The Lonely Guy and the Slightly Older Guy

by Bruce Jay Friedman

With its hilariously honest look at the single male in America -- from his apartment furnishings to his career struggles to his dating habits -- Bruce Jay Friedman's book The Lonely Guy's Book of Life quickly became a hit when it first appeared in 1978, winning raves from critics and inspiring Steve Martin's classic cult comedy The Lonely Guy. Twenty years later, Friedman returned to the subject with The Slightly Older Guy, finding his quarry no longer alone and not so young anymore, but just as funny. Now these classic humor books are available together for the first time in a single paperback edition from Grove Press. With a new afterword about "The Considerably Older Guy," this edition deals with such topics as divorce and grandchildren. Offering advice on exercise (walk, don't run) and insomnia (read Solzhenitsyn), Friedman took the pulse of the aging American male -- and found him still in need of some good satire.

Genres: Humor

240 pages, Paperback

First published October 8, 2001

About the author

American comic author whose dark, mocking humour and social criticism was directed at the concerns and behaviour of American Jews.

After graduating from the University of Missouri in 1951 with a B.A. in journalism and serving in the U.S. Air Force for two years, Friedman worked in publishing for several years before achieving success with his first novel, Stern (1962). The title character is a luckless descendent of the biblical Job, unable to assimilate into mainstream American life. Virtually all of Friedman's works are a variation on this theme; most of his characters are Jewish by birth, but they feel alienated from both Jewish and American culture. His works are also noted for focusing on absurd characters and situations.
-Encyclopædia Britannica

Reviews

[Pratik · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hilariously funny, but a sad book, You can't stop laughing, and at the same time feel sorry for both guys