Customer Reviews

A Complete and Utter Failure: A Celebration of Also-Rans, Runners-Up, Never-Weres & Total Flops

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

A wonderful, hilarious, beautifully written, and inadvertently profound book. Neil Steinberg, previously the author of an eye-popping compendium of college pranks ("If At All Possible, Involve A Cow"), takes what would seem the most dismal of subjects and turns it into an empathetic and celebratory meditation on an underappreciated trait that binds us all together, the capacity to screw up, time and time again.

Plus, how can you not love the writing of someone who describes Hostess SnoBalls as "without corollary among the foodstuffs of the planet" and "unique to the point of freakishness"?

Like a lot of other people, I suspect, I loved this book so much I bought 20 copies and gave them out as presents; I'm actually glad it's out of print, for the sake of my bank account.

Perhaps a more accurate title for this book would be "Perspective." Steinberg's theme of failure is explored from all sides and from top to bottom, the way some people get fascinated by glass paperweights. His writing style is concise but brings a laugh every couple of pages. It's a shame that such an entertaining read should be out of print. I came across a copy in a "clearance" bookstore for $4 and was intrigued by the title.

If you ever "won" in a spelling bee, this book is a must read. Neil Steinberg captures the curious tragedies of life, however much they might try to masquerade. He finds the blunders obscuring the genius in patents, products and people. I do have to say that Mr Steinberg overuses his own experiences as the prism through which to view the world of stumbling. But then, I think he also needs and relishes criticism, and I don't want to disappoint. Overall, I want to thank Neil Steinberg for the occasional out loud chortle that surprised and disturbed both my family and strangers on airplanes as I read his book.

I made the mistake of lending this book to a friend of mine who moved out of state. If you chance upon a copy, buy it by all means. It's rare to find a book that can cause you to laugh until tears stream down your face, and this is such a book. In a world where winning is usually assumed to be the only worthwhile goal, Steinberg has shown the often poignant and sometimes pathetic side effects that accompany those who "go for the gold." The chapter on spelling bees was worth the price of admission. It's a crime that it's out of print.

Neil Steinberg studies failure by comparing some of the greatest ruins in history with his own personal disasters. Somehow, Steinberg's prowess as an author allows him to interweave the tragedies of abortive Everest climbs with not working up the nerve to steal a kiss his high-school crush.

Steinberg's research and attention to historical detail blends well with his stinging sense of humor. This humor allows the reader to forgive Steinberg's often solipsistic viewpoint. He leaves us squirming with the other members of the spelling bee, standing in line behind gifted savants that are able spell words that we neither know the definition for nor do we care.

In the end, this book allows us to examine ourselves and our misfortunes without the American obsession with winning--and in doing so, we find there are valuable lessons in our own failures.

This book (that the title suggests is on failure) is by Neil Steinberg.

First, I think the title might give readers a slight misconception as to what the book is about. Sure, it talks specifically about failure, but it also talks about other things such as success and many amusing aspects of human nature not necessarily limited to failure.

For the most part, the author writes very well, making for a pleasant read, although he does use some odd words now and then - maybe he was inspired by the spelling bees he spends a lot of time discussing in the book. I had to laugh out loud sometimes, especially when he relates certain personal anecdotes - the first one at the very start of the book involving Captain Kangaroo was especially funny. At other times, I had to admit to myself that I had done something (goofy)like that - see for example his discussion of trying to solve the impossible (or nearly so) type problems.

I thought he went on a little too long about the climbing of Everest, although it was still interesting mostly; the part about the Sherpa possibly setting foot first on the summit was intriguing. The chapter on the spelling bees and Odyssey of the Mind was interesting, but just went on too long; he made the point that these were both weird/surreal activities through some very amusing (at times) anecdotes. Why he didn't discuss the kiddie beauty pageant circuit, I don't know, as this would have fit in well with what he did here and could have added to the humor with proper handling.

As a patent attorney, I did appreciate his discussion of the battle over who invented the telephone and thus deserved the U.S. patent. I can't swear that he got the whole story right as I have never studied it in detail, but I did not notice that he made any glaring errors that so many make when talking about patenting.

There are a variety of other interesting subjects taken up in the book as well.

I recommend the book, though it might be a little hard to find now. It got 4 and not 5 stars from me, because it did get a little tedious in the spelling bee and to a lesser extent the Everest chapters.

BOOK ARRIVED IN A TIMELY FASHION IN GOOD CONDITION - I'M A HAPPY CUSTOMER WHO WILL DEAL WITH THIS SELLER AGAIN