A hilariously funny, touching, and revelatory book from one of America's preeminent humorists
In his plays, his screenplays, and his writing for the New Yorker and Premiere, Paul Rudnick has established himself as a comic master whose talents transcend genre. Now, in I Shudder, he trains his wickedly perceptive eye on everything from his New Jersey family to Hollywood to demented alcoholic Broadway stars waving swords. At his Uncle Rudy's funeral, Rudnick's beloved Aunt Lil put one hand on her husband's coffin and her other hand on Rudnick's shoulder and said, "Your Uncle Rudy always loved you. He never understood why, in your writing, you had to use that kind of language, but he loved you."
Charming and touching, I Shudder is rendered in Rudnick's gorgeous, zinger-laden prose and reminds us of the need to keep our tongues sharp in the midst of life's many obstacles and absurdities. Here is one of the most accomplished collections in years, from a writer who ranks with David Sedaris and Augusten Burroughs as one of our most gifted and hilarious social observers.
Rudnick. Paul. "I Shudder: And Other Reactions to Life, Death, and New Jersey", HarperCollins, 2009.
Wicked Humor
Amos Lassen
David Sedaris says that Paul Rudnick is "a champion of truth (and love and great wicked humor)" and I totally agree. This is one of the funniest books I have ever read. Yet the book is not only funny--it is also sensitive and touching. Rudnick looks at his New Jersey family and then moves on to Hollywood as he tells us some of the funniest stories you will ever read. The book is a collection of essays about being both gay and Jewish (sounds familiar as I live this daily) as well as about being a playwright and script doctor. This is a social commentary written by one of the best. We get to see what life in Manhattan was like in the 1970's and read not of Rudnick's success on both screen and stage but of his failures (which are a lot more fun). The prose is full of great zingers and it is a wonder that Rudnick was able to survive a life like this. The story of his Uncle's funeral is amazing and also how he went looking for a starlet who appeared in "King Creole" and then went on to become a nun. I must admit that I have not read a lot of Rudnick--aside from the script of "Jeffrey" this is his only book that I have read but I am now ordering everything he wrote and I am going to take a week off and have a wonderful time.
I've been a Paul Rudnick fan forever (we miss you, Libby!). This latest collection of reminiscences (both his and his alter ego's) is a pleasure. Yes, I laughed out loud. More than once.
