Or Six Good Reasons to Stay Home and Bolt the Door
by Lynn Truss
Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Nov 2005
216 pages
Genre: Other
Publication Information
From the author of Eats, Shoots and Leaves.
"Talk to the hand, 'cause the face ain't listening," the saying goes.
When did the world stop wanting to hear? When did society stop valuing
basic courtesy and respect? It's a topic that has been simmering for
years, and Lynne Truss says it's now reached the boiling point. Taking
on the boorish behavior that for some has become a point of pride, Talk to the Hand is a rallying cry for civility.
When did "please" and "thank you" become passé When you call a
"customer service" number, why does the burden of deciphering the
automatic switchboard fall to you (and where are the real people, when
you, the customer, need service)? Why do people behave as if public
spaces are their own chip-strewn living rooms? Perhaps most
importantly, how has it come to be that we are not allowed to object?
Call someone out on rude or disrespectful behavior and you're likely to
get an "Eff off" or worse. In a recent U.S. survey, 79 percent of
adults said that lack of courtesy was a serious problem. For all of
those fed up with anti-social behavior and suffering in silence,
realize that you are the majority! Talk to the Hand is a colorful call to
arms - from the wittiest defender of the civilized world.
'Truss is "a reformer with the soul of a stand-up comedian.' - Boston Sunday Globe.
'If Lynne Truss were Roman Catholic I'd nominate her for sainthood.' - Frank
McCourt.
This information about Talk to the Hand : The Utter Bloody Rudeness of the World Today was first featured
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Photo: Barry Kewis
Lynne Truss is a writer and journalist who started out as a literary editor with a blue pencil and then got sidetracked. The author of three novels and numerous radio comedy dramas, she spent six years as the television critic of The Times of London, followed by four (rather peculiar) years as a sports columnist for the same newspaper. She won Columnist of the Year for her work for Women’s Journal. Lynne Truss also hosted Cutting a Dash, a popular BBC Radio 4 series about punctuation. She now reviews books for the Sunday Times of London and is a familiar voice on BBC Radio 4. She lives in Brighton, England.
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