Rating: Summary: Well done but a change in tone Review: As other reviews have stated, this latest collection is well written but less funny than Mr. Ford's previous titles. Don't expect a duplicate of the earlier books.I enjoyed the read very much (knocked it off in two sittings), and there was humor. But it was not the laugh out loud humor of his three earlier books. Where the first three were hilarious with a few more serious or touching essays thrown in, this fourth collection is the reverse - predominantly serious, thoughtful or sentimental with a few chucklers mixed in for good measure. It's still head and shoulders above most so-called contemporary "gay" writing. Michael Thomas Ford exposes his thoughts, feelings and life. And when he's funny, he's a riot. At this point, after four books, I feel like I know him, and I like him, I really like him.
Rating: Summary: Well done but a change in tone Review: As other reviews have stated, this latest collection is well written but less funny than Mr. Ford's previous titles. Don't expect a duplicate of the earlier books. I enjoyed the read very much (knocked it off in two sittings), and there was humor. But it was not the laugh out loud humor of his three earlier books. Where the first three were hilarious with a few more serious or touching essays thrown in, this fourth collection is the reverse - predominantly serious, thoughtful or sentimental with a few chucklers mixed in for good measure. It's still head and shoulders above most so-called contemporary "gay" writing. Michael Thomas Ford exposes his thoughts, feelings and life. And when he's funny, he's a riot. At this point, after four books, I feel like I know him, and I like him, I really like him.
Rating: Summary: Incredibly disappointing--both dull and stagnant Review: I have been a fan of Michael Thomas Ford's previous three Queer Life books, and was incredibly disappointed by this latest offering. Rarely have I read a book and felt that an author had nothing to say, but that an anxious agent was forcing him to write anyway. That's the exact feeling I got from this. In addition to a lot of amateurish fillers along the line of a Cosmo Quiz (Are you a Drama Queen? Are you a Leather Man?), Ford whines and drones with no significant insight into either his own life or the lives of gay men in general (I mean, really, does the fact that a lot of gay men diet really break new ground?). The book does offer a few solid stories, but readers looking forward to Ford's latest will be sorely disappointed. It lacks both the humor and wit of his earlier works, and really is one of the most strained and forced pieces of writing I've read in years. When funny ain't funny it's deadly, and most of this book is funny that ain't funny.
Rating: Summary: Incredibly disappointing--both dull and stagnant Review: I have been a fan of Michael Thomas Ford's previous three Queer Life books, and was incredibly disappointed by this latest offering. Rarely have I read a book and felt that an author had nothing to say, but that an anxious agent was forcing him to write anyway. That's the exact feeling I got from this. In addition to a lot of amateurish fillers along the line of a Cosmo Quiz (Are you a Drama Queen? Are you a Leather Man?), Ford whines and drones with no significant insight into either his own life or the lives of gay men in general (I mean, really, does the fact that a lot of gay men diet really break new ground?). The book does offer a few solid stories, but readers looking forward to Ford's latest will be sorely disappointed. It lacks both the humor and wit of his earlier works, and really is one of the most strained and forced pieces of writing I've read in years. When funny ain't funny it's deadly, and most of this book is funny that ain't funny.
Rating: Summary: Fabulously skewed Review: Michael Thomas Ford's latest collection of quirky essays has a wide range of topics (my favorites are the ones on gay monogamy and queer bookstores and being neurotic). I was surprised by the more serious ones, but I do feel they are a great progression for his voice. What I didn't like were the plethora of cutesy quizzes. After the third one, I felt they lost the attraction Ford probably meant, and they became tedious. Overall though, the collection is still vivacious and brilliant, but it does seem to lack a bit of that spunky skewering that he's most known for.
Rating: Summary: Another winner Review: Mr. Ford has given us another book in his excellent "My Queer Life" series. I especially liked the essays "Did Tiger Beat Make Me Gay" and "Thank You Note". "Thank You Note" is the last essay in the book; I read it first because I was wanted something short to read before I left for work one morning. I ended up reading it four times and I was late for work that day. Granted, there aren't as many laugh out loud moments in this collection as in the other three, but it is still worthwhile reading. The funny stuff will make you laugh; the serious stuff will make you think. That's what good writing does.
Rating: Summary: More of the same, but more personal Review: On this new installment Mr. Ford serves us more of his now well-honed recipe to describe his gay life trials, but with less pages than the previous opus. Some are quite amusing such as his self-tests on how to decide whether one should become a drag queen or a leatherman (in a way both are drag I suppose). It is perfect reading for a beach stay, or waiting at your dentist office and having people look weirdly at you while you hold the book in front. But it still feels the same as the previous ones: well written, slightly biting, but not that novel anymore. Though this time there is a slight change: Mr. Ford has moved to LA and he seems to comply more with your average gay-cliches: he works out now and wears sunglasses. Perhaps his early steps in his middle age crisis? In other words, under his cleansing tone we seem to detect a more personal, and perhaps insecure, persona. I hope that this bodes well for his next installment since I think that Mr. Ford is uniquely qualified to describe the aging process of gay men by lightening it up with his irony.
Rating: Summary: More of the same, but more personal Review: On this new installment Mr. Ford serves us more of his now well-honed recipe to describe his gay life trials, but with less pages than the previous opus. Some are quite amusing such as his self-tests on how to decide whether one should become a drag queen or a leatherman (in a way both are drag I suppose). It is perfect reading for a beach stay, or waiting at your dentist office and having people look weirdly at you while you hold the book in front. But it still feels the same as the previous ones: well written, slightly biting, but not that novel anymore. Though this time there is a slight change: Mr. Ford has moved to LA and he seems to comply more with your average gay-cliches: he works out now and wears sunglasses. Perhaps his early steps in his middle age crisis? In other words, under his cleansing tone we seem to detect a more personal, and perhaps insecure, persona. I hope that this bodes well for his next installment since I think that Mr. Ford is uniquely qualified to describe the aging process of gay men by lightening it up with his irony.
Rating: Summary: The Little Book of Lame Attempts at Humor Review: This book is horrible. As much as I tried, I couldn't even get through the entire thing; I had to show myself some compassion and put it down halfway through.
First of all, nothing in this book is funny. Not once did I even crack a smile. This book was like reading those lame emails that have been forwarded a hundred times over before some business associate mindlessly sends it your way. In fact, this book is worse than most emails I've read.
The essays were uninteresting, self-righteous, non-humorous, annoying, boring, and pointless. I've read amazon.com reviews that are more entertaining than this book.
The cover of the book, however, I love. And the title is pretty good too. Just do yourself a favor and stop there.
Rating: Summary: Diary of a Gay Man Review: This was one book I was unable to put down. Michael Thomas Ford's THE LITTLE BOOK OF NEUROSES: ONGOING TRIALS FROM MY QUEER LIFE was a good read overall. Although I didn't like the quizzes, even though they were meant to poke fun and not be taken seriously. I thought he hit the nail with the hammer on so many issues, so many things that are relevent to everyday life. I found his thoughts on queer life interesting, and the misconceptions that come with it. For the first few short stories he discusses his neurotic behavior and how he believes its the way to be, which was quite humorous. His humor is a bit off center which is a good thing. He is quite humorous, and the short stories were nice to read. An easy book to read, and well worth the effort.
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