From This American Life alum David Rakoff comes a hilarious collection that single-handedly raises self-deprecation to an art form. Whether impersonating Sigmund Freud in a department store window during the holidays, climbing an icy mountain in cheap loafers, or learning primitive survival skills in the wilds of New Jersey, Rakoff clearly demonstrates how he doesn't belong-nor does he try to.

In his debut collection of essays, Rakoff uses his razor-sharp wit and snarky humor to deliver a barrage of damaging blows that, more often than not, land squarely on his own jaw-hilariously...

A bitingly funny grand tour of our culture of excessfrom an award-winning humorist.
WhetherDavid Rakoffis contrasting the elegance of one of the last flights of the supersonic Concorde with the good-times-and-chicken-wings populism of Hooters Air; working as a cabana boy at a South Beach hotel; or traveling to a private island off the coast of Belize to watch a soft-core video shoot where he is provided with his very own personal manservant rarely have greed, vanity, selfishness, and vapidity been so mercilessly skewered. Somewhere along the line, our healthy self-regard has exploded into...

In this deeply smart and sneakily poignant collection of essays, the bestselling author of Fraud and Don t Get Too Comfortable makes an inspired case for always assuming the worst because then you ll never be disappointed.
Whether he s taking on pop culture phenomena with Oscar Wilde-worthy wit or dealing with personal tragedy, Rakoff s sharp observations and humorist s flair for the absurd will have you positively reveling in the untapped power of negativity."