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The Fame Lunches    by Daphne Merkin Amazon.com order for
Fame Lunches
by Daphne Merkin
Order:  USA  Can
Picador, 2015 (2014)
Hardcover, Softcover, e-Book
* *   Reviewed by Bob Walch

It has been more than fifteen years since she published her last collection of essays, so it has been a long wait. But the former staff writer for The New Yorker has released another wide-ranging collection of her work that touches on every aspect of contemporary culture, from writers and other celebrities to more mundane subjects like money, sex and handbags.

Over forty short pieces showcase Merkin's wit, candor and penetrating intelligence as she ruminates about everything from lip gloss, our obsession with pets and flirting to Princess Diana and Michael Jackson.

The author knows and has interviewed a lot of celebrities so don't be surprised that there are many accounts of these encounters included in this book. From Sandra Dee, Diane Keaton and Betty Friedan to Truman Capote, Richard Burton and John Updike, these profiles account for many pages.

Merkin describes herself as someone who has 'been something of a bifurcated, high/low girl from the very start, as you'll see from this compilation, someone as intrigued by the superficial as by the culturally momentous.'

Read this book in any manner you'd like. Either select random chapters or go from cover to cover. No matter your approach, you'll probably enjoy the insights, commentary and observations that these short selections are filled with. If nothing else, leave it on your nightstand and try and few pages when sleep is slow in coming!

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