"One of the most glorious messes in the world is the mess created in the living room on Christmas day. Don't clean it up too quickly . . ."Dearest Mick--
--Andy Rooney
Chip, my loyal manservant, and I would like to wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas. Chip was expecting his YoshibladesTM from the parcel post, but instead, it was your box of Christmas books and presents that had arrived. We were pleasantly surprised by your eclectic selection of titles. Chip poured a glass of 1984 Rouget E. red wine for each of us and then proceeded to burrow through your box.
Chip plucked out Stacy Schiff's Cleopatra (9780316001922) 29.99 from your package. Of course, Chip made a wisecrack about the Queen being my contemporary. That is not true. However, I was a member of Howard Carter's expedition when he discovered the tomb of Tutankhamun. The Curse of King Tut be damned! I have obviously lived a long and fruitful life.
Alex Horowitz's Inside of a Dog (9781416583431) 16.00 was a great choice, too. I took the title literally after watching the TV show 'My Dog Ate What?' Rocks. Coathangers. Glue. You should see some of the things dogs will eat. However, Chip read the back flap and assured me that the book was actually about the mind of a dog. It explains how a dog perceives the world. Mick, you may not be aware but I worked with Cesar Millan for many years on his training methods for dogs. A dog is, after all, man's best friend.
I was a good friend of your namesake. The Mick would do anything for you. He was a good kid. Unfortunately, Mickey had no business sense whatsoever. I really tried to help him out, but it was like beating your head against a brickwall. But I was pleased to see you sent a copy of Jane Leavy's The Last Boy (9780060883522) 27.99. I was one of the 600 interviewees that she met with before writing her book. I am sure it will bring back some fond memories.
I was also a big fan of Jackie O. She was a classy lady. My history with Jackie goes back to spending summers at the Bouvier family estate at 'Lasata.' I believe that she and JFK made an ideal couple. I guess you could say I was way off on that one. William Kuhn's Reading Jackie (9780385530996) 27.95 picks up the narration after the days of Onassis and JFK and dwells on her last years as a book editor. I must admit it brought a tear to my eye.
Happy Holidays,
Charles Edmund Wilson III
Odds & Sods
Hey, how about those Detroit Lions? Two game winning streak, baby! Speaking of Detroit, we're expecting more copies of Dan Austin's Lost Detroit (9781596299405) 24.99 in today. Staying in the Detroit vein, Andrew Moore's Detroit Disassembled (9788862081184) 50.00 is out of stock at the publisher with no expected due date at this time. Also, former Detroit hockey player Bob Probert's autobiography Tough Guy (9781600785627) 24.95 is out of stock although we should have more stock from Triumph in a few days.
Finally, both UPS and Fedex are delivering on Friday . . .
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