The Best of Dear Abby

This was a book that my mom read when it first came out because she was always a fan of Dear Abby and I first read this book years and years ago when I first started becoming interested in this great individual. "Dear Abby," otherwise known as Ms. Abigail Van Buren was such a fascinating person who always gave the best life-lessons. And, she truly invented the modern American advice column. Yesterday I was reorganizing my study and I came across this book and I decided to read it again. What a great idea that was. In a way I'm thankful that most of the MSM has gone to hell in a handle basket, otherwise I never would have been reintroduced to this book. "The Best of Dear Abby" is just what it says it is, Ms. Van Buren's very best letters, over the course of 25++ years. In it she addresses infidelity, adulatory, honesty, love, education, betrayal, loyalty, priorities and of course S-E-X. Dear Abby is witty, clever and always on the mark. But more than that she's forthright and convincing. What did I learn from this book? Really, I learned many important life-long lessons. First, even though this book is over 27 years old it's still relatable and that's because Dear Abby is timeless. She was the voice of reason who didn't change her values or morals with the times (times may change, but not decent people.) Dear Abby also reaffirmed my belief in the goodness of others and in the celebration of talking out and discussing your problems. I also learned another very important lesson that Ms. Van Buren's book & advice column always resonated: DON'T ROCK THE BOAT! In other words, if it ain't broke don't fix it. And hold on to what you got because even if it isn't perfect it's better than many others! Also, if you have a secret that is better left untold then why open your mouth if it's only going to hurt others? Sometimes (not always, but sometimes) secrets (not lies) are best kept from the people who you're the closest to. I thank Ms. Van Buren for reminding me that. As you may know, Dear Abby founded her popular column in the 50's and retired in the mid 90's. Ms. Van Buren is still very much alive, although she is living with Alzheimer's Disease (as of '06 she was in the middle stages of this illness.) Currently, the "Dear Abby" column is written by Ms. Van Buren's daughter, Ms. Jeanne Phillips who owns the rights to the "Dear Abby" legacy. Remember, you are what you read!

This book was a fun, quick read if you like question & answer advice. At times funny and kept me reading!

I bought this for a friend for her birthday and it didn't have a picture posted but from the description I figured it was the old version without the scary lady on the cover but it wasn't. Oh well.

From cover to cover I thought Abby was fabulous and her audience great. The whole book is a joy to read and, for the most part, keeps you from taking troubles too seriously.

As a current resident of Abby's hometown, Sioux City, Iowa, I can honestly say that this is a very interesting book! I love the letters that she chose to (re)print, and I think readers of her column would enjoy this book too. I also recomend Ann Lander's book.