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How to Be Idle
 
 
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How to Be Idle (Hardcover)

by Tom Hodgkinson (Author) "I wonder if that hard-working American rationalist and agent of industry Benjamin Franklin knew how much misery he would cause in the world when, back..." (more)
Key Phrases: Lin Yutang, May Day, The Compleat Angler (more...)
4.1 out of 5 stars  (13 customer reviews)


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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
When your alarm clock jolts you awake in the morning, do you wish you could just lie in bed, read a book, sip a cup of tea and be idle all day? Hodgkinson, founder of the Idler magazine, does. And in this book he presents 24 essays defending life's idle pleasures, which are, he says, vilified by our modern society. He meditates on sleeping in, fishing, smoking and drinking, and even waxes poetic about the hangover. The whole book is soaked with nostalgia for the turn-of-the-century English gentleman's lifestyle; Hodgkinson defends his arguments by quoting Jerome K. Jerome, G.K. Chesterton and, of course, that icon of British foppery, Oscar Wilde. Although billed as tongue-in-cheek witticisms about the idle life, the book fails to maintain the comic tone. In his chapter on the evils of the 9-to-5 job ("wage slavery," as the author calls it), Hodgkinson cites Heinrich Himmler as a spokesperson for the defense of work [...] The book gives tantalizing anthropological insights into society's views on those lazy habits that the author so enjoys, but the viewpoint is so antiquated and condescending toward the poor slobs who must actually go to work every day that readers will often find themselves staring aghast at the page. B&w line illus.
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Product Details
  • Hardcover: 304 pages
  • Publisher: HarperCollins (May 10, 2005)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0060779683
  • ISBN-13: 978-0060779689
  • Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 5.2 x 1.2 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
  • Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  (13 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #15,895 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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