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Review by James Neal Webb
Neil Steinberg is annoying -- he can't help it. He annoys writers who are jealous of his gig as a columnist at the Chicago Sun-Times; then again, he has to work with Roger Ebert, which has to be an annoyance in itself. He annoys his editors; think about it -- he gets paid to write about whatever comes to mind! He annoys his readers; let's face it, not everybody is going to agree with him.
I'll tell you what annoys me: reading a jacket cover, then picking up the book and realizing I've been scammed. I mean, I was expecting The Alphabet of Modern Annoyances to be a lightweight, funny little book about things that bug you -- sort of like Andy Rooney, but without inspiring the desire to wring the author's scrawny little neck ("Didja ever wonder why so many people want to kill me?"). Talk about false advertising! Alphabet is funny all right, but Steinberg has the audacity to try to make you think about the things you're laughing at.
In "Journalism," for instance, Steinberg acknowledges that people hate journalists, and he proceeds to give us plenty of reasons why they do, but at the same time he has the guts to admit that the feeling is mutual. This is one of the few places in the book where I disagree with him. (Being inarticulate is not the same as being ignorant, sir). "Oprah" is sure to have talk-show hosts running for cover, and "Traffic" had me laughing out loud. My favorite chapter is "Rude"; it's funny, yet at the same time it's painfully true, and thoughtful as well.
In The Alphabet of Modern Annoyances, Neil Steinberg has taken a premise that in other hands would be turned into a large-type, wide-margined, double-spaced, semi-funny effort with half as many pages. Instead he's given us real humor. More than once in this book he cites James Thurber, whom he obviously admires. I think Thurber would have liked this book; I think you will, too.
©1996, ProMotion, inc.