FacebookTwitter
Hatrack River Forum   
my profile login | search | faq | forum home

  next oldest topic   next newest topic
» Hatrack River Forum » Active Forums » Books, Films, Food and Culture » Book Advice

   
Author Topic: Book Advice
david121
New Member
Member # 10585

 - posted      Profile for david121   Email david121         Edit/Delete Post 
Okay, I'm looking for some works which fit one or more of the below criteria:

- Modern American social commentary
- Satire
- Witty humor, but with substance
- Stupid and risque things that happen in a New York City
- Fresh ideas and themes
Any suggestions appreciated.

Posts: 2 | Registered: Jun 2007  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
rivka
Member
Member # 4859

 - posted      Profile for rivka   Email rivka         Edit/Delete Post 
Define "modern," please. Would something like The Jungle qualify (if it had the other qualifications)?
Posts: 32919 | Registered: Mar 2003  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
TL
Member
Member # 8124

 - posted      Profile for TL   Email TL         Edit/Delete Post 
New York City is a weirdly specific request. Take that out, and I could name half a dozen books right now. For example, have you read 'A Confederacy of Dunces'?
Posts: 2267 | Registered: May 2005  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Celaeno
Member
Member # 8562

 - posted      Profile for Celaeno   Email Celaeno         Edit/Delete Post 
I just finished A Confederacy of Dunces last night. It was absolutely fantastic.
Posts: 866 | Registered: Aug 2005  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Ben
Member
Member # 6117

 - posted      Profile for Ben   Email Ben         Edit/Delete Post 
Anything by Arthur Nersesian (if modern can include books set in the 80s) should serve your purpose.
Posts: 1572 | Registered: Jan 2004  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
The White Whale
Member
Member # 6594

 - posted      Profile for The White Whale           Edit/Delete Post 
Kurt Vonnegut.
Posts: 1711 | Registered: Jun 2004  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Eaquae Legit
Member
Member # 3063

 - posted      Profile for Eaquae Legit   Email Eaquae Legit         Edit/Delete Post 
Too bad you want American. "How to Be a Canadian" and "Why I Hate Canadians" are awesome books that would fit if you subbed in Canada and Toronto.
Posts: 2849 | Registered: Feb 2002  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
nathannathan
New Member
Member # 10587

 - posted      Profile for nathannathan           Edit/Delete Post 
If you want to hear all about the stupid and risque things that happen in a New York City limo, buy “Tales of a New York Limo Driver” by Nicky Testaforte.

Not only does the author tell amazing stories of sex, excess and stupidity, he also offers up a bunch of driving and travel tips, some very sarcastic and scathing. Typical New York attitude, excerpt at nylimotales.com/stories.html

Posts: 1 | Registered: Jun 2007  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Javert
Member
Member # 3076

 - posted      Profile for Javert   Email Javert         Edit/Delete Post 
"The God Delusion". It's a modern American social commentary (well, global, but it includes the US) and it is quite witty with a lot of substance.
Posts: 3852 | Registered: Feb 2002  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Architraz Warden
Member
Member # 4285

 - posted      Profile for Architraz Warden   Email Architraz Warden         Edit/Delete Post 
"Bobos in Paradise" by David Brooks?

I think it matches most of the criteria.

Posts: 1368 | Registered: Sep 2002  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
vonk
Member
Member # 9027

 - posted      Profile for vonk   Email vonk         Edit/Delete Post 
Anything by Tom Robbins would fit the bill, except maybe the New York thing. I think only one or two mention stupid or risky (is that the same as risque?) things going on in the city. Other than that, though, I can almost guarantee that everything else on the list is more than well represented in all of his fiction.
Posts: 2596 | Registered: Jan 2006  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Elizabeth
Member
Member # 5218

 - posted      Profile for Elizabeth   Email Elizabeth         Edit/Delete Post 
For New York, a horrid and popular novel by Jay McInerney: Bright Lights, Big City. Written in second person. (shudder)
Posts: 10890 | Registered: May 2003  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Shmuel
Member
Member # 7586

 - posted      Profile for Shmuel   Email Shmuel         Edit/Delete Post 
David Rakoff has a couple of essay collections.
Posts: 884 | Registered: Mar 2005  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Elizabeth
Member
Member # 5218

 - posted      Profile for Elizabeth   Email Elizabeth         Edit/Delete Post 
Also, for satire and humor, there is no one better(to me) than Evelyn Waugh. His novel "The Loved One" would also count as modern social commentary, but of the early Nineteenth Century, not too recent.
Posts: 10890 | Registered: May 2003  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
vonk
Member
Member # 9027

 - posted      Profile for vonk   Email vonk         Edit/Delete Post 
I would like to expand on my earlier suggestion by adding Skinny Legs and All, which has everything you're looking for in spades. By that I mean that there's lots of it. And it's fantastic. And you should read it. And one of the main characters is a sock. And he's my favorite.
Posts: 2596 | Registered: Jan 2006  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Artemisia Tridentata
Member
Member # 8746

 - posted      Profile for Artemisia Tridentata   Email Artemisia Tridentata         Edit/Delete Post 
I just finished a "complete" colllection of Evelyn Waugh short stories. I thought I had an English F. Scott Fitzgerald. No American, No New York. But, certainly great satire and humor.
Posts: 1167 | Registered: Oct 2005  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Elizabeth
Member
Member # 5218

 - posted      Profile for Elizabeth   Email Elizabeth         Edit/Delete Post 
Actually, The Loved One is about Hollywood, and American culture. Pet cemetaries. Loads of fun!

Also, for dark humor(very dark) which is about new York State, is T.Corraghassen Boyle's "World's End."

Also, "Tortilla Curtain" is about the lives of Mexican immigrants who are trying to survive in posh California suburbs. Very depressing, but darkly funny, but a tough read for me.

Posts: 10890 | Registered: May 2003  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
ketchupqueen
Member
Member # 6877

 - posted      Profile for ketchupqueen   Email ketchupqueen         Edit/Delete Post 
I'm thinking there's a book by Chitra Bannerjee Divakaruni that meets those critera but can't remember which one. Or maybe it was by another Indian-American author and I happened to be reading it at the same time as I read a bunch of her books. Grrr, why can't I remember what it was?
Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Farmgirl
Member
Member # 5567

 - posted      Profile for Farmgirl   Email Farmgirl         Edit/Delete Post 
You didn't specify Fiction or Non-Fiction
Posts: 9538 | Registered: Aug 2003  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
MattP
Member
Member # 10495

 - posted      Profile for MattP   Email MattP         Edit/Delete Post 
America (The Book) by Jon Stewart is pretty funny and it's somewhat educational
Posts: 3275 | Registered: May 2007  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
otterk10
Member
Member # 10463

 - posted      Profile for otterk10           Edit/Delete Post 
What about The Great Gadsby?
Posts: 77 | Registered: Apr 2007  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Earendil18
Member
Member # 3180

 - posted      Profile for Earendil18   Email Earendil18         Edit/Delete Post 
America by Jon Stewart: Teacher's Edition has added funniness of a professor "correcting" his mistakes.
Posts: 1236 | Registered: Mar 2002  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
SteveRogers
Member
Member # 7130

 - posted      Profile for SteveRogers           Edit/Delete Post 
You might enjoy anything by Christopher Moore. His stuff is somewhat satirical. I really liked his book Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal.
Posts: 6026 | Registered: Dec 2004  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
rivka
Member
Member # 4859

 - posted      Profile for rivka   Email rivka         Edit/Delete Post 
You know, I had a vague notion that the OP was a spammer, but I thought I was being paranoid. I decided to overcome my suspicions and welcome the new member. Hah!

*embraces her paranoia and suspiciousness*

Posts: 32919 | Registered: Mar 2003  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
   

   Close Topic   Feature Topic   Move Topic   Delete Topic next oldest topic   next newest topic
 - Printer-friendly view of this topic
Hop To:


Contact Us | Hatrack River Home Page

Copyright © 2008 Hatrack River Enterprises Inc. All rights reserved.
Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.


Powered by Infopop Corporation
UBB.classic™ 6.7.2