My Fair Lazy: One Reality Television Addict's Attempt to Discover If Not Being A Dumb Ass Is t he New Black; Or, A Culture-Up Manifesto

It was a bit of a struggle to rate this book with two stars, because after Bitter is the New Black and Bright Lights, Big Ass, I became a big Lancaster fan. But this book was difficult to get through. I kept reading, hoping it would get better. Alas, it only got worse. A lot of the experiences she went through were relayed to us in an odd way this time around. For instance, she told about her experience in a Chinatown tea shop by telling it through a telephone conversation with her friend. Why not just tell us about it while it was happening? This happened a lot. She never did this in her other books.

I thought the premise for the book sounded interesting enough, but she doesn't really put herself out there. She goes to museums and theater shows... And eats ethnic food... Big deal. I just didn't find it interesting at all, and I tried. It's also hard for me to say that she's becoming more and more unlikeable, because this isn't a fictional character--it's her! A flesh and blood person. But sometimes the snark and meanness are over-the-top. Also, the footnotes? A little tiresome now.

If you absolutely have to read this book, borrow it from a friend or the library. It's not worth your money. I'd probably skip it altogether. If you've never read a Jen Lancaster book before, DON'T start with this one.

I loved Bitter is the New Black so I was very excited to read My Fair Lazy. Unfortunately it is just not as funny or interesting. It's as if she was lazy when writing it. I couldn't even give this one 3 stars, but there are a few funny lines.

Jen Lancaster is funny, aggressive and insensitive. Sometimes she's such "a mean girl" that her unlikeability outweighs the funny. (Example: A woman who is so supportive of her gay male friends, and in [[ASIN:0451221257 Bright Lights, Big Ass: A Self-Indulgent, Surly, Ex-Sorority Girl's Guide to Why it Often Sucks in the City, or Who are These Idiots and Why Do They All Live Next Door to Me?]] she goes on an on about being "all about the gays," should know it's not cool to dismiss Rachel Maddow in this book as "he.") For an author who so proudly writes about keeping her politics out of her work, she certainly manages to do her share of liberal slagging. And just when I'm sure I'm done with this annoying woman, I come upon a passage like page 91 (PB edition): "The issue here is that I'm a dangerous combination of stupid and mouthy ... Maybe when my old company was forced to make cuts, they didn't keep me, despite my numbers. Instead they kept the people they liked. Maybe not being an a**hole was more important than being good."

And then I want to hug her. That moment of self-awareness, as well as the touching passages about her ailing dog and cat, go a long way toward humanizing her and balancing her work.

So what makes this book fun is not only just her clever way with words. It's when she lets that brittle "aren't I smart/isn't everyone else stupid" guard down a little and becomes a woman with a heart. It gives this book a dimension some of her snarkier memoirs lack.

And yes, it's very funny. As a Chicagoan who both watches America's Next Top Model and attends the Goodman Theater, I felt that Jen does a hilarious job of straddling both worlds. I took this book with me on vacation to South Florida and even heard her voice in my head as I looked at a lunch menu. Why would a Chicagoan eat beef while looking out onto Gulf of Mexico? Inspired by the Jenaissance, I had the fresh salmon and it was terrific.

I really love Jen Lancaster's work. Pretty In Plaid, Such a Pretty Fat... LOVE! This one wasn't as funny, though. I read chick lit to laugh, and this didn't bring it.

Like so many other reviewers here, I loved Jen Lancaster's earlier books, and having just re-read them (and almost hurting myself numerous times from the laughter), I decided I'd read My Fair Lazy. Wow. I'm only a couple of chapters in and found myself being so disappointed I came to Amazon to see if anyone else felt the same way. (Apparently so.) From these same reviews, I'm realizing it's only going to get worse, not better, but I'm going to finish it anyway since I hate to waste money. Think I might be passing on future books, and it makes me sad that this really funny lady, just isn't so funny anymore. And now that I'm four chapters in, I'm pretty sure a lot of what I'm reading is recycled from the earlier books just with a little more detail. (I could be wrong, but since I just read them, I don't think I am.) Disappointing.

This is the latest installment in Jen Lancaster's LOL memoirs. In this one, she searches for meaning in her life and tries to become more culturally sophisticated and undertakes a "Jenaissance". What ensues is a hilarious diatribe about art galleries, theatre-going, wine & cheese tasting, and an expedition to try the world's cuisine. Followers of her blog (...) will find some repeated material here. I liked this better than "Pretty in Plaid", her previous book, but this one is good for some laughs.

I was enjoying it, until she goes out of her way to "joke" that Rachel Maddow is a man. Just a stupid and lazy attempt at getting a laugh that displays the worst of her prejudices. It was particularly awkward since it seemed the harder she tries to become cultured, the more vapid and shallow her writing became. Not impressed.

Thanks

This book is hilarious. I've read several of Lancaster's books and this is one of her best. Also loved Bitter is the New Black.

I listened to this as an audiobook on a long car trip. The only reason I finished it is because I didn't have another audiobook option at the time. If I had been reading it at home, I definitely would have given up on it. I loved Bitter is the New Black, Bright Lights Big Ass and Such a Pretty Fat. They were all laugh out loud funny! However, My Fair Lazy is self-important drivel. It's like it was written by a high school student using lots of big words in their term paper so they would sound smart.