Picked up from the free shelf at the used book store today. I believe I've seen it on at least one wish list during Wish List Tag, plus it looked like it might be fun. From the back cover:

Celia Rivenbark is an intrepid explorer and acid commentator on the land south of the Mason-Dixon Line. In this collection of screamingly funny essays, you'll discover:

*How to get your kid into a character breakfast at Disney World (or run the risk of eating chicken out of a bucket with Sneezy)
*Secrets of Celebrity Moms (don't hate them because they're beautiful when there are so many other reasons)
*ebay addiction and why "It ain't worth having if it ain't on ebay"
*Why today's children's clothes make six-year-olds look like Vegas showgirls with an abundance of anger issues
*And so much more!

Celia Rivenbark's essays about life in today's South are like caramel popcorn---sweet, salty, and utterly irresistible.

ETA 2-12-14: Promised to Bkind2books in the Wish List Tag game.

Just finished this one. It was okay but I didn't find it to be side-splitting. I think the publishers doomed it for me by putting a blurb that says, "Think Dave Barry with a female point of view," on the front cover. Dave Barry is my all-time favorite humorist and it's dangerous to get my expectations that high. I found Rivenbark's humor to be a pale comparison, and she even "steals" some riffs I think of as belonging to Barry, such as phrases that would be good rock band names, made-up mottos for organizations, and anagramming.

Rivenbark's style is very conversational and most of her observations are pretty acerbic. She is at her best when she is relating her own experiences with motherhood or other aspects of life, and not as funny when she's commenting on the larger society.

This was a quick read and fun enough, just not as good as I expected. I'll get this off to Bkind2books soon.

Sent to Bkind2books via Media Mail today. Enjoy!

Thanks for the wishlist book - I like Rivenbark. She's not as funny as Dave Barry but her snarky humor is enjoyable.

I love Celia Rivenbark! She always gets me rolling. This book of short essays focus on different aspects of Southern life - kids, husbands, celebrities, and other rites of Southern culture. The essay on obituaries was spot-on! Not to mention the visitation to the hospital. Lawd, I do know a few of these folks. And then there's her views on the food icons of the South, most specifically KK's - "Krispy Kreme doughnuts are the finest things on God's green earth." To which the proper response is a solemn "Amen, Sister!" I need to see if I can find Ms Rivenbark the next time I'm over in North Carolina so we can sit down and have a few (oh hell - just keep 'em coming) hot glazed KKs with a cold glass of milk. Heaven.

Sending to JennyC1230 for the Bio/Humor VBB

Sent from Bkind2Books for my: Virtual Biography/Auto-Biography/Humor Bookbox.

I'm going to read this one while it's here. I love Celia Rivenbark's books. So funny!

My Review: I love this author, her views are funny, witty, and Southern.

Favorite Quote from the book: "Why is it a man performs the minimal task of getting his kid to and from school dressed in anything that's not Hello Kitty pajamas and he's all of a sudden fricken' Keanu dismantling a bomb on a city bus?"

If you have found this book, welcome to Bookcrossing and thank you for taking the time to let us know about its journey. Feel free to enjoy the book and pass it along to a friend, neighbor, family member or co-worker, or simply leave it somewhere for another lucky reader to enjoy as you did! This book isn’t your type of read? No problem, don't feel obliged to read it, just be kind enough to help it on its journey. If you join, please use my name as your referring member: JennyC1230.

Sending to Firegirl from the Virtual Biography/Auto-Biography/Humor Bookbox Enjoy the books!

Caught from the Memoir/Humor VBB. Thanks much! This looks like a hoot. Looking forward to it and I think I know just where to send it when I'm done.

I wanted to like this so much more than I actually did. Though there was the occasional humorous moment for me, generally I was pretty bored with it. Rivenbark writes a lot about children, parenting, clothing, and celebrities, none of which I have any interest in. I think I'm just not quite the right audience for this.

Left inside the cafe. Happy travels, little book!