The Modern Drunkard: A Handbook for Drinking in the 21st Century

by Frank Kelly Rich

Attempting to deconstruct America's joyless obsession with sobriety, The Modern Drunkard offers today's befuddled drinkers a comprehensive and instructive manual on the delights of alcohol culture, how to be a good drunk, how to drink, and how to do it well. Through articles, anecdotes, cartoons, and illustrations pulled from our long and happy history of drinking alcohol, Frank Kelly Rich campaigns to revive the lost art of tippling and taps a deep vein of boozy lore and legend through the ages, uncovering etiquette and expertise from some of history's greatest guzzlers.

Genres: Humor, Nonfiction, Booze

224 pages, Paperback

First published October 25, 2005

Reviews

[Paul]

Ehhh. Really funny at times, but doesn't know when to stop. Each segment drags on way too long, developing a joke, setting up the joke, then delivering the joke..

then delivering the joke

then delivering the joke

then delivering the joke

etc.

I'm quite fond of the Victorian style illustrations, though. And at points the book is actually quite informative, though I can't quite decide if that was good or not. It gives the book a rather psychotic feel, because if it's just a book about how damn great it is to be completely drunk, then it can play hilarious, but when seriousness is mixed with how damn great it is to be completely drunk, then it's just kind of weird.

So---the author needed a stronger focus for what he was trying to do, and to also quit acting like he was getting paid by the word.

[Daniel]

"The Modern Drunkard" is amusing, but works far better as a magazine or Web site -- http://www.drunkard.com/ -- than as a book. Too many of the jokes, quotes about drinking, and drunken ideas get used more than once, giving one the feeling that Frank Kelly Rich had to stretch his material pretty thin to fill a full-length book. It's still a fun volume to have around the house though, and is probably better sampled once in a while than consumed in a few sittings, which is the way I read it. It did teach me the line, attributed to W.C. Fields, "I never drink water because fish fuck in it."

[Chris Sausler]

Only got to page 4 and it was already, “3 strikes and you’re out, sexist asshole.” I’m a bartender and actually really disappointed. It could have been a really fun read, but I can’t in good conscience finish it.

[Christopher]

Skimmed it from 24% on. I guess if I made drinking my raison d'être then this would be great. As is it’s just a weird look into a weird lifestyle.

The recipes near the back could be interesting during get togethers so it’s not a total loss.

[Richard Schwindt]

The modern drunkard website is noted for its carefully researched and well written articles on alcohol, watering holes and famous drinkers. And for its ringing endorsement of the lifestyle of the functional alcoholic. Like action movies and true crime stories this is very much a guilty pleasure. You don't have to empty a bottle of vodka at night to find this book and its contents fascinating. Whether you are a problem drinker, curiosity seeker or on the wagon this is worth a look. It is unlikely to make you something you are not while providing a peek inside a subculture of American drinkers.
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[Alexander Günther]

Billig, einfach nur schlecht. Schade.

[Al McCarty]

Genius. Absolutely essential. A reference volume for those set on the proper course in life.

[Mark]

Compilation of articles from Modern Drunkard Magazine. This makes for some good fun reading - not a cover-to-cover read so much as a pick-up-every-once-in-a-while-for-a-larf read. As I ease my way into my 40's I can't quite handle the liquor the way I could a decade ago, therefore it's a bit harder to relate to now than I would have then. Regardless, it is a fine addition to the shelf of anyone who appreciates both a top-shelf martini and the aesthetic of the rat pack generation.

[Kelly]

This is an excellent book but I was a little disappointed to see that it was mostly recycled material. This is a collection of the best of Modern Drunkard magazine, I didn't realize that when I bought it.

Nevertheless, it's absolutely worth reading, especially if you haven't been a subscriber to the magazine. It is laugh-out-loud funny, informative (believe-it-or-not) and encouraging for those of us who continue to lead a shameless life of debauchery.

[Tom Pintong]

My fellow reader CC bought this for me, and this book for some reason treads very familiar ground for me. =p Some of the pictures and captions are downright hilarious. I have shared thoughts from it with different friends who also found the writing to be quite entertaining. For anyone who likes to knock one, or ten back, they will find themselves flashing back to those times when they have woken up with their face in a toilet, and grinning about it.

[Mark]

If you haven't been been really, really drunk at least once in your life, then this isn't the book for you.

Not really a book to be read as much as one to sample for laughs. Some fine drinking humor for everyone who’s enjoyed a drink or five. Laugh out loud funny at times though, and reassuring to anyone who has ever wondered if they've had too much to drink.

[Clint]

A couple of my favorite essays were The Zen of Solitary Drinking and How to Not Only Survive But Conquer An Intervention. This was hilarious stuff, including the ridiculous and also some truth that "conservative drinkers" just can't handle. If you have a "Cheers" of your own, you would probably enjoy this book. I read it off and on, here and there, and was almost always laughing.

[Cade]

This is the bible for those that drink. For those that dabble in drinking, you could pick up a couple of tips from this book. There are rules and they should be abided by. Professionalism is expected on both sides of the bar. A bartender should be a professional at their job and a drinker should act professional as well.

[Alexander]

One of the funniest books i have read in a very long time. The guys at Modern Drunkard are as clever as The Onion. This book is actually touching in that it is one long love letter to fermentation. A useful book for anyone who has lived in bars.

[Charles]

this is where i learned my exquisite drinking etiquette.

[Carl]

I'd recommend it for subway trips to bars. Casually leave it on the table, sit back, and watch the hilarity ensue.

[Muffy Kroha]

A very thoughtful gift from Melody and Maylarsh- Funny as fuck- Melody even tried to get us a spot playing the drunkards convention- We are naturals after all!!!

[Archie]

In today's day of P.C., and with the "pussification" of American society as a whole, it is nice to find a book that embraces something we have been told is evil. DOWN WITH THE ESTABLISHMENT!!!!

[Zach]

Its horn runnith over

[Emily]

Hilarious read! Perfect for those who enjoy the art of imbibing.

[eHawk]

Hotly amusing, hard to go through as a straight read. More enjoyable as a set of essays to read once in a while.

[Jeremy]

Hillarious and often true, a great guide to the functioning alcoholic.

[Chris]

I thought this was a funny little book. I liked the "surviving an intervention" chapter best.

[Ellen]

Found this to be very depressing. A few funny bits but overall I did not enjoy it.

[Erin]

This book was very entertainingly funny. Every time I opened it, I laughed my arse off.

[Julaine]

half funny - half sad

[Rick Smeaton]

For anyone who would get a laugh remembering their wilder years.

[Mark Clements]

A little repetitive, sure. A great bathroom read--got me thinking about drinking in many new ways.

[Beau Smith]

Way too funny!

[Melissa]

Hysterical!!