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Summary: Summer Reading Made Enjoyable
Review:
In My Life and Hard Times, James Thurber depicts the idiosyncrasies of human beings with a unique and humorous autobiography that diverts the reader and helps them to laugh at life. In a personal collection of stories such as "The Day the Dam Broke" and "The Night the Ghost Got In," Thurber rambles conversationally about his youth the early 1900s, keeping away from politics and big events and instead focusing on the "little perils of routine living" that pepper the lives of the ordinary people. By describing ridiculous events such as an entire town fleeing from a nonexistent flood, Thurber points out humans' lack of common sense and the foolishness that results. His short anecdotes help the reader not only to laugh at the characters and events in his book, but also at the reader's own life. However, Thurber finds no fault with people, instead laughing good naturedly and accepting them as a part of life. Memorable characters, ranging from Thurber's often insane grandfather to a slew of unique housemaids, add humor to the stories with their zany antics. The author's scribbled illustrations, scattered throughout the novel, increase the informal atmosphere. James Thurber's distinctive autobiography is an entertaining, if brief, read. Its frank and humorous look at the silliness of people's lives is fun to read silently, but makes, as Thurber says, "a better recitation."
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Summary: So funny
Review: A really funny book. Concise and to the point. Good read for all.
Rating:
Summary: Classic, yet sincerely interesting
Review: Haha, this guy must've cracked people up when this book was released. Although some of the funnies are a bit outdated, this is an awesome 'classic.'
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Summary: This book is refreshing and uplifting-very humorous.
Review: I first read this book 31 years ago! I still remember classic lines from the book that I quote to my own children. I believe this is one of Thurber's best works. His style of writing spans all ages of readers. His humor is delightful yet very realistic. I recomment this book to all readers who would enjoy a humorous approach to "life's happenings"!
Rating:
Summary: I laughed so hard it hurt!
Review: I first read this book as a summer assignment a quarter of a century ago. I picked up this old book again this year, and believe it to be written by arguably one of the best humorists in the last one hundred years. James Thurber is a master at the art of language and never fails to tickle the proverbial funny bone. For an easy, lighthearted read, this book is well worth the money and will likely become a favorite for your own private library.
Rating:
Summary: I laughed so hard it hurt!
Review: I first read this book as a summer assignment a quarter of a century ago. I picked up this old book again this year, and believe it to be written by arguably one of the best humorists in the last one hundred years. James Thurber is a master at the art of language and never fails to tickle the proverbial funny bone. For an easy, lighthearted read, this book is well worth the money and will likely become a favorite for your own private library.
Rating:
Summary: Elegantly simple and hilarious to boot
Review: James Thurber actually does tell something of the story of his life in this famed biography, but mostly he just moseys along telling stories with his trademark dry, mopey wit. The very first chapter--"The Night the Bed Fell"--begins with the laconic observation, "I suppose that the high-water mark of my youth in Columbus, Ohio, was the night the bed fell on my father." Thurber goes on to explain how his grandmother felt that electricity leaked if not plugged up, a preoccupation that kept her busy filling in every gap in every lamp or outlet in the house. All the chapters are pretty much entitled with the name of some highlight of Thurber's Ohio youth: "The Day the Dam Broke" and "The Night the Ghost Got In" and that sort of thing. What the chapters all have in common is that Thurber is a brilliant storyteller who manages to make the most plebian, everyday happenings matters of sparkling humor.
Rating:
Summary: Elegantly simple and hilarious to boot
Review: James Thurber actually does tell something of the story of his life in this famed biography, but mostly he just moseys along telling stories with his trademark dry, mopey wit. The very first chapter--"The Night the Bed Fell"--begins with the laconic observation, "I suppose that the high-water mark of my youth in Columbus, Ohio, was the night the bed fell on my father." Thurber goes on to explain how his grandmother felt that electricity leaked if not plugged up, a preoccupation that kept her busy filling in every gap in every lamp or outlet in the house. All the chapters are pretty much entitled with the name of some highlight of Thurber's Ohio youth: "The Day the Dam Broke" and "The Night the Ghost Got In" and that sort of thing. What the chapters all have in common is that Thurber is a brilliant storyteller who manages to make the most plebian, everyday happenings matters of sparkling humor.
Rating:
Summary: A True Classic Side-Splitter
Review: OF all the books of his period, James Thurber's "My Life and HArd Times" is a mirror into the mind of a true renaissance man, humorist extraordinaire, and story-teller. Ever since I was a teen reading this for the first time, I have kept a copy on my nighttable, for those evenings I needed a complete separation from reality. It has never failed me! Each story (which by now I have memorized) brings to mind the family quagmyres and dilemmas common to all, in a form only a genius like Thurber could do. His talent in a far simpler age lives well beyond him, and will forever.
Rating:
Summary: A True Classic Side-Splitter
Review: OF all the books of his period, James Thurber's "My Life and HArd Times" is a mirror into the mind of a true renaissance man, humorist extraordinaire, and story-teller. Ever since I was a teen reading this for the first time, I have kept a copy on my nighttable, for those evenings I needed a complete separation from reality. It has never failed me! Each story (which by now I have memorized) brings to mind the family quagmyres and dilemmas common to all, in a form only a genius like Thurber could do. His talent in a far simpler age lives well beyond him, and will forever.
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