Martha Stuart's Excruciatingly Perfect Weddings (Paperback)

~ (Author) "In the beginning, Adam grabbed a handful of wild birds-of-paradise, and grass and leaves and droppings, and tossed them in the general direction of Eve..." (more)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

In this, the third and final (?) installment of the Martha Stuart parody trilogy, authors Tom Connor and Jim Downey unleash their preppy doppelganger on weddings. The results are predictably hysterical, with the Stepford caterer dominating every aspect of a Connecticut nuptial. This from the "Wedding Planner" (subtitled "Things I Insist You Remember"):

Five Years Before: set season and weekend; Indenture Third World seamstresses; finish hybriding rose named after yourself...

One Year Before: Draft pre-nuptials; book me as caterer; if you have favorite foods or family recipes that you might want to incorporate, forget about them...

Six Months Before: Learn fiancé's name; try one last time for Beatles reunion; stop calling me...

As you can see from this passage, Connor and Downey have perfected the voice of their monstrous Martha. Every page yields good fun at the expense of the Octopus of Style, while pointing to the insane, expensive, neurotic process of getting married in this day and age. Even better are Barry O'Rourke's photos, which reproduce Martha's sumptuous books exactly. Put the writing and the photos together, and you have a well-executed parody. If the jokes aren't new by the third time around, that won't matter to the harried bride or the hopeless husband-to-be; if you've ever planned a wedding or are in the middle of nuptial hell right now, this book is perfect. "Today, there are a multitude of alternate throwables. Rock candy is particularly painful. Fava beans have a very unpredictable flight path. And kidney beans can be easily confused with a swarm of stinging bees..." --Michael Gerber

Review

"An enormous success, a funny and sometimes cruel parody of Our Lady of Perennial Perfection." -- -- Morley Safer, 60 Minutes

"Hilariously nasty." -- -- Newsweek

"Wickedly amusing." -- -- Hartford Courant

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Product Details

• Paperback: 64 pages
• Publisher: Harper Paperbacks; 1 edition (April 21, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060952385
• ISBN-13: 978-0060952389
• Product Dimensions: 10.6 x 8.8 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #738,649 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Just fantastic!, December 27, 2002

By	J. Michael Hitt (Tucson, AZ United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is one of the most fun books to pass around when your friends are over. It's great for humorus wedding gifts, showers and the like. Martha may not be quite the tower of perfection she once was, but sometimes it's fun to kick at (in this case, a formerly 'hot') dog when she's down. No harm done - lots of fun.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It could be the real thing., September 28, 2002

By	M. Byer (Mountain View, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Uhh....it's almost TOO well done!!! The subtlety, the sarcasm. Martha herself would be proud of the ideas and craft concepts presented. You will find yourself laughing out loud. Fits perfectly on my coffee table next to my real "Living" magazines. HAHAHAHAHAHA

5.0 out of 5 stars Hilarious stress-relief during wedding planning, July 5, 2007

By	E. Murphy "EM" (Malden, MA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I wasn't expecting too much from this book, but between the unexpected stress of my simple wedding and my true awe/suspicion of Martha Stewart's abilities, it just struck a chord (particularly the segment about silverware). I would highly recommend this book for any wedding party that is finding stress in the most insignificant aspects of their wedding.