Why We Suck: A Feel Good Guide to Staying Fat, Loud, Lazy and Stupid (Hardcover)

by Dr. Denis Leary (Author)
Key Phrases: Bobby Burns, Anna Nicole, Matt Dillon (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
According to Leary, his first book is not for the faint of heart, by which he means Americans: "I am here to debunk and declassify and otherwise hold up a brutally honest mirror to our fat, ugly, lazy American selves." Now, a good many comedians make a career out of daring to speak the ugly, gasping truths that few others would. Leary brings a particularly acid-tinged tone to his rantings about annoying children, why cats are satanic spawn, what an ugly racket the Catholic Church is and (more surprisingly) why he loves Oprah. The book will most likely appeal to fans of Leary, and while the material might have been better delivered as a live performance (some of these hate-laced monologues are just begging to be read aloud), Leary himself wildly entertains. (Nov.)
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Product Description
A hilarious blast of scathing irreverence from the award-winning actor and comedian.

“A pissed off Leary is the best Leary,” says one critic of the writer and comic. In Why We Suck, Dr. Denis Leary uses his common sense, and his biting and hilarious take on the world, to attack the politically correct, the hypocritical, the obese, the thin--basically everyone who takes themselves too seriously. He does so with the extra oomph of a doctorate bestowed upon him by his alma mater Emerson College. “Sure it’s just a celebrity type of thing--they only gave it to me because I’m famous.” Leary explains. “But it’s legal and it means I get to say I’m a doctor--just like Dr. Phil.”

In Why We Suck, Leary’s famously smart style and sardonic wit have found their fullest and fiercest expression yet. Zeroing in on the ridiculous wherever he finds it, Leary unravels his Irish Catholic upbringing, the folly of celebrity, the pressures of family life, and the great hypocrisy of politics with the same bright, savage, and profane insight he brought to his critically acclaimed one-man shows No Cure for Cancer and Lock ’n Load, and his platinum-selling song, “Asshole.”

Proudly Irish American, defiantly working class, with a reserve of compassion for the underdog and the overlooked, Leary delivers blistering diatribes that are penetrating social commentary with no holds barred. Leary’s book will find wide appeal among people who want to laugh out loud or find a guide who matches their view of what’s wrong in America and the world-at-large; and fans of his one-man shows, his many movies, and Rescue Me, Leary’s Golden Globe and Emmy–nominated television show. Why We Suck is the latest salvo from one of America’s most original and biting comic satirists.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Viking Adult; illustrated edition edition (November 18, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0670031607
• ISBN-13: 978-0670031603
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (124 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,805 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

120 of 126 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Too bad money can't buy a sense of humor, November 27, 2008

By	Hunter Sixx - See all my reviews

First off, this book is a riot from page one. I don't write reviews because I think everyone else out there does it better, but after reading the one star reviews on this book I had to chime in. Leary has a mean and angry style to his comedy. If you're easily offended, every other paragraph will get under your skin. This would not be the book for you. This would be a great book for anyone that does have a sense of humor and that can laugh at themselves without being offended.

The one star reviews annoy me. I like hard rock and to me, those reviews come off as being the same as if I wrote a one star review of the latest blue grass album because it's not what I like. It would be a waste of my time and the reader's time.

In the Prologue, Leary comes out saying that this is a comedy book. It is a parody, satire and poking fun. His exaggerated take on life. That's what all comedians do and Leary does it well. He also points out that there are endless things you can buy in America - but a sense of humor isn't one of them. Well put.

29 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Refreshingly Honest Rant on Modern Life, December 1, 2008

By	Zenster "Zenster" (New York City) - See all my reviews

I received "Why We Suck" as a gift on the same day that shoppers killed a man trampling him while lined up for "Holiday Shopping" at Walmart and realized this is WHY WE SUCK.
Happily, the book is funny and fun to read.
Sadly, it is a true commentary about our lives.
From CelebuTards to Dr Full to Mr Leary's idea of justice for Michael Vick, the book is astounding in it's genuine insights into WHY WE TRULY SUCK. Mr. Leary is a man with his eyes open and a mind that has not been brainwashed by the spin doctors and Dr Fulls of this world.
If you read one book this year, Why We Suck should be the one.

40 of 50 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Couldn't stop laughing, November 19, 2008

By	N.J. "N.J." (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

Hilarious. The kind of biting comedy that could only come from Denis Leary. The book tackles some of the most absurd things about our culture in a very funny and un-PC way. I would definitely recommend this book.