I'd Rather Not: Essays

"A decidedly skewed, hilarious collection of life reflections and colorful storytelling." -- Kirkus Reviews An endlessly entertaining collection of wayward autobiographical tales about a search for a richer life thwarted at every turn by beagles, bureaucrats, and ill-advised love affairs The unlikely story of how a failed dishwasher, tour guide, cabinet maker, bus driver, bookseller and literary journal publisher became one of Australia's hottest humor essayists Perfect for fans of humorous, thought-provoking authors like Sloane Crosley, Jenny Lawson, Samantha Irby, and David Sedaris This wryly subversive book of adventures (and misadventures) offers an original and utterly hilarious take on work, escape, and that something more we all need. Robert Skinner arrives in the city, searching for a richer life. Things begin badly and then, surprisingly, get slightly worse. Pretty soon he's sleeping rough and trying to run a literary magazine out of a dog park. His quest for meaning keeps being thwarted, by gainful employment, house parties, ill-advised love affairs, camel trips, and bureaucratic entanglements. The book's 14 essays/stories can be savored one at a time, or binge read: War and PeaceThe Perfect HostCinderella Pays the RentLessons from CamelsHow to Make It in BusinessThe StopoverKings of SwedenHouse PartyCar SickI Fought the LawAlways Coming HomeThe Art of Tour GuidingA Fisherman's LamentEpilogue: Dying Art of HitchhikingRobert's distinctive voice possesses uncommon immediacy, at once humorous and soulful, self-effacing and wise. Perhaps most important of all, he is endlessly entertaining.