false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1223648976m/35503.jpg 35503 9 The title of Woody Allen's second collection of <I>New Yorker</I>-style sprint humor is a sly comment on Emily Dickinson's famous quote, "Hope is the thing with feathers." <I>Without Feathers</I> delivers Allen's hopeless schlub persona--you remember, what he used to be before he was either a lecher or an <I>auteur</I>, depending on your politics. In addition to being as funny as anything published since, to read <I>Without Feathers</I> is to return to a simpler time, when being a fan of his work was common, not controversial.<p> Though each piece is funny, two of them are particularly notable examples of Allen's distinctive style (borrowed in large part from S.J. Perelman by way of the Borscht Belt, but distinctive, nevertheless)--"The Whore of Mensa" and "If the Impressionists Had Been Dentists." Here's an excerpt from the latter: <blockquote> Mrs. Sol Schwimmer is suing me because I made her bridge as I felt it and not to fit her ridiculous mouth! That's right! I can't work to order like a common tradesman! I decided her bridge should be enormous and billowing, with wild, explosive teeth flaring up in every direction like fire! Now she is upset because it won't fit in her mouth! She is so bourgeois and stupid, I want to smash her! I tried forcing the false plate in but it sticks out like a star burst chandelier. </blockquote> <i>Without Feathers</i> is fine, funny prose, from an American master. If you're a fan, seek it out immediately. It's a document from the days when Woody was not important, but merely hysterically funny. <I>--Michael Gerber</I> 1843009 1975 Without Feathers total:1197|5:12|4:10|3:8|2:3|1:0| 1197 4798 1519 72 4 0 false false Fri Jan 23 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Tue Jan 20 18:43:02 -0800 2009 Fri Jan 23 16:39:44 -0800 2009 more...]]> 1 1 false false Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Sun Aug 19 18:10:50 -0700 2007 Sun Aug 19 18:33:47 -0700 2007 5 0 false false Tue Aug 25 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Aug 18 10:56:25 -0700 2009 Wed Aug 26 03:54:30 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 1978 Sun Apr 19 23:52:09 -0700 2009 Sun Apr 19 23:55:43 -0700 2009 1 more...]]> 5 1 false false Sun Nov 16 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sun Nov 16 13:04:11 -0800 2008 Sun Nov 16 13:04:52 -0800 2008 more...]]> 2 0 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2002 Mon Aug 24 10:34:50 -0700 2009 Mon Aug 24 10:38:22 -0700 2009 1 more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Jun 17 00:00:00 -0700 1975 Tue May 19 01:09:47 -0700 2009 Tue May 19 01:12:52 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1978 Thu Feb 12 12:53:27 -0800 2009 Thu Feb 12 12:56:09 -0800 2009 more...]]> 5 1 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1987 Mon Nov 24 14:54:11 -0800 2008 Fri Dec 12 17:33:36 -0800 2008
Should I marry W.? Not if she won't tell me the other letters in her name . . .

How wrong Emily Dickinson was! Hope is not "t...more...]]> 0 0 false false Sat Aug 22 20:23:33 -0700 2009 Sat Aug 22 20:25:16 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 1 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sun Dec 14 17:43:49 -0800 2008 Mon Jun 29 15:53:45 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 1 false false Sun Mar 08 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sun Feb 15 17:09:43 -0800 2009 Sun Mar 08 14:21:26 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 1 false false Mon Apr 27 19:33:19 -0700 2009 Mon Apr 27 19:34:56 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Fri Nov 20 12:56:57 -0800 2009 Fri Nov 20 13:26:32 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Sat Jun 27 09:30:25 -0700 2009 Sat Jun 27 09:31:36 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Sat Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2005 Thu May 07 16:08:19 -0700 2009 Thu May 07 16:09:53 -0700 2009 5 1 false false Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1988 Sun Jul 08 01:44:41 -0700 2007 Sun Jul 08 01:51:37 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 22 20:19:53 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 22 20:21:08 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Thu Sep 03 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Sep 05 01:28:35 -0700 2009 Sat Sep 05 01:33:33 -0700 2009 5 1 false false Tue Jun 09 22:04:06 -0700 2009 Tue Jun 09 22:04:47 -0700 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=35503