Pages

Thursday, December 21, 2006

I Like You by Amy Sedaris and other things

Ever feel that a mountain of paper was going to overwhelm you in a wave of bills, magazine offers and letters never replied to? Ever have that feeling while pounds of bloody snot rockets from your face and you have no voice to curse with?

Just wondering.

***

I Like You by Amy Sedaris was a birthday present, sadly given after I was already deep into throwing a crappy party. When the party starts at 4:30, show up before 10, know what I’m saying?

The book is big and pretty. The photographs of Amy are fun and remind me of the intriguing entertaining books from the 70s I have seen in the thrift store- where the food is poorly lit and there’s always an orgy around the corner. The illustrations were doodly, but not doo-doo-y. The shtick is Jerri Blank plus Sedaris clan, which was kind of disappointing because I like Jerri, I really do, but I like her confined to her short Comedy Central show.

The most helpful parts of the book are the sections on how to be a good host and how to be a good guest. People don’t seem to get that the responsibility for a good party goes both ways. Please keep the graphic descriptions of your “fungus problem” and unexplained and unclaimed bleeding to yourself (unless you are me. I am hilarious when I harp on gross medical stuff, as evidenced by this blog). The invitation requirements she sets out are helpful to an inept host like myself as well. It was fun to read and I might refer to it again if planning a party, but I will never make any of the food (except perhaps the cupcakes) that Sedaris so lovingly diagrams out for us.

I wish I could add quotes but finding the book, opening it and making editorial decisions about which lines t choose and how to describe them seems so hard. So hard.

***
I never made it to the KGB bar lit event last night. Too much anger and mucus. Did anyone go?

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

ha! i was listening to this book on cd, strangely enough, because it showed up in the free pile at work somehow. and yeah, i feel exactly the same way.

not that i ever throw parties because a)i don't love them that much and b)my dog likes to french-kiss, and not everyone, for some reason, appreciates her ardor.

Carrie said...

On CD? Bizarre.

I actually like throwing parties. Not that you could tell by any of the parties I have thrown.

Anonymous said...

Love! Love! Love!

I want to be Amy when I grow up!