A collection of humorous essays, accompanied by the author's own bizarre drawings, presenting Thurber's unremitting retort to the multitude of "self-help" books which were widespread in the 1930s and whose successors are still with us today.

"An authentic American genius . . . Mr. Thurber belongs in the great lines of American humorists that includes Mark Twain and Ring Lardner." — The Philadelphia InquirerJames Thurber's unique ability to convey the vagaries of life in a funny, witty, and often satirical way earned him accolades as one of the finest humorists of the twentieth century. A bestseller upon its initial publication in 1945, The Thurber Carnival captures the depth of his tal...

Originally published in 1929, Is Sex Necessary? is a brilliant and hilarious collaboration between James Thurber and E.B. White, two of the most iconic American humorists of the 20th century. This illustrated edition revives their witty, satirical exploration of love, relationships, and human behavior, blending faux-scientific analysis with delightful absurdity. Framed as a parody of the serious sex manuals and psychological treatises of the era, the book mocks the clinical tone of popular...

"These tiny stories, in which a wide variety of animals show us how human we really are, are completely uproarious." — Saturday Review of Literature"These fables are as cogent and necessary today as they were before and after the Great War when Thurber's plainspoken, satiric fables provided a way to speak out in an era of political suspiciousness, false hopes, and mistrust. These fables are, indeed, for our time." —Michael J. Rosen, from the Introductio...

From iconic American humorist James Thurber, a celebrated and poignant memoir about his years at The New Yorker with the magazine's unforgettable founder and longtime editor, Harold Ross"Extremely entertaining. . . . life at The New Yorker emerges as a lovely sort of pageant of lunacy, of practical jokes, of feuds and foibles. It is an affectionate picture of scamps playing their games around a man who, for all his brusqueness, loved them,...

A comprehensive collection of the American humorist’s best work—including “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty”—plus original drawings and a chronology of Thurber’s own troubled lifeJames Thurber, whimsical fantasist and deadpan chronicler of everyday absurdities, brought American humor into the 20th century. His comic persona, a modern city-dweller whose zaniest flights of free association are tinged with anxiety, remains hilarious, subtly disturbing, and instantly re...

Is Sex Necessary? Or, Why You Feel the Way You Do (1929) is a brilliant satirical work that humorously dissects the popular psychological and social theories about sex, love, and human behavior prevalent in the early twentieth century. Written by E. B. White and James Thurber, the book adopts the tone of a mock scientific study, complete with absurd charts, invented terminology, and tongue-in-cheek definitions. Rather than offering genuine explanations, the authors parody the era's obsessi...

In Let Your Mind Alone! And Other More or Less Inspirational Pieces, James Thurber turns the rhetoric of self-improvement, popular psychology, business uplift, and "inspirational" counsel inside out. The collection's essays and sketches mimic the solemn assurances of advice literature only to expose its absurdities, false comforts, and mechanical optimism. Written in Thurber's unmistakably dry, elliptical, and deceptively conversational style, the book belongs to the great tradition of Ame...

Published in 1929, *Is Sex Necessary?* is a brilliantly irreverent mock-sociological treatise that turns the solemn language of modern psychology, marriage advice, and scientific expertise into comic material. Alternating between pseudo-scholarly argument, deadpan observation, invented cases, and eccentric illustrations, it parodies a culture increasingly eager to classify desire, domesticity, and gender roles. Its standout conceit is the sustained imitation of authoritative discourse: foo...

In "Let Your Mind Alone! And Other More or Less Inspirational Pieces," James Thurber delivers a captivating collection that interweaves humor with insightful commentary on the human condition. This anthology showcases Thurber's hallmark wit, blending personal anecdotes, satirical observations, and thoughtful reflections that challenge conventional wisdom. The literary style is characterized by his unique ability to engage the reader with both levity and depth, echoing the broader context o...

In "Let Your Mind Alone! And Other More or Less Inspirational Pieces", James Thurber showcases his distinctive blend of humor, wit, and insightful observation, presenting a collection that traverses the complexities of human thoughts and behaviors. The book is characterized by Thurber's keen ability to blend anecdotal storytelling with profound philosophical questions, often presenting life's absurdities with an irreverent flair. Set against the backdrop of mid-20th-century America, Thurbe...

**REDISCOVER THIS BELOVED COLLECTION of James Thurber's best tales and drawings about dogs and their men, women, and children in 24 stories, profiles, and essays.“Only a few books have stayed with me through all the moves and upheavals of adult life, but Thurber’s Dogs is one of them, and it will stay with me to the end.”—Jonathan Yardley, The Washington Post**“The dog has got more fun out of Man than Man has got out of the dog, for the clearly demonstrabl...