Mere Anarchy

Mere Anarchy

I am greatly relieved that the universe is finally explainable. I was beginning to think it was me.

-- Woody Allen

Here, in his first collection since his three hilarious classics Getting Even, Without Feathers, and Side Effects, Woody Allen has managed to write a book that not only answers the most profound questions of human existence but is the perfect size to place under any short table leg to prevent wobbling.


"I awoke Friday, and because the universe is expanding it took me longer than usual to find my robe," he explains in a piece on physics called 'Strung Out.' In other flights of inspirational sanity we are introduced to a cast of characters only Allen could imagine: Jasper Nutmeat, Flanders Mealworm, and the independent film mogul E. Coli Biggs, just to name a few. Whether he is writing about art, sex, food, or crime ("Pugh has been a policeman as far back as he can remember. His father was a notorious bank robber, and the only way Pugh could get to spend time with him was to apprehend him") he is explosively funny.
>In "This Nib for Hire," a Hollywood bigwig comes across an author's book in a little country store and describes it in a way that aptly captures this magnificent volume: "Actually," the producer says, "I'd never seen a book remaindered in the kindling section before."
From the Hardcover edition.

Customer Review: Not his best, and not his worst either

Woody Allen's new book is certainly not as good as Side Effects, or Getting Even. However, it has highlights and is a decent read. Light, but a bit uneven. If you are a dedicated fan of the Woodman, you definitely should take a look at this. But if you are new to his prose, start with Getting Even, and his best work, Side Effects.

Customer Review: Allen at his absurdist best

Many may only know Woody Allen from his films . . . but he has also

written three very funny collections of short stories: GETTING EVEN,

WITHOUT FEATHERS and SIDE EFFECTS.

Over 25 years have passed since the publication of that last book,
so when I saw he recently came out with MERE ANARCHY, I quickly
got my own copy to see if he has lost his touch . . . I'm happy to say that he has not.

MERE ANARCHY, like his earlier efforts, covers a wide range of
topics . . . you'll find yourself laughing when you hear his observations about sex, food or even how parents deal with the rejection
of their son into the best nursery school in Manhattan:

* In the days following the rejection, Anna Ivanovich became
listless. She quarreled with the nanny and accused her of
brushing Mischa's teeth sideways rather than up and down.
She stopped eating regularly and wept to her shrink. "I must
have transgressed against God's will to bring this on," she
wailed. "I must have sinned beyond measure-too many
shoes from Prada." She imagined that the Hampton Jitney
tried to run her over, and when Armani canceled her charge
account for no apparent reason, she took to her bedroom and
began having an affair. This was hard to conceal from Boris
Ivanovich, since he shared the same bedroom and asked
repeatedly who the man next to them was.

I also liked what Allen had to say about moving into a new
property:

* It all began with the purchase of a small brownstone on
Manhattan's Upper West Side. Miss Wilpong, of Mengele
Realtors, promised us it was the buy of a lifetime, priced
modestly at a figure no higher than the cost of a stealth
bomber. The dwelling was drumbeat as being in "move-in
condition," and perhaps it was, for the Jukes family or a
caravan of Gypsies.

And on the subject of crime, here was his take:

* At the trial Stubbs chose to act as his own lawyer, but a
conflict over his fee led to ill feelings. I visited Beau Stubbs
on Death Row, where numerous appeals kept him from
the gallows for a decade, in which time he used prison to
learn a trade and became a highly skilled airline pilot. I
was present when the final sentence was carried out.

A great sum of money was paid to Stubbs by Nike for the television
rights, allowing the company to put its logo on the front of his
black hood. Whether the death penalty acts as a deterrent
remains questionable, although studies show that the odds of
criminals committing another crime drops by almost half after
their execution.



MERE ANARCHY is Allen at his absurdist best . . . read it,
if for no other reason than it will put a smile on your face--something
we all need to do more often.

As usual, click the cover image or the book title above for more information and to get your copy!