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Talk to the Hand : The Utter Bloody Rudeness of the World Today Summary and Reviews

Talk to the Hand : The Utter Bloody Rudeness of the World Today by Lynn Truss

Talk to the Hand : The Utter Bloody Rudeness of the World Today

Or Six Good Reasons to Stay Home and Bolt the Door

by Lynn Truss

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  • Published:
  • Nov 2005, 216 pages
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About this book

Book Summary

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.

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Reviews

Media Reviews

'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 in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

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Author Information

Lynn Truss Author Biography

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.

Link to Lynn Truss's Website

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  • Eats, Shoots and Leaves jacket
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