If Life Is a Bowl of Cherries, What Am I Doing in the Pits? Review
My wife and I had stopped at her sister's home in Fort Lauderdale on one of our winter breaks from our "Hobo-ing America" adventure some time back in the 70s. Whenever I am in anybody's home, I pick up whatever books they have laying around and scan them. My sister-in-law had several books by Erma Bombeck laying here and there. I wasn't really interested but I picked one up out of shear nervousness.
I am not sure which was the first of Erma's that I read. But I do remember that I couldn't put it down and that I was constantly laughing out loud. I read this book about the Cheeries, "the Grass is always Greener over the Septic Tank" and at least 5 or 6 more on that visit.
Erma was just a funny lady. Her sense of humor and her style on putting that humor down on paper is a study in the art of writing humorously.
From that time on I read her newspaper columns and listened to her commentaries when she was on TV. Her style and her attitude have become a part of the female culture of the American housewife. She made a bigger impact culturally than she even accomplished in the literary field.
Any "funny" female writer that you pick up today will contain shades of Erma. She is now a part of Americana and deservingly so. We often hear the phrase "So and so is/was an American treasure." Well, Erma was without any doubt an American treasure. I love Erma!
If you can read any of her books without spiting up laughing at some point, then you do not have a sense of humor. Sorry, but that the way it is. I love Erma.
Books written by Richard Noble - The Hobo Philosopher:
"Hobo-ing America: A Workingman's Tour of the U.S.A.."
"A Summer with Charlie" Salisbury Beach, Lawrence YMCA
"A Little Something: Poetry and Prose
"Honor Thy Father and Thy Mother" Novel - Lawrence, Ma.
"The Eastpointer" Selections from award winning column.
"Noble Notes on Famous Folks" Humor - satire - facts.
"America on Strike" American Labor - History
If Life Is a Bowl of Cherries, What Am I Doing in the Pits? Feature
- ISBN13: 9780449208397
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
- Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices
Art Buchwald
The enchanting lady of laughter has done it again--this time taking a hilarious swipe at husbands, honeymoons, tennis elbow, marriage, lettuce, the national anthem, and a host of other domestic dilemmas.
"It's fun from cover to cover."
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Customer Reviews
Maybe a good introduction, though not one of her best books - Privacy, Please - Maryland, USA
I remember when this book came out because my mother and I had all of her previous books and by this time were big fans of Erma. I was pretty excited to see a new book hit the stands, but when I read this one I was a little disappointed. At the time the book came out Erma was at, or maybe just past, the peak of her professional renown and was involved with a lot of different projects besides just columns and books. This book seems to have suffered a little as a result, or maybe Erma's publisher felt that people in the 80s had shorter attention spans and less time to read. The result is a shorter book with much bigger type and some of the jokes and storylines seemingly rehashed from past books.
Because this book is both more modern (by about 20 years) and less dense than Erma's first book, "At Wit's End", this book might be the one to read if you just want a quick introduction to Erma and her zany post-Phyllis-Diller sense of housewife-humor before you delve into one of her earlier, longer works. And if you're a die-hard fan you'll like it because hey, it's more of Erma. I like the book, but I think her previous books, including "At Wit's End" and "I Lost Everything in the Post-Natal Depression" have much more meat and are more developed and funnier. This one is more like something a busy author would dash off and go on a talk show with, or something to read in one sitting on an airplane ride.
Jul 10, 2010 12:41:05
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