How To Have An Almost Perfect Marriage

by Mrs. Stephen Fry, Stephen Fry (Foreword)

Do you, Edna Constance Bathsheba, take Stephen John Elvis to be your lawfully wedded husband? I did. After many, many years of marriage and many, many children, I've decided it's only fair to share my unparalleled expertise and deepest secrets with you in my new book, How To Have an Almost Perfect Marriage. Of course, the "him" to whom I refer is my current husband, Stephen. You may be aware of his numerous books, his countless television shows, and his enormous intellect. You probably know he spends his time traveling endlessly, attending operas, meeting famous stars of stage and screen, and visiting tribespeople in the remotest corners of the globe. That's if you read all that rubbish he writes on Twitter, anyway—honestly, that man's imagination! If you frequent the Dog & Duck, however, you'll know the truth. Or the Red Lion. Or Kev’s kebab van. Because that's where you'll almost certainly find him. Not dining at the Ritz or filming something about wizards in New Zealand, and certainly not at home helping me take care of our five children. Or is it six? Actually, it might be seven now . . . Of course, you can't realistically expect to have a marriage as perfect as ours, which is why I've called the book How To Have an Almost Perfect Marriage, but whether you're a husband-, wife- or divorcee-to-be, or just simply Fry-curious, you'll learn everything you need to know, and quite a lot you don't, about the most wonderful years of your life as these nine chapters guide you through every aspect of marriage from proposal to divorce, enhanced by my own candid diary entries, incomparable poems, and world famous mouth-and eye- watering recipes.

Genres: Humor

189 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

Mrs Stephen Fry is a pseudonym of Stephen Fry.

Reviews

[Shuhada Ramli · Rating 2 out of 5]

It’s a 2 star because it’s not up to what I have expected. Some of the tips maybe good but some are hmm... you know... not every person can be the same. She wrote based on what she has been through.


Well I can write mine too. LOL. Yeah.. the marriage thingy is still not there yet and.. no. No go. That “happily ever after” terms of today can go fly kites!

[Josef Komensky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite funny book about love sex and marriage.

The jokes reminded me the style of Monty Python humor.

[Charlotte Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read Mrs Fry’s Diary last year and thoroughly enjoyed it so, although it wasn’t one of my favourite reads and there were definitely things that I didn’t particularly like about it, I thought I’d give this author’s other book a try.

Although I am not married, I am engaged and I know a few people who are getting married this year so this promised to be an entertaining and potentially relevant read for where I am in my life.

In much the same vain as Mrs Fry’s Diary, How to Have an Almost Perfect Marriage talks about how Edna’s husband Stephen Fry but not as we know him. His ‘real’ alcohol-drinking, gambling, window-cleaning life is shown by his wife throughout this book as she gives anecdotes and advice about experiencing a successful and happy marriage.

Overall I found this to be funny in places and a really quick read but it didn’t hold my attention in some parts. I think it would be a humourous gift for a married couple who have been together for a few years but I think that on the whole, Mrs Fry’s Diary was more enjoyable to be honest.

[Manrix · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full of those 'so bad they're good' jokes, this book is best rationed, so it doesn't lose its effect.
Mrs Fry is quite the character, and her unusual mix of sympathetic and almost cruel (especially towards her children) is balanced expertly. Of course, probably its main selling point is the portrait it paints of her (current) husband, Stephen, who is portrayed as a booze-hound do-nothing. Quite the contrast to his 'feverish ramblings' on Twitter, suggesting he is in fact a well-read celebrity.
Its defacing of classics continues, as this books offers new version of, among others, "I Will Survive" and "Stairway to Heaven." Again, the balancing is amazing, as it mixes cringeworthy bad jokes with deft skill in writing.
The book's advices are perhaps best ignored, but for the rest...
Highly enjoyable.

[Liesje Leest · Rating 3 out of 5]

Who could give better marriage advice than the lovely Edna Fry?

This book is really funny, I laughed so much while reading it. If you like the Mrs. Stephen Fry twitter account or enjoyed Mrs Fry's Diary you need to read this book too!

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

While not profound or life changing in any way, this book is a lot of fun and got quite a few laughs out of me. Stephen Fry fans will enjoy this.

[Wendalynn Donnan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book. Thanks to Unbound for linking me up to this. I even have my name printed in the back of the book. Crazy!

[Veronica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hilariously entertaining, it actually had me laughing out loud :)

[Charlotte Gatto · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun!

Fun!

This was a wonderfully fun, amusing, silly and relaxing book to read. Well written and comical. I thoroughly enjoyed it!

[Ute · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mrs. Fry is conveying a lot of truth about marriage there. In a very entertaining way.

[Danny Butler · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some useful advice, I'm sure. A delightfully informative, strangely poignant and humorous book. Or something. It does have some saggy bits. It took me four days to read. Yes.

[Farahana Nabila · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hillarious but I don't think the tips work for me :P

[Sanjay Ragupathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Funny book to entertain but alot of hidden meanings and in between lines that needs to be tought of.

[Annemarie van Eijsden · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not my kind of book. I hoped it would be a fun read with a lot of British humor in it, but it was mostly just crude jokes.

[Diana Willemsen · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5 ster. Vermakelijk genoeg, maar auteur kan beter.

[jaroiva · Rating 4 out of 5]

funny, entertaining

[Joanne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not nearly as funny as I had hoped.

[Aleksandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

With all due respect to Mr Stephen Fry – Meh.