchy, were too fraught with druggy tension to be commercial -- thereby guaranteeing the group posthumous 'great overlooked band status.'"
"Albini, Steve: Self-consciously difficult Chicago-based producer who... pushes the bounds of rock iconoclasm by wearing glasses and having short hair."
"Parsons, Gram: Southern, Harvard educated, trustafarian pretty boy who invented country-rock...."
It's slim, it's amusing, and sometimes surprising. Who knew, for example, that Shuggie Otis was once offered the chance to join the Stones as a replacement for Mick Taylor? Or that the vocoder was developed in the 1930s as a telecommunications aid? Not me.
Average customer rating:
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The Evolution of a Snob (Notable American Authors) (Notable American Authors)
Thomas Sergeant Perry
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- A Deeply Ironic and Memorable Christmas Mystery
- Christmas in the Highlands
- A great book, and a great mystery
- Hamish at a Health Farm?
- Ya gotta love Hamish!
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Death of a Snob
M.C. Beaton
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ASIN: 0804109125
Release Date: 1992-05-23 |
Book Description
"Pure bliss." Atlanta Journal & Constitution
A Hamish Macbeth Mystery by the author of "Death of a Hussy."
With a cold in his head and no place to go for Christmas, Hamish snaps up the invitation of drop-dead gorgeous Jane Wetherby to spend the holiday at her Scottish island health farm -- and figure out who is trying to kill her.
When Hamish arrives on the island of Eileencraig, he finds threatening locals and fellow guests barely more civil, especially a terrible snob named Heather Todd. It seems like everyone on the island has a grudge against Jane. How to choose among so many suspects?
But then one suspect is eliminated. Heather Todd is murdered. And suddenly Hamish's Christmas is looking very black indeed . . .
Customer Reviews:
A Deeply Ironic and Memorable Christmas Mystery.......2006-12-28
Police Constable Hamish Macbeth is miserable. He's sick . . . and no one seems to notice. He also is looking forward to visiting his family on his Christmas holiday . . . until he's warned off because his aunt who cannot stand him is coming from America. In a foul mood, he's not too excited when Priscilla Hallburton-Smythe asks him to talk to a guest, Jane Wetherby, at the family hotel (formerly the family castle) about two brushes with death and an inauspicious tea leaf reading. Meeting Jane, he's quickly impressed by her looks, her wealth, and her health farm (the Happy Wanderer) on remote Eileencraig. His mood lifts when he's able to inveigle an invitation for a free trip over Christmas to "look into things there." He leaves the exhausted Priscilla to trek to his parents' home to deliver Christmas presents in a terrible blizzard . . . and promptly forgets about her while becoming intrigued by the widowed cookbook author, Harriet Shaw, who becomes Dr. Watson to his Sherlock Holmes.
Naturally, Hamish is trying to fit in with the other guests . . . and not indicate that he's a policeman on holiday with a purpose. Choosing a cover as a forester, he's ripped up one side and down the other by one of the guests, Heather Todd, who is a social climbing communist sympathizer who favors any trendy left-wing cause for which she can hold a party. But you cannot blame Heather too much for her self-absorption: Her husband mainly likes to admire himself in the mirror. The other guests don't endear themselves to Hamish very much either. He soon wishes that he were anywhere else. And then, mysterious events start to occur. Jane disappears, and Hamish sets out to find her. Then one of the guests disappears and the search is even more challenging.
The mystery is a delightful one, with fair clues to help you figure out who did what to whom. The detection process is also fun. Hamish's attraction to Heather provides lots of amusing scenes. Priscilla's Christmas story will be one you'll long think about.
The book's only weakness is that the victim is painted in harsher colors than are needed for the story. That creates a memorable character, but hardly a realistic one.
Christmas in the Highlands.......2006-02-02
The holidays are not starting out too well for Constable Hamish Macbeth, he has time off but nowhere to go, Priscilla is totally immersed in running the family-home-turned-hotel and he's coming down with a cold. Things begin to look up when a friend of Priscilla decides that she has been targeted for murder and would like Hamish to find out who is behind the attempts on her life. Hamish is convinced that the matter is all in her head but since the investigation would involved free room and board at the would be victim's resort it might bear looking into after all.
The resort turns out to be a health spa on an island in Hebrides and currently filled with a group of the owner's (and potential victim's) friends. Just as Hamish decides that there is really nothing to these murder attempts someone is killed and in a very suspicious manner. Hamish goes about solving the crime in his own unique way.
This is the sixth entry into the series about the young police constable in the remote village of Lochdubh in the Scottish Highlands. Hamish has been smitten for years with Priscilla Halburton-Smythe, daughter of a formerly wealthy family now fallen on hard times - whence the need to manage the family home as a hotel, unfortunately the romance has proceeded only in fits and starts.
This is definitely a 'cozy' style of mystery. The mystery itself, although clever and fairly laid out, is perhaps secondary to the life and loves of young Hamish himself. It's a pleasant read and a moderate challenge to a fan of this genre. If you enjoy this type of mystery I would recommend beginning at the beginning - DEATH OF A CAD - but it is definitely a series worth beginning.
A great book, and a great mystery.......2005-02-17
This is the sixth in a series of wonderful mysteries featuring the detective work of small town, Highland Scottish detective Hamish Macbeth, P.C. In this book, Hamish is dubious of an attractive health farm owner's belief that someone is trying to kill her, but accepts her invitation to come to her place in the Hebrides. However, when another guest turns up dead, Hamish does not agree with his superior's belief that the death was an accident, and goes on investigating. There's a lot here that doesn't meet the eye and only Hamish Macbeth will be able to find the motive for the murder, and as such the murderer.
Being a dyed-in-the-wool Hamish Macbeth fan, I can tell you that this is another great Hamish mystery, just as good as the rest. The story was quite fascinating, and I have always enjoyed M.C. Beaton's (pseudonym of Marion Chesney) Highlands & Islands setting and characters. Overall I thought that this was a great book, and a great mystery. If you like mysteries, or are merely interest in Scotland, then you must get this book!
Hamish at a Health Farm?.......2003-10-07
This is one of the best examples of a cozy Christmas mystery that I've read for awhile. Hamish is at loose ends on Lochdubh. He can't go to his parents' house since there is going to be an aunt there who hates him. Priscilla is too busy with her father's hotel, so he accepts an invitation to go to lonely, remote Eileencraig for the holidays. One of Priscilla's acquaintances has asked him to come in an unofficial capacity to investigate whether or not there is someone trying to kill her. While he's there another resident at the health farm turns up dead, and Hamish finds himself in the middle of a murder again. The best thing about this book is a native islander called Geordie and his possessed truck. Beaton never fails to amuse and Hamish is as adorable as ever.
Ya gotta love Hamish!.......2003-05-31
It's Christmas, and Hamish is sick. The unlikable Jane Wetherby from the island of Eileencraig thinks someone's trying to kill her. She runs a health farm, where lots of interesting characters are staying, all of whom, of course, become suspects in what leads to murder. DEATH OF A SNOB may be the 4th in the Hamish Macbeth series -- I've lost count. It's coprighted 1991. The awkward relationship between Hamish and Priscilla contines. This is a real cozy in the old tradition, with a group brought together on an island. It's fun, short, and light, but also moody and dark, with some elements of a real "thriller" thrown in, along with some fun characters. Once again, Beaton has made the nasty one so nasty that I'd have wanted to kill that one myself!
Book Description
The antidote to Eats, Shoots and Leaves—an uproarious and very American language book for those who are tired of getting pulled over by the grammar police
What do suicidal pandas, doped-up rock stars, and a naked Pamela Anderson have in common? They're all a heck of a lot more interesting than reading about predicate nominatives and hyphens. June Casagrande knows this and has invented a whole new twist on the grammar book. Grammar Snobs Are Great Big Meanies is a laugh-out-loud funny collection of anecdotes and essays on grammar and punctuation, as well as hilarious critiques of the self-appointed language experts.
Chapters include:
• I'm Writing This While Naked—The Oh-So Steamy Predicate Nominative
• Semicolonoscopy—Colons, Semicolons, Dashes, and Other Probing Annoyances
• I'll Take “I Feel Like a Moron” for $200, Alex—When to Put Punctuation Inside Quotation Marks
• Snobbery Up with Which You Should Not Put Up—Prepositions
• Is That a Dangler in Your Memo or Are You Just Glad to See Me?
• Hyphens—Life-Sucking, Mom-and-Apple-Pie-Hating, Mime-Loving, Nerd- Fight-Inciting Daggers of the Damned
Casagrande delivers practical and fun language lessons not found anywhere else, demystifying the subject and taking it back from the snobs. In short, it's a grammar book people will actually want to read—just for the fun of it.
Download Description
The antidote to Eats, Shoots and Leaves-an uproarious and very American language book for those who are tired of getting pulled over by the grammar police What do suicidal pandas, doped-up rock stars, and a naked Pamela Anderson have in common? They're all a heck of a lot more interesting than reading about predicate nominatives and hyphens. June Casagrande knows this and has invented a whole new twist on the grammar book. Grammar Snobs Are Great Big Meanies is a laugh-out-loud funny collection of anecdotes and essays on grammar and punctuation, as well as hilarious critiques of the self-appointed language experts. Chapters include: * I'm Writing This While Naked-The Oh-So Steamy Predicate Nominative * Semicolonoscopy-Colons, Semicolons, Dashes, and Other Probing Annoyances * I'll Take ""I Feel Like a Moron"" for $200, Alex-When to Put Punctuation Inside Quotation Marks * Snobbery Up with Which You Should Not Put Up-Prepositions * Is That a Dangler in Your Memo or Are You Just Glad to See Me? * Hyphens-Life-Sucking, Mom-and-Apple-Pie-Hating, Mime-Loving, Nerd- Fight-Inciting Daggers of the Damned Casagrande delivers practical and fun language lessons not found anywhere else, demystifying the subject and taking it back from the snobs. In short, it's a grammar book people will actually want to read-just for the fun of it.
Customer Reviews:
Great Read.......2007-07-30
While reading Grammar Snobs I kept wondering if it was healthy to be laughing this much at a book on grammar. I read the book in one sitting (excluding 15-minutes to walk the dog and another 5-minutes hiding from a door-to-door salesperson) and it has to be one of the most user friendly books I've ever encountered when it comes to grammar. In addition. Casagrande may be the first author I've encountered who doesn't immediately disparage modern "netspeak" or attempts at countering racism and sexism in language. A great read for anyone looking to brush up on their grammar or to become better familiarized with writing.
Usage not Grammar.......2007-06-17
This is a usage guide, not a grammar guide.
Grammar snobs beware!.......2007-05-25
I'm not an English major or teacher, but an engineer who occasionally writes technical and marketing literature. Although I've always had a keen grasp of tricky English rules and exceptions, at times I still fumble with such details as "which" vs. "that" and "three" vs. "3". I thought this book was hilarious and a fun way to learn the tricky rules. I usually have a very short attention span when reading any type of rule book. However, June's short and humorous chapters made this book easy to read. Besides the definite grammar rules, the best thing I got from this book is learning that, in many cases, there are no definite rules. The major sources of English reference disagree with each other, and the rules change over time. This quickly put my mind at ease as I often thought I was going crazy when reading different writing styles. I highly recommend this book for anyone who does any kind of writing for a living.
You must be a grammar snob if you gave this less than 4 stars!.......2007-05-01
This book is hysterical! I (or is it me?) and most of my friends are at a loss when it comes to correct punctuation and grammar. We know most of it but, gosh darn if it isn't sometimes way too tricky! And we thought we were the only ones!! I personally cringe at the thought of using the words lie, lain, lay or whatever the heck it is and opt for something else.
While I did pick up some useful tips, I think the way in which she handles this topic is "right on" for so many of us. Her information is serious and yet delivered with such humor and ease, that I actually found myself recommending this book to others. And who, except a small group of grammar snobs, EVER recommends a grammar book to a friend??!!
Lighten up and enjoy the humor!
My favorite grammar book.......2007-02-02
I'm a freelance writer who has a shelf full of reference books, because ... sadly ... even though this is my profession I often get caught not quite knowing why something is right or wrong. It's a complicated language OK! Love, love, love, love this book. As entertaining as it is informative. I've highlighted and sticky-noted several pages. Chapter 35 actually happened to me too ... almost verbatim.
Customer Reviews:
NARRATOR of book is a MALE that is not named or explained.......2007-07-24
I specifically wrote my "title" for this review to help some deperate soul that might be looking for a review to understand who is narrating this book. (That is what I had to resort to.)
When you begin this book, you will have ABSOLUTELY no idea who is narrating because you are not given the description of this person whatsoever and frankly, it was really frustrating. The author has ample opportunity to give you SOME description of the person narrating but chose not to deliberatly, not even a NAME so ultimately you feel like you are hanging in limbo. I went back to the beginning of the book many many times reading Part I because I felt I had missed something. You have no idea if the person narrating is a woman, man or elephant. You can peice it together eventually, but why should I have to?
Overall, that is the only negative thing I can say about this book. I do not agree with some of the reviews stating it is a "page turner"...I'm sure it can be if you happen to belong to that "upper class" and want to see how someone might describe you in a novel.
You will finish the book having a great understanding of why the British Aristocrats seem so snobbish and in the end, you will probably feel sorry for them. You will be very happy to be a "common" person because, apparently being a "Snob" takes alot of work and wastes a tremendous amount of energy in my opinion.
Enjoyable.......2007-06-14
Very pleasant summer reading. If you have not been invited to the country you might want to read this book and enjoy a full and enjoyable look into the lives of the upper "class" in England. Funny and breezy even if "us Yanks" won't get some of the product references.
Probably for Anglophiles only.......2007-03-16
This book is all about the British social classes. The author was the screenwriter for the film Gosford Park, so if that movie wasn't your "cup of tea," this won't be either. Not bad, just not great either.
Social studies of the aristocracy.......2007-01-09
I loved this book -- it was a delight -- a veritable social study of the upper classes: complete with all the taboos, refined class distinctions, social no-nos and in jokes. It was thoughtfully written, the plot was good, the characters well drawn and developed, and the humour delicious. The story of a pretty English blonde from the upper middle class who social climbs her way into a marriage with an Earl from an old established aristocratic farmily ("it took 600 hundred years to become us") this tale describes the preoccupations and stress of joining an exclusive club, and shows that life at the top is not all it is cracked up to be, or even what we fondly imagine it should be. Julian Fellowes writes with all the charm and wit of a contemporary Nancy Mitford or E.F. Benson. As I am an Englishwoman it was like going home.
I really enjoyed this book.......2006-11-08
I liked all the insider gossip; I'm an anglophile so I got a lot of the references, but I wonder if my fellow Americans who don't listen to BBC religiously would get a lot of the inside stuff?
I decided not to read the end of the book so I'll never know what happens. My idiosyncracies.
Thank you Mr. Fellowes. I look forward to more more more!!!
Book Description
From the same brain trust that brought you The Rock Snob*s Dictionary, the hilarious, bestselling guide to insiderist rock arcana, comes The Film Snob*s Dictionary, an informative and subversively funny A-to-Z reference guide to all that is held sacred by Film Snobs, those perverse creatures of the repertory cinema. No longer must you suffer silently as some clerk in a “Tod Browning’s Freaks” T-shirt bombards you with baffling allusions to “wire-fu” pictures, “Todd-AO process,” and “Sam Raimi.” By helping to close the knowledge gap between average moviegoers and incorrigible Snobs, the dictionary lets you in on hidden gems that film geeks have been hoarding (such as Douglas Sirk and Guy Maddin movies) while exposing the trash that Snobs inexplicably laud (e.g., most chop-socky films and Mexican wrestling pictures). Delightfully illustrated and handily organized in alphabetical order for quick reference, The Film Snob*s Dictionary is your fail-safe companion in the video store, the cineplex, or wherever insufferable Film Snobs congregate.
Customer Reviews:
stuck in a self satisfied snicker.......2006-12-19
Let's stop the snob right here. ENOUGH. I just want to enjoy art without all the pretense of being a so-called insider. The authors are nobodies. They want to be belong to some exclusive club they are not part of. The authors don't appreciate film, they merely compile meaningless trivia, and we are suppossed to feel honored to be part of their insipid pursuit. Sadly, it is compulisvely readable, but I had a dirty hollow feeling afterward. Porn for geeks.
Unlikely to appear on the Book Snob*s list of great sequels.......2006-05-06
While the Rock Snob book was both an interesting encyclopedia and a witty critique of a sub-culture, this just seems like the employees' manual from a slightly above-average video store. It doesn't seem to get the cineastes, the gorehounds, or the fan-boys in it's scope. It just seems a MEDITATION ON the slightly off-beat with a nod toward the classic.
It's probably this year's gift of choice for people you don't want to drop $30 on a Criterion DVD for. But they won't find it amusing.
The funniest book of the year........2006-05-01
It's funny 'cause it's true. Tom Servo owns two copies in case one gets lost. If you were born before 1970, I need only say, This Was Written By Two Guys From Spy Magazine. What are you waiting for? Also includes helpful tips on matters such as distinguishing Sydney Pollack from Sidney Lumet, which used to be a problem for me, but no more!
Snobs Unite!.......2006-04-24
A fun, fun, fun flip-through for the cinephillically addicted.
Lives up to its name! No, not offputtingly snobbish. Just in its deep knowledge. Not some glossy rag posing as film experts with obvious familiar trivia.
This is the film book with cred!
Mad apparatus.......2006-04-19
A true snob, of course, will crack the spine with an eager eye for chinks in the armor. But quit hatin' and start congratulatin' -- this Dictionary is too well-crafted, funny, and steeped in film culture to be dismissed.
Its real significance, though, is the new breed of snob that it represents -- one that can name-drop Cahiers du Cinema and then laugh at its own pretense; one that's at ease with Wire Fu and Bergman both; one that's comfortable enough with its gut reaction to say "Dude, Tarkovsky's kinda boring." Which means you'll get a heavy dose of the canon, along with some serious arcana about the marginalized weirdness that'll wind up in the canon, one day, if these guys have their way.
Book Description
Ultra-snobby Clara Frankofile has everything an eleven-year-old girl could want. She's fabulously wealthy, she lives alone in a penthouse apartment with its own roller coaster, and all of New York City is afraid of her! Each night at the Pish Posh restaurant, she watches the glittery movie actresses and princesses, and decides who is important enough to stay and who she will kick to the sidewalk in disgrace. But Clara's world is turned upside down when she discovers that a peculiar mystery is happening in the restaurant, right under her upturned nose.With the help of a whip-smart twelveyear- old jewel thief, Clara embarks on a wildly dangerous mission through the streets of New York to solve a 200-hundred-year-old secret.
Crackling with humor and boundless imagination, Pish Posh is a wry commentary on our obsession with all things celebrity and our never-ending rush to grow up.
Customer Reviews:
Fun Book to read.......2007-07-13
Clara Frankofile is a snobby, rich, eleven year old girl who lives in a luxurious penthouse in New York City that is loaded with every thing she could possibly want. What is missing from this glamorous life are the love and care of her parents, who live in a different apartment and don't even care where she is. When Clara kicks Dr. Piff out of her family's posh restaurant, it uncovers a mystery that will change the way she lives forever!
I read this book with my Mother-Daughter Book Club. Most of the girls in the club are the same age as Clara. We enjoyed this book very much! It is a fictional story with a mystery woven into it. Even the moms liked this book! It had some excellent ideas that could be discussed with the group. We highly recommend it.
Fun, but with a dark side.......2007-05-15
I read this book because my 8 yr old (advanced reader) was drawn in by the cover and wanted to read it. I didn't let her: I never saw it coming, but the climax of the book was too brutal for her. (A man is hanged - and it's described - because of a false accusation made by a woman who had started to fall in love with him. She realizes he didn't do it as she sees him being hanged.)
The hanging scene also seems a bit incongruous with the rest of the book, which doesn't take itself too seriously and has a much lighter tone.
The rest of the book was mostly good fun for kids. The main character has her own apartment (at age 11), with various fantasy rooms (a beach room with real waves and sand, a tree climbing room with a real tree, etc.). She wields a great deal of power in the adult world, wearing dark sunglasses and black dresses as she decides who to ban from her parents' restaurant. She meets a girl her age who is a professional thief, likewise powerful and very competent. The two of them find themselves drawn into friendship. Their bad behavior has only emotional consequences (i.e. guilt). Still, I found this book to be an enjoyable flight of fantasy, a power trip for kids.
Pish Posh is a wonderful book.......2007-03-23
Pish Posh takes place in wonderful New York City. Clara Frankofile is eleven years old. Her mother and father own the spectacular Pish Posh restaurant known for it's famous customers. Clara is responsible for keeping nobodies out of the restaurant. She finds out some untold facts about her father. Clara seems drawn to spending time with Annabel, a theif. She wonders if she herself has become a nobody. Clara uncovers an unforgettable mystery right under her nose. I rate this book five stars. It is very descriptive and is a real page-turner. If you like mysteries you should read this book!
- Julia
Spoiled is all she is .......2006-12-20
Pish Posh by Ellen Potter is a great book and definitely worth reading. 11-year-old Clara Frankofile has everything you could ever want. She's super rich, has her own apartment (it's more convenient for her parents) with a roller coaster, bumper carts, and anything else you could think of. (It's too long to list all of the things she has!) To put that in shorter words Clara is spoiled to the bone. With her parents owning the famous restaurant Pish Posh, Clara in her spare time loves spotting out celebrities that have become "Nobodies" and enjoys kicking them to the curb. Pish Posh is a great book, and if you decide to read it you will go on an amazing and mysterious journey solving clues along the way. A definite page-turner.
You have to read it! MH at North Boulevard.......2006-12-16
The book I am reviewing is Pish Posh. It is by Ellen Potter. I think this book deserves five stars because the author wrote this book with good details. This book is about an eleven year old girl named Clara Fronkofile. A problem that occurs in this story is that she tells a guy named Dr. Piff to leave the restaurant Pish Posh because he is not a somebody anymore. He says that something mysterious is happening right under her nose... I recommend this book to someone who likes mysteries. If you want to find out the ending read this book.
Average customer rating:
- A solid start for the series
- A Great Read Aloud for the Whole Family
- Nice, But for Younger Kids
- Wonderful Book for all ages
- About Varjak Paw
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The Outlaw Varjak Paw
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The Outlaw Varjak Paw
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The Outlaw Varjak Paw
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Waiting for Anya
ASIN: 0440420768
Release Date: 2005-05-10 |
Book Description
Mesopotamian Blue cat, Varjak Paw, has never been Outside before; he and his family have always lived in the isolated house at the top of the hill. But Varjak is forced out into the city when the sinister Gentleman and his two menacing cats take over his home. With help from his mystical ancestor, Jalal, Varjak manages to overcome challenges such as self-survival and a threat from the gangland cats, and he ultimately discovers the terrifying secrets behind the Vanishings. But can he save his own family from their fate?
With wonderful integrated illustrations from acclaimed comic book artist Dave McKean, this book will appeal to all ages.
From the Hardcover edition.
Customer Reviews:
A solid start for the series.......2007-10-01
My 10-year-old daugther enjoyed this book, reading it after reading The Outlaw Varjak Paw. But she did not enjoy this one as much as the sequel. While this was exciting it was also more creepy and sad, saying she felt sorry for the cats who were killed by the evil character, and she wasn't interested in rereading it anytime soon. Probably would have been a better read for her if she had not been as empathic.
After reading both books however, she said she's hoping more will be written in this series.
A Great Read Aloud for the Whole Family.......2007-08-08
I enjoyed reading this book to my then 5 and 9 year-olds. Both my daughter and son loved the characters and their experiences. We can all benefit by heeding the lessons that Varjak learns as he faces his various challenges. Don't miss the sequel, the Outlaw Varjak Paw. The kids are writing to the author to ask him to write a third book. I hope he does.
Nice, But for Younger Kids.......2006-12-21
I enjoyed it it USED to be my favorite 'till the Warriors series came along... My favorite charracter was the dog, oh whats his name, Kludge? I forget. I thought the second was better but then again a liked the plot of the first one more. I wonder if Varjak's owner really DID die...
Wonderful Book for all ages.......2006-11-07
Our whole family listened to this book (ages 7-40, boys and girls) and enjoyed it. We couldn't wait for the next one to come out. The adventures of Varjak Paw kept us all wanting to know what would happen to him next. I'm getting the second one for my 10 year old boy for Christmas.
About Varjak Paw.......2006-03-24
The only thing that would have made the book better for me was if the ending of the book had more details, because to me it was kind of dull. The rest of the book was fantastic. It was like a cord leading you from the beginning to the end. While reading the book I felt like Varjak(protagonist)was sitting right there next to me. Sometimes when Varjak got into fights with other cats I could almost feel his pain. The antagonist's personality was awesome, evil but sort of friendly all at the same time. I liked how not only the protagonist and antagonist, but all the characters seemed so realistic. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes cats and loves a book that makes you wonder what's going to happen in every chapter. Also, if you have read other books by S F Said, then this is the book for you.
Book Description
On the football-obsessed campus of Notre Dame, Marcus Bramble, a wealthy alum with an unhealthy passion for the sport, says he'll contribute $10 million if it's put toward a memorial to Knute Rockne, the university's legendary football coach. When Madeline Rune, a Notre Dame trustee, is found dead after disparaging remarks about the donation, Bramble, along with Madeline's womanizing husband, is suspected of foul play. But when her husband also turns up dead, the case becomes more impossible than a Hail Mary.As detective Philip Knight and his brother, brilliant philosophy professor Roger Knight, scour the campus for a killer, they're caught in a high-stakes scrimmage between the mega-bucks donor determined to resurrect Knute Rockne and the Notre Dame academia, dead-set on burying football for good. And in between this bitter campus infighting, the brothers must prevent the murderer's next play before football becomes the ultimate blood sport....
Customer Reviews:
On This Rockne.......2007-03-28
"On This Rockne" is the first of the Notre Dame mysteries by Ralph McInerny who is best known for the Father Dowling mysteries. The main characters are the Knight brothers, Philip and Roger. Philip is a private investigator who has moved to South Bend from New York. Roger is a professor at Notre Dame. Marcus Bramble donated money to the school to build a memorial to legendary coach Knute Rockne. Madeline Rune, whose grandfather had helped Rockne write his novel "The Four Winners", is found murdered at her home. Philip and Roger team up to investigate. Who killed Madeline? Was it her estranged husband Stanley, Henry Hadley, a man obsessed with her, or someone else who had a grudge against her? It is Roger who actually solves the case. It was interesting to find out that Rockne did write this one novel. There is some football action for the college football fans. It took me a little while to get into the book, but when I did I really enjoyed it. It is a very good debut to this series and I recommend it.
Slightly Skewed Emphasis.......2004-09-28
I liked this book much better than the other reviewers did ... except for the fact that McInerny doesn't seem to want Notre Dame to win a football game! (I've read all of them in this series I can find, and the author features a game in each one ... and they're always ties! Forget that, and win one for the Gipper!) I found the "literary detection," however, more fascinating than the murder mystery -- so much so that I searched out Knute Rockne's only novel, THE FOUR WINNERS, which, much to my surprise, has recently been republished. It's better than this book makes it sound, and is a genuinely good "young adult" type story, given the overall sophistication of a mid-1920s audience. Nevertheless, I've spent some time in academic environments, and McInerny captures the sort of thing that goes on with a high degree of accuracy. I like the Knight brothers, although a little more effective action, both in their lives and on the football field would, I think, improve the books.
Who Cares?.......2000-06-04
As a big fan of the Father Dowling series, I was very disappointed in this first book of a new series. For me, the story was dull. I didn't care who committed the murder, and I cared less about Phil and Roger who were investigating. I couldn't recommend this novel.
Mixed, very mixed.......1998-11-04
A good yarn, good plot, some interesting characters, but so badly written that I wonder if the author bothered to go back over what appears to be a first draft. Has he ever heard of a transition? Where were his editors? It did though drive to Amazon to look for an up-to-date Rockne bio (one due out this month) and found to my amazement a listing for a novel written by Rockne that figures in this murder mystery.
Wake up the echoes.....but don't try so hard........1997-11-03
I must commend McInerny for putting himself at risk by attempting to intermingle a modern fictional work with the time-honored tradition that is Notre Dame. As an alum, myself, it was amusing to read about my old stomping grounds, but I found the references to the Notre Dame campus, buildings, tradition and environs to be distracting at times. McInerny seems to be forcing discussion of Notre Dame history through his characters, incorporating wording and phraseology that few would use in daily conversation. The plot seemed rushed, and I believe that those who have never seen the beauty of the campus would be hard pressed to understand where and why certain actions take place. Notre Dame tradition is deeply rooted and anyone writing about it can be assured to receive criticism or praise from fans and alumni alike. McInerny's brave attempt at bringing this tradition into a fictitional realm is only mediocre, and I hope that in future books of this series, his results are more entertaining and intriguin
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