Book description
In What I Do: More True Tales of Everyday Craziness, the second volume
of Jon Ronson's collected Guardian journalism, he hilariously
demonstrates how our everyday lives are determined by the craziest
thoughts and obsessions; how we spend our time believing in and getting
worked up by complete nonsense. But also, as he chillingly demonstrates,
there are clever people working in the highest echelons of business who
are employed to spot, nurture and exploit the irrationalities of those
among us who can barely cope as it is. In part one, read about the time
Jon inadvertently made a lewd gesture to a passing fourteen-year-old
girl late at night in the lobby of a country-house hotel. And about his
burgeoning obsession with a new neighbour who refused to ask him what he
did for a living, despite Jon's constant dropping of intriguing hints.
And about the embarrassment of being caught recycling small talk at a
party. In part two, read some of Jon's longer stories, which explore
manifestations of insanity in the wider world: the tiny town of North
Pole, Alaska, where it's Christmas 365 days of the year; behind the
scenes at Deal or No Deal, which Jon likens to a cult with Noel Edmonds
as its high priest; a meeting with TV hypnotist Paul McKenna, who has
joined forces with a self-help guru who once stood trial for murder -
but can they cure Jon of his one big phobia? As hilarious as it is
perturbing, Jon Ronson's new collection is a treat for everyone who has
ever suspected themselves to be at the mercy of forces they can barely
comprehend.
