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Title: not bad, but a bit whiny
Review: Most of the essays here are entertaining and often thought provoking. Wolfe has a keen eye for many aspects of American life.I can not give it 5 stars, though. For someone who makes his living observing others Mr. Wolfe's skin is thin when he is put under the microscope himself. His disdain for Updike is ridiculous when one considers Updike's fiction is a graceful Michael Jordan flying dunk and Wolfe's is still based on descriptions of sounds and accents being spelled out in ALL CAP phonetics on every other page. This collection would have been better if he kept his own personal vendettas out, and stuck with what he does best.
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