The Bottom Line
This is an hilarious take on how to be a successful hostess. It's presented completely tongue-in-cheek, but if you sift through the humor, there are some genuinely useful entertaining tips.
Pros
- This book is very funny.
- There are many ideas and pictures to keep you busily occupied for hours.
- Entertaining advice for many situations.
Cons
- Some of the recipes are a bit light on instructions.
- Parts of the book are "off color" so I wouldn't leave it around for kids to peruse.
- This isn't going to be your one-stop guide to learning how to entertain.
Description
- Entertaining advice book for all occasions including dates, funerals and lumberjack guests.
- Serves up recipes for comfort food such as fried chicken, spaghetti and meatballs and sangria.
- Includes craft projects using everyday materials including pantyhose, felt, and cans.
- General advice, like suggestions of guest combinations to avoid, e.g. astrologer and astronomer.
Guide Review - "I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence" by Amy Sedaris
Clearly, Amy Sedaris likes a lot of people. She gives entertaining advice for situations involving friends, dates, the elderly, children, mourners, lumberjacks, gay friends, sick people, and many others. And while you won't discover the difference between a fish fork and a salad fork, Sedaris shares more important advice such as "If the unexpected guest is pressuring you to allow them to crash on your futon for the night, be prepared to pull out one of those excuses you've been saving in your back pocket, like, "I'd love for you to stay, but they're fumigating for rats," or "I found a spider sack.""
The advice and humor is wide, ranging way beyond hosting advice to topics like personal grooming, breast self-exams, and housekeeping tips on items like removing vomit stains, wine stains, and urine from your mattress. As you can see, this isn't exactly your most tasteful entertaining advice book. But it certainly is practical, it has lots of Sedaris' favorite recipes (she really does entertain), and above all else, it will leave you splitting your sides with laughter. So whether you're looking to entertain others, or simply amuse yourself, this is a very entertaining book.
