A Massive Swelling: Celebrity Re-Examined as a Grotesque, Crippling Disease and Other Cultural Re...
Whether you lust after it, loathe it, or feign apathy toward it, fame is in your face. Cintra Wilson gets to the heart of our humiliating fascinati...
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Dec 17, 2009
Laura
rated it: 
I wanted to like this book more than I did. I expected to love it unreservedly -- I spend so much time rolling my eyes at the sight of commuters with their faces buried in People Magazine and In Touch that I'm sort of surprised they aren't permanently lodged in the back of my skull -- but the content kept getting tripped up by the ostentatious, aren't-I-terribly-clever writing. Now, I don't mind ostentatious writing, necessarily, but ostentatious mixed with pages and pages of fulmination can get
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Dec 16, 2009
Mer
rated it: 
Ah, Cintra Wilson. How your brutal, merciless beauty has captured my heart.
When she described Los Angeles as "a giant peach of a dream crawling with centipedes" I knew it was love.
This collection of her screamingly funny essays lampooning our society's unhealthy fascination with fame and pop celebrity was LONG overdue when Penguin compiled it several years ago, and her message of "DON'T BELIEVE THE HYPE, YOU SICK LITTLE PUPPIES" holds true now more th
When she described Los Angeles as "a giant peach of a dream crawling with centipedes" I knew it was love.
This collection of her screamingly funny essays lampooning our society's unhealthy fascination with fame and pop celebrity was LONG overdue when Penguin compiled it several years ago, and her message of "DON'T BELIEVE THE HYPE, YOU SICK LITTLE PUPPIES" holds true now more th
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Sep 06, 2007
Jay
rated it:
I loved this rant on celebrity culture in U.S.
It is smart and out loud funny.
Notes touched upon in book:
Rumors that Michael Jackson's nose fell off during the pepsi commercial.
Actual fan letters to New Kids on the Block from teenage girl's MOTHERS
not the girls themselves.
Celine Dion clutching a blind child on a playground and screaming
"She wants to learn, God Dammit. Let her Learn!"
Find a copy of this geniu
It is smart and out loud funny.
Notes touched upon in book:
Rumors that Michael Jackson's nose fell off during the pepsi commercial.
Actual fan letters to New Kids on the Block from teenage girl's MOTHERS
not the girls themselves.
Celine Dion clutching a blind child on a playground and screaming
"She wants to learn, God Dammit. Let her Learn!"
Find a copy of this geniu
Nov 27, 2007
Jenne
rated it: 
I was trying to describe this book to a friend, and the closest I could come up with was "It's like if Tom Robbins and Maureen Dowd had a sordid one-night stand at some trashy producer's party in the Valley, and nine months later this brilliant and vicious woman sprang forth fully formed from the forehead of the editor of US Weekly."
But better than that.
I'm just sorry I didn't read it right when it came out--the world of fame and celebrity has gotten so much MORE grot More...
But better than that.
I'm just sorry I didn't read it right when it came out--the world of fame and celebrity has gotten so much MORE grot More...
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Jan 02, 2008
Shannon
rated it:
This was funny. The funniest thing about it, though, I'm sad to say, is the title. Though as I was reading it and feeling somewhat unsatisfied I realized the reason for this was that it didnt' seem very current. I checked the publication date and it was published in 2000. Probably written in 1999. So... a lot has happened in the horrible entertainment world since then. So, with this in mind, the book is much better. Nothing was particularly ground-breaking for me, as I already feel nausiated and
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Apr 14, 2011
Allison
rated it: 
GUPTGed on page 58. I was sufficiently charmed by the author's contribution to It's So You to seek this out from the library. I'll probably still try to read one of her novels, but man, this wasn't the book for me. The bombastic declarations on the book jacket didn't set a good precedent: "Wilson says what everyone thinks but *no one* has the audacity to say about modern celebrity culture." Really? Isn't the whole point of celebrity culture building it up to tear it down? And to exactl
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Mar 06, 2011
Huma
rated it:
I gave this book a 3 when I actually wanted to give it a 3.5. It's not really a 3, not quite a 4, but there we have it. I love critical essays in general, especially about literature and culture at large, and Cintra Wilson's short collection of essays was a great read in that respect.
It's billed as hilarious, a book that, according to USA Today, will have you up "at 2:30 a.m., laughing like a loon." Not so, in my opinion. It's not all that funny. I would not use that word t More...
It's billed as hilarious, a book that, according to USA Today, will have you up "at 2:30 a.m., laughing like a loon." Not so, in my opinion. It's not all that funny. I would not use that word t More...
Oct 27, 2007
Alvin
rated it:
This is nothing less than a jeremaiad against celebrity culture, but its never sanctimonious or stuffy. In fact, it's over the top hilarious. The fact that nobody can cram more venom into a sentence than Wilson should not blind one to the fact that she's also an amazingly clear eyed thinker with a lot so say... all of it brilliant.
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Nov 29, 2010
David
rated it:
This is basically a series of essays in which Cintra Wilson (a regular columnist in Salon and the Huffington Post) uncorks on celebrities and the celebration of fame. Her writing is biting and cruel and wickedly funny at times, but reading an entire book of it is tiring, like watching a really loud, flashing music video play over and over with little variation.
To the degree that she's trying to make a serious point, it is that fame unhinges everyone, especially the famous, but also e More...
To the degree that she's trying to make a serious point, it is that fame unhinges everyone, especially the famous, but also e More...
Oct 28, 2009
Baabia
rated it:
Would rate this lower if I could. It doesn't take much guts to attack the beauty industry or celebrity culture, but Cintra Wilson acts like she's Che fucking Guevara for making fun of an actor's haircut and pointing out (are you sitting down for this?) being a celebrity isn't actually all that great. Save yourself the time and just watch Britney's video for "Lucky." It's the same message.
Oh, and the writing is way too punchy and snarky for my tastes. It might work for a sho More...
Oh, and the writing is way too punchy and snarky for my tastes. It might work for a sho More...
Oct 06, 2009
Heather
rated it:
Do you like scathing criticism adorned with flourishes of bitingly funny / hate filled descriptions? Does our celebrity soaked society make you want to jab your eyes out with rusty nails? Then this book is for you!
Being someone who deeply HATES our disgustingly shallow celebrity worshipping society, I loved most of it. Some of the chapters, however, didn't appeal to me. For example, the chapter on Broadway or the chapter on Las Vegas bored me. Probably because I'm not familiar More...
Being someone who deeply HATES our disgustingly shallow celebrity worshipping society, I loved most of it. Some of the chapters, however, didn't appeal to me. For example, the chapter on Broadway or the chapter on Las Vegas bored me. Probably because I'm not familiar More...
Oct 25, 2008
John
rated it:
I love that subtitle. I discovered Cintra Wilson in the pages of the (late) San Francisco Examiner. Her hero was Hunter S. Thompson -- who also had a column in the (late) San Francisco Examiner that I read riding BART back in those fearful, loathsome times. Unlike every other new journo wannabe, Cintra could & can write. She put out this book, then reemerged gloriously as a Salon.com contributor. I even caught her joint e-cast during the Oscars with Camille Paglia. It was disappointing.... as
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Jan 15, 2009
Amanda
rated it:
This was such a weird and difficult read for me...
I highly enjoyed Cintra Wilson's writing, and I'm excited to read her other books(esp. "Colours Insulting to Nature"). She's funny and biting and bitter (and that IS a compliment in my world view), and this collection of essays about the "cult of celebrity" does have some laugh-out-loud funny moments that make you want to turn to the person next to you and read aloud, so they can also enjoy the snarky goodness. How More...
I highly enjoyed Cintra Wilson's writing, and I'm excited to read her other books(esp. "Colours Insulting to Nature"). She's funny and biting and bitter (and that IS a compliment in my world view), and this collection of essays about the "cult of celebrity" does have some laugh-out-loud funny moments that make you want to turn to the person next to you and read aloud, so they can also enjoy the snarky goodness. How More...
Jan 09, 2011
Casey
rated it:
This book is cutting and smart. Cintra Wilson is profane, acerbic and very funny. A good read to help stop the madness. A must read if you have been reading too many fashion magazines or are feeling unsatisfied with your life and just wish you could be famous and rich already. I go back to it every couple of years.
Aug 09, 2011
I love free flowing anger but there seems to be a lot of specific examples: name names, fight the good fight - otherwise you are just writing non-specific fiction. It's easy to pick on Sigfried and Roy but to hold back when modern Hollywood comes into focus is lopsided.
Jul 08, 2011
BonB
rated it:
It's dated now, but still deserves a read if only for Wilson's ability to make you weep with laughter at her use of the language to eviscerate idiots like Celine Dion and Kevin Costner. I would hate to be on her hit list and you would, too.
Nov 23, 2011
Jody
rated it:
Not for sensitive readers, this blunt examination of fame and the general public's obsession with it is at times repugnant, hilarious, and scathing. I am happy to duck my 15 minutes of fame.
Jan 10, 2011
Pilar
rated it:
One of the last books I remember laughing out loud at. Hilarious and trenchant and some pieces drove me to the point of tears of laughter. Massively entertaining.
Nov 20, 2009
Denisebilbao
rated it:
recommended by the man who runs dog eared books. and now by me! she writes a column for the thurs nyt styles section. prepare to possibly die laughing
Jun 16, 2011
Jolene
rated it:
Acerbic and witty Wilson guide the reader through her criticism of celebrity in the 20th century. A very funny short read for fans of pop culture.
Mar 28, 2010
Tia
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
Oct 12, 2009
Phae
rated it: 
Terribly funny and sad and scary. Wilson is a very talented and a blisteringly sharp pop culture satirist.
Jul 27, 2009
Tracy
rated it:
Cintra Wilson dares to write with ferocious wit and anger. I love this book; I read it over and over again.
Nov 25, 2008
Tanya
rated it:
Being the inherent cynic that I am, very rarely does a book make me laugh out loud -- this one did.
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Sep 14, 2011
Biting commentary on our worship of fame - ascerbic, witty, and downright mean, but funny
May 25, 2010
jim
rated it:
Cintra Wilson is a hoot, with her acidic prose she nails the cultural wasteland that is celebrity, hollywood, LA and all the faux-trappings that come attached. Granted, she has to perform a Wallenda high wire act between bashing the empty-celebrity trough and not falling in herself, which she does with humor and a pitbull's iron bite, shaking vacuous movie and rock stars like a groundhog until their spines snap.
As a bonus, Wilson reaffirms the notion that we are a nation of trailer-park m More...
As a bonus, Wilson reaffirms the notion that we are a nation of trailer-park m More...
Jun 23, 2008
Kip
rated it:
I always enjoyed Cintra's Oscar wrap-ups on Salon, so was really looking forward to reading this book. Her style is best served up in essay-sized chunks, I think -- by the end of the book I was tired of wading through her rants.
Oh, and maybe it's just the prude in me, but I was embarrassed to read this book in public due to the title and cover image. I also did a little cringe when I picked it up at the library reservation desk.
Oh, and maybe it's just the prude in me, but I was embarrassed to read this book in public due to the title and cover image. I also did a little cringe when I picked it up at the library reservation desk.
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