Down the Seine

One of the funniest books of the 20th century by one of the greatest humorists in the history of American journalism. Art Buchwald's career can be divided into two parts, both of them brilliant. In the first part, he was based in Paris, writing for the European edition of the New York Herald Tribune. From 1949 to 1962, Buchwald played a Charlie Chaplin character in print, covering the continent and tweaking the International Set in his inimitable way. The second part began when he returned to the United States and set up shop in Washington, tweaking the political establishment and society in general, again in his inimitable way. "Down the Seine and Up the Potomac" contains the best of Buchwald's humor from the first 25 years of his career. The book includes many of his vintage Herald Tribune columns, including the classic piece in which he explained Thanksgiving to the French, as well as his great Washington Post columns covering the administrations of Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon and Ford. Buchwald's Watergate spoofs alone are worth the price of the book. So, for that matter, is his foreword. Yes, a lot of the material is dated, especially the political stuff, but it's still fun to read. And for those who remember back that far, the freshness remains. Unfortunately, "Down the Seine and Up the Potomac" is long out of print. If you can find a copy, buy it. This is humor writing at its absolute best, and Art Buchwald is the all-time champ.

One of the funniest books of the 20th century by one of the greatest humorists in the history of American journalism. Art Buchwald's career can be divided into two parts, both of them brilliant. In the first part, he was based in Paris, writing for the European edition of the New York Herald Tribune. From 1949 to 1962, Buchwald played a Charlie Chaplin character in print, covering the continent and tweaking the International Set in his inimitable way. The second part began when he returned to the United States and set up shop in Washington, tweaking the political establishment and society in general, again in his inimitable way. "Down the Seine and Up the Potomac" contains the best of Buchwald's humor from the first 25 years of his career. The book includes many of his vintage Herald Tribune columns, including the classic piece in which he explained Thanksgiving to the French, as well as his great Washington Post columns covering the administrations of Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon and Ford. Buchwald's Watergate spoofs alone are worth the price of the book. So, for that matter, is his foreword. Yes, a lot of the material is dated, especially the political stuff, but it's still fun to read. And for those who remember back that far, the freshness remains. Unfortunately, "Down the Seine and Up the Potomac" is long out of print. If you can find a copy, buy it. This is humor writing at its absolute best, and Art Buchwald is the all-time champ.