What do Canadian Evangelicals, stupid pelicans, and the Associated Press have in common? All are all mercilessly lampooned for the sake of comedy in "Where There's a Will, There's Away. Messages: A 21st Century Guide to the Art of Absence," a book that explores the limits of the Away Message as a vehicle for shameless amusement.

Each page features a different Message, gathered into curious subcategories such as, "Fun with Advertising," "It's A Thinker," and "Religious Shmreligious." Prefaced by an analysis of the creative process and the author's personal writing philosophy, this...