The rescue of Miss Yaskell and other pipe dreams

by Russell Baker

More than a 100 delightful portions of his writing drawn from his New York Times columns.

Genres: Essays, Humor, Nonfiction

294 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1983

About the author

On August 14, 1925, US journalist, humorist and biographer Russell Baker was born in Loudoun County, Virginia. His father died early on and his hard-working mother reared him and his sisters during the Great Depression. Baker managed to get himself into Johns Hopkins University, where he studied journalism.

Baker’s wit as a humorist has been compared with that of Mark Twain. “The only thing I was fit for was to be a writer,” wrote Baker, “and this notion rested solely on my suspicion that I would never be fit for real work, and that writing didn’t require any.” In 1979, Baker received his first Pulitzer Prize for distinguished commentary in his “Observer” column for the New York Times (1962 to 1998). His 1983 autobiography, Growing Up earned him a second Pulitzer. In 1993, Baker began hosting the PBS television series Masterpiece Theatre.

Neil Postman, in the preface to Conscientious Objections, describes Baker as "like some fourth century citizen of Rome who is amused and intrigued by the Empire's collapse but who still cares enough to mock the stupidities that are hastening its end. He is, in my opinion, a precious national resource, and as long as he does not get his own television show, America will remain stronger than Russia." (1991, xii)

Reviews

[Jules Alder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Growing up with a family member who worked at the Times, I'm surprised I didn't get more gifts like this fantastic volume as a kid. NYT "Observer" columnist from 1962-1998, this tome curated the best of Baker's columns from the early-to-mid 80s, a time when there seemed to be so much to laugh at--if for no other reason than to stifle the sobs. Baker never trifled with the real fights and controversies. You'll find no scathing criticisms of how New York Mayor Ed Koch swept the AIDS crisis in his city under an Upper East side rug. No, no...crit wasn't Baker's bag; humor was. He could be counted upon to make mountains out of mole hills when poking fun at the military in general and the arms race in particular ("Merrily We Pentagon"). He never missed an opportunity to make verbal mincemeat of the image-obsessed, New York snobs, or English grammar Nazis. His humor could even be warm and fuzzy, finding empathy in spots as tight as a sarcophagus ("No Rest for Old Pharaoh") or as airy as the world from which he hailed ("Making It Back in the Old Hometown"). The subtext always proclaimed that New York is a fast-moving place full of serious people, on serious business, and there was no time for tears. My only regret when reading these old inches is that I wasn't an adult New Yorker when they were being written by the old cog in the wheel himself. I could have used more laughter in my childhood, for sure...but Russell Baker helped. This sits at Book #8 on my list of 100 Books You Should Read Before You Die...just for the bloody hell of it. (That's #100BooksFTW if you're on Twitter).

[Katherine · Rating 2 out of 5]

There were gems sprinkled through this book, but they were few and far between. While occasionally wry or thought-provoking, most pieces ended up coming across as just plain grumpy, which should have been no surprise as it was endorsed by Andy Rooney. Only sheer determination led me to finish it.

[Cws]

814.54

[Toesnorth's mom]

stupid!