Mirth of a Nation: The Best Contemporary Humor

At last, a premier showcase of fifty-four great literary humorists and masters of the journalistic jab, the social spoof, the parodic proof, the satire, the tirade, and the send-up. Here are those "last laughs" and "wit's end" pieces everyone turns to first but then loses in back issues of favorite magazines and newspapers, including:

• Merrill Markoeon Networking with angels
• Garry Trudeau on re-retranslating Madonna
• David Sedaris on reviewing school Christmas Plays
• John Updike on cross-dressing with J. Edgar Hoover

Also included are riotous contributions from Henry Alford, Jon Stewart, and David Ives, as well as millennial maxims by Mark O'Donnell, gardening advice by Mertensia Corydalis, and highlights from Randy Cohen's savvy "News Quiz."

Brought to you by The Thurber House

Michael J. Rosen was among those involved in the very first days of Thurber House and he continued to serve as its literary director for twenty years. Michael is the author of some 150 other books―poetry, young-adult novels, anthologies, picture books, cookbooks―for readers of all ages. Most recently, he has published James Thurber's Collected Fables, as well as a hefty monograph, A Mile and a Half of Lines: The Art of James Thurber, that coincides with an exhibition at the Columbus Museum of Art that he’s curated in honor of the Year of Thurber (2019).  He’s also an editor, ceramic artist, illustrator, and companion animal to a cattle dog named Chant. 

www.michaeljrosen.com