Customer Reviews

Pumping Irony:: Working Out the Angst of a Lifetime

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Tony Kornheiser has put together one of the funniest, most comprehensive looks at human existance and the stupid things that we've all heard about but couldn't believe. From sports, to politics, to idiocy, Kornheiser pokes fun at the establishment, human nature and, mostly, himself! I've read it three or four times and have had four or five friends read it - all with the same results .... HYSTERICAL!

Tony Kornheiser is one of those insanely talented columnists who doesn't get half the press he deserves. With the warped worldview and hilarious self-deprecation of a Jewish Dave Barry, Kornheiser skewers the absurdities of everyday life -- and a few items that aren't so everyday. ("Nudes on Ice" being an example of the latter)

Tony offers his commentary on presidential golf ("Republicans hit players, Democrats hit on them"); Chinese food and why it will kill you, and what this means for the Jewish community; men's behinds and the revelation that women look at them; bringing food into movie theaters; gyms and how awful it is to work out -- especially if you are already fat; the truth behind the NC-17 rating; Barbie dolls; the differences between the sexes ("I busted Jason's nose"); various names from around the world ("I am grateful to my parents for naming me Anthony Irwin Kornheiser because it gives me license to say anything I want about other people's names"); yuppie catalogs with designer birdfeed and "Soap on a Rope"; and many, many more.

Tony has a wonderfully open mind -- he makes fun of pretty much everybody, regardless of race, gender, politics, class, and just about anything else. He frequently gets embarrassed and befuddled by the events in this book. And like his friend Dave Barry (who provides him with an incredibly funny cover quote) Tony says things in such a way that they make a great deal of absurd sense.

"Pumping Irony" is the antidote to boredom. Open this puppy up and laugh yourself silly from cover to cover.

I've loved TK for years. Listened to his radio show. Watched PTI faithfully. Didn't even mind him on Monday Night Football.

But being on the wrong side of the country I never got to read his stuff in the Post regularly.

This is one of Mr. Tony's "I'll make a book out of my old column's" and its great.

My wife (who can't stand PTI because she thinks Tony and Mike argue too much) even thought it was funny.

Of course, it ended up in the bathroom, as a column (or two) is perfect bathroom reading.

Now I need another copy that's not got a red dot ;)

This is truly a funny book. Tony has a unique way of looking at the world. Read it and laugh!

Full disclosure: I am a HUGE Tony Kornheiser fan. I listen to his daily radio sports talk show religiously and have always enjoyed his sports columns in The Washington Post. Unfortunately, I was somewhat disappointed by "Pumping Irony." The book is a collection of columns Tony wrote for The Post's Sunday Style section, none of which have anything to do with sports. As Tony demonstrates on his radio show, he is capable of being quite funny when discussing topics other than sports. He is much funnier, however, when he is being spontaneous on his show. When he labors over the material and reduces it to the printed page, it just doesn't come off as well. As a result, the book reads like one of the many recent books by various stand up comedians. Without their comic delivery and timing, the jokes just don't have the same effect.

Overall, "Pumping Irony" is not the best place to enjoy the engaging wit of Tony Kornheiser.

I bring a copy of this book whenever I go on vacation, and reread it everytime. Tony is hilarious, self-deprecating, and a great observer of human nature. I just moved from DC and I miss his weekly column more than I can say. If you can find this book, get it. you can't have mine, though

This book is so funny iv'e read it twice since deemcember i difently recemond buying it

He is Classic, He is Epic, He is the most loveable goof on the face of the earth.

I admire anyone willing to take the risk to write humor, since there's that terrible risk of flopping. Unfortunately, my admiration of Kornheiser couldn't be higher. The first couple of essays are pretty good, but the decline is rapid and I simply stopped laughing after page 10. If you're looking for something to tide you over until Dave Barry's next book, then this isn't it.