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Sloane Crosley

How Did You Get This Number Hardcover – June 15, 2010

by Sloane Crosley (Author)

174 ratings

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From the author of the sensational bestseller I Was Told There'd Be Cake comes a new book of personal essays brimming with all the charm and wit that have earned Sloane Crosley widespread acclaim, award nominations, and an ever-growing cadre of loyal fans. In Cake readers were introduced to the foibles of Crosley's life in New York City-always teetering between the glamour of Manhattan parties, the indignity of entry-level work, and the special joy of suburban nostalgia-and to a literary voice that mixed Dorothy Parker with David Sedaris and became something all its own.

Crosley still lives and works in New York City, but she's no longer the newcomer for whom a trip beyond the Upper West Side is a big adventure. She can pack up her sensibility and takes us with her to Paris, to Portugal (having picked it by spinning a globe and putting down her finger, and finally falling in with a group of Portuguese clowns), and even to Alaska, where the "bear bells" on her fellow bridesmaids' ponytails seemed silly until a grizzly cub dramatically intrudes. Meanwhile, back in New York, where new apartments beckon and taxi rides go awry, her sense of the city has become more layered, her relationships with friends and family more complicated.

As always, Crosley's voice is fueled by the perfect witticism, buoyant optimism, flair for drama, and easy charm in the face of minor suffering or potential drudgery. But in How Did You Get This Number it has also become increasingly sophisticated, quicker and sharper to the point, more complex and lasting in the emotions it explores. And yet, Crosley remains the unfailingly hilarious young Everywoman, healthily equipped with intelligence and poise to fend off any potential mundanity in maturity.

Print length

288 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Riverhead Books
Publication date

June 15, 2010
Dimensions

5.5 x 1.25 x 8.25 inches
ISBN-10

1594487596
ISBN-13

978-1594487590
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Nine thoughtful, unfussy essays by the author of the collection I Was Told There'd Be Cake navigate around illusions of youth in the hope that by young adulthood they'll all add up to happiness. The account of Crosley's footloose adventure to Lisbon on the eve of her 30th birthday starts things off in rollicking fashion in Show Me on the Doll: without proficient language skills, getting hopelessly lost in the labyrinth of Bairro Alto, and panicking in front of the myriad QVC channels offered by her hotel, Crosley recognizes that Lisbon was a place with a painfully disproportionate self-reflection-to-experience ratio. There is the requisite essay about moving to New York and replacing her anorexic-kleptomaniac roommate with a more acceptable living arrangement: in Crosley's case, delineated in Take a Stab at It, she is interviewed by the creepily disembodied current occupier of a famous former brothel on the Bowery, McGurk's Suicide Hall. As well, Crosley delivers witty, syncopated takes on visiting Alaska and Paris, and finding much consolation from a two-timing heartbreak in New York by buying stolen items from her upholstery guy, Daryl, who found them fallen Off the Back of a Truck, as the delightful last selection is titled. These essays are fresh, funny, and eager to be loved. (June)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Bookmarks Magazine

No doubt about it, Crosley is funny. A Thurber Award finalist, Crosley earned her stripes as a comic writer and a keen observer of the sometimes absurd in life in her debut collection, I Was Told There'd Be Cake (an HBO series based on the essays may be in the works). Despite a few overlong pieces and an occasional dud, Crosley avoids the sophomore slump in her new collection, offering wry--and often downright hilarious--takes on all kinds of experiences. What about Crosley's writing continues to appeal to a wide audience, despite the seemingly narrow scope of her adventures? "Crosley is a kind of anti-adult, refusing to buckle down," notes the Boston Globe, "refusing to accept the way of the world, refusing to stop her bold mockery, from which she herself is not exempt."

From Booklist

*Starred Review* In her first collection of essays, I Was Told There'd Be Cake (2008), Crosley revealed herself as the kind of writer with whom readers could be friends. You could exchange travel stories or compare descriptions of the odor of a NYC taxicab, and you could probably make her laugh, too. In Crosley's new book, she maintains her humor but inflects it with a sense of melancholy. In the manner of David Sedaris and Sarah Vowell, Crosley tells us about European vacation disasters, the inexhaustible nuances of life in New York, and playing the role of bridesmaid . . . in Alaska. Here even more personal and reflective than in her prior writing, Crosley saves the best for last with the beautifully layered “Off the Back of a Truck,” which also contains the inspiration for the book's title. In this story about learning the range of what we can and can't afford, she explains that some things are worth foregoing morality to get (hint: they are rugs and ottomans, not boyfriends). Her ability to be at once so familiar and still surprise us is really showcased here. Smart, clever, and frank, Crosley's stories are as intimate, and embarrassingly eccentric, as the thoughts we keep to ourselves. --Annie Bostrom

Review

"A worthy successor to Crosley's well-received debut, I Was Told There'd Be Cake...Most of the book is funny, some of it even laugh-out-loud, but her literary gifts go well beyond easy laughs. The humor flows naturally and subtly from characters and situations, as if these were real-life short stories. 'An Abbreviated Catalog of Tongues,' which initially seems to be a perfunctory pet essay, yet turns revelatory in a number of directions, addressing everything from sibling relationships to her parents' religion...Perhaps the finest essay is the final one, 'Off the Back of a Truck,' a clever, challenging piece from which the book takes its title. Initially about wanting what you can't afford, it transforms into an exploration of receiving what you want that you can't afford, through means that you're only partially willing to admit are pretty shady. Ultimately, though, it becomes a meditation on a romance that forces Crosley to come to terms with a truth she'd suspected and the lie she was living. It's the least humorous of the collection, but the most unflinchingly true. Confirmation of the promise shown in the author's bestselling debut."
-Kirkus, starred review "In her first collection of essays, I Was Told There'd Be Cake, Crosley revealed herself as the kind of writer with whom readers could be friends. You could exchange travel stories or compare descriptions of the odor of a NYC taxicab, and you could probably make her laugh, too. In Crosley's new book, she maintains her humor but inflects it wit ha sense of melancholy. In the manner of David Sedaris and Sarah Vowell, Crosley tells us about European vacation disasters, the inexhaustible nuances of life in New York, and playing the role of bridesmaid...in Alaska. Here even more personal and reflective than in her prior writing, Crosley saves the best for last with the beautifully layered 'Off the Back of a Truck,' which also contains the inspiration for the books title...Her ability to be at once so familiar and still surprise us is really showcased here. Smart, clever, and frank, Crosley's stories are as intimate, and embarrassingly eccentric, as the thoughts we keep to ourselves."
-Booklist, starred review "How sure footed and observant Sloane Crosley is. How perfectly, relentlessly funny. If you needed a bib while reading I Was Told There'd Be Cake, you might consider diapers for How Did You Get This Number."
-David Sedaris

About the Author

Sloane Crosley’s essays and criticism have appeared in The New York Times, New York Observer, the Village Voice, Playboy, Teen Vogue, Salon, Black Book, Radar, Maxim, and The Believer. She is also the Associate Director of Publicity at Vintage/Anchor Books in New York.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Riverhead Books; First Edition (June 15, 2010)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 288 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1594487596
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1594487590
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 13.6 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 1.25 x 8.25 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #258,688 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #728 in Humor Essays (Books)
- #1,583 in Fiction Satire

Customer Reviews:
174 ratings

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Sloane Crosley

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SLOANE CROSLEY is the author of the New York Times bestselling essay collections "I Was Told There'd Be Cake" and "How Did You Get This Number" as well as "Look Alive Out There." Her debut novel, "The Clasp," was a national bestseller. Her new novel, "Cult Classic," is out June 7, 2022. A two-time finalist for The Thurber Prize for American Humor and a contributing editor at Vanity Fair, she lives in New York City.

Customer reviews

5 star		61%
4 star		21%
3 star		10%
2 star		4%
1 star		5%

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Top reviews from the United States

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Ky

A funny, quick read.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 8, 2010

Verified Purchase

Whatever you do, please don't call her the next David Sedaris. I loathe when people begin a sentence with "The next ... " and fill it in with some vapid cultural comparison because they don't want to actually put in the time for an original review. They prefer instead to use empty comparisons as filler. Sloane Crosley is a talented writer. A funny writer. An insightful, snarky, intelligent writer, but she is NOT David Sedaris. There is only one of those.

With that said, I enjoyed her new book of essays, "How Did You Get This Number". She writes about a random assortment of events in her life, but without tones of pretense or self-absorption. She's critical and snarky, but doesn't try to be endearing, which I appreciate. I hate reading any sort of story where it feels as though someone forced an event in her life, knowing the end result would produce a witty essay. Get over yourself.

My favorite essay in "How Did You Get This Number" comes at the very end, with "Off the Back of a Truck", when the author writes about a failing relationship and her adventures in semi-illegal furniture acquisitions. It's touching, smart and cute without beating you over the head with its intentions. She's a wonderful writer with a keen eye and I can't wait for her third book.

2 people found this helpful

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EJ

Absolutely hilarious and near perfection

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on June 17, 2010

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I read about this book in a magazine and thought it would be a nice, relaxing read. It turned out to be that, and terrifically funny to boot.

The book is a collection of essays that include the musings of a twentysomething on life in New York City, travel in and out of the U.S., family pets, and other subjects. The author is quite simply an incredible writer. She manages to be witty, hip, current, and laugh-out-loud hilarious, with just a touch of sweetness thrown in. There are a number of subtle and overt pop-culture references that are hidden like Easter Eggs throughout the text, so I found myself reading a paragraph and having to go back and read it again to get at all the nuances within.

The only minor problem with this book was a few instances where the sentences sort of started to wander off and I got a little lost in her thought process, but this was a small issue in my opinion.

I realize that I am gushing so much in this review that I probably sound like a friend of Ms. Crosley's or a plant of some kind. I'm not, though I can now be counted as a fan. I can't recommend this book highly enough. It was just wonderful from start to finish. I'm going to buy her other book immediately!

35 people found this helpful

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D. J. Reese

Don't Worry About How You Got the Number, Just Dial On In ...

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 15, 2010

Verified Purchase

I covet essay collections, and with this book Crosley delivers one that snaps, crackles and pops with the hilarious and strange, the I shitchu not and the heartachin' pieces of life.

I'm unabashedly and ridiculously partial to those who bring the wry and witty repartee to everyday observations (i.e. stank taxis, the often incestuous nature of makin' friends & maybe mores in workplaces), but someone who experienced and exposed the agonizing anxiety of Girl Talk?! She essentially planted herself in a pot o' gold at the end of my Reading Rainbow with that mention alone.

"Off the Back of a Truck", "If You Sprinkle" and "An Abbreviated Gift of Tongues" compelled me to share this book with a friend with instructions to keep it swappin'. Her powers of observation are both subtle and supreme. The girl is funny and keen and sharp with the wordplay and this book is well worth the read.

One person found this helpful

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Amazon Customer

An American learns how to live in China

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on March 7, 2012

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I loved this excellent story as it is world wide, the story of babies that are abandoned. I like the way that the writer was astonished at what happens to babies in China.
Where are the English teachers in America, that an American cannot believe that babies are treated this way.
Americans are too sugar coated with softness. In other countries there is a real world waiting to be explored.

I am sorry but I wrote this review about the wrong book. The book was called " SILENT TEARS."

One person found this helpful

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N. Howard

Entertaining

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 5, 2016

Verified Purchase

I enjoyed this book. My only let-down was the book being falsely touted as a "comedy". The author has a nice sense of humor displayed in her word choices, however, my personal definition of "comedy book" is one that is written primarily to amuse. Maybe I'm judging too harshly. I have a habit of giving up on reading a book if by page one hundred I don't care what happens to the characters or how the story ends. I read this one through and through.

5 people found this helpful

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Erin Anadkat

Not as good as the first one

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on June 30, 2011

Verified Purchase

I was disappointed with this book. I read the author's first book and thought it was sophisticated and funny. In this one, the author's voice is cloying, self-absorbed, uninteresting, and too loud. I felt like I was getting hit over the head with her voice in these stories, yet didn't understand the point of them. It reminded me of when someone is telling an interesting story, but then gets sidetracked and goes on tangent after tangent. You never get to the punchline, and the story seems trailing and unfocused. In one of these stories, Crosley talks about growing up with a learning disability. It's almost as if she is handing over vivid descriptions from this experience that are interesting, but then again don't really lead the reader anywhere. When I reached the story about her childhood pets, I just could not read anymore, especially with section headers like The Dog or The Birds. Maybe this is endearing somehow, but it seemed kind of ridiculous and I was annoyed I purchased this book. I have tried to read this book at least a few different times, and just cannot not get into it, which is strange because I read her first book in one sitting. I wish I hadn't purchased it as an e-book, because now it's just sitting in my archive, but I don't want to delete it. If I had a hard copy then at least I could give it to someone else. Maybe I will find someone with an e-reader and pass it on that way. Usually a product's rating by Amazon stars don't fail me. I wonder if in her next book, Crosley will do a story based on her Amazon reviews. I would not doubt it, but I'm not going to read it.

5 people found this helpful

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Ms. S. K. Clair

Older and funny

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on May 29, 2013

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Having enjoyed 'I was Told There'd be Cake' I was excited to read this one. I love Sloane's voice and narrative style. It was funny and full of her wit, but just didn't live up to her first book.

Lola

Despite excellent reviews, it's merely okay.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on August 18, 2010

Verified Purchase

You know what made me read Sloane Crosley's first book (which is called "I was told there'd be cake" and is, ultimately, much better than this one)? One of the glossy magazines referred to her as the new Carrier Bradshaw. Funny, sexy, and now a New Yorker.
There is nothing much I can say about this book, which I finished today (one of my friends gave up after the first two essays). I would not recommend it as a book by a comedian or by a woman with a gorgeous sense of humour you can relate to. I don't think there are many people out there who would like to live in a house haunted by ghosts of suicidal prostitutes, or tell sad (almost verging on cruelty) stories about pet animals, or blow up a big deal out of the usage of tampons or pepper sprays. It might all sound good in Ms Crosley's mind, but not so exciting on the paper. The truly worth-reading essay is called "Light Pollution" (published in the Vice magazine some time ago), about the State of Alaska, which made me want to go and see it for myself even more than I wanted to before. But maybe it's just me.
Maybe you will enjoy this book of, in my opinion, quite unsatisfactory collection of stories, which might have had a potential were they not so badly administered by Ms Crosley's language. It seems that she is much too proud of her vocabulary and tends to construct sentences bursting with words that you never hoped to see within one paragraph. The sentences themselves are too long to grasp for a book which is, let's face it, no Booker prize, but merely a beach holiday read. This book is trying hard to be a sophisticated beach read. So sophisticated, that by the time you finish the sentence (that feels as long as a paragraph), you are not quite sure what the storyteller tried to tell us and, frankly, was it worth the effort?
Just when I was about to give up and braced myself for the last essay, not surprisingly called "Off the back of the truck", Sloane pulled a trick I haven't seen before. The story is not about furniture. The story is about relationships, deluded relationships and, to be more precise, break-ups. We have all been through at least one, but I haven't read a story so heartbreakingly real in describing all the break-up cycles you agonize through, all those questions, all those "time heals" mantras. That essay is one amazingly written piece of work of a broken heart. Brava, girl!
Maybe you will find your own gem in this collection of stories. Maybe you will love the book. Good luck. I was left a bit disappointed.

5 people found this helpful

MHK

Pünktlich angekommen

Reviewed in Germany 🇩🇪 on January 10, 2019

Verified Purchase

Alles ok,

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Angela Cuzner

not funny

Reviewed in Canada 🇨🇦 on January 29, 2014