A Few Words About Neil Steinberg

I’m not sure what this means, if it means anything, but I find myself moved to once again write something in praise of a man whose personal life has added some drama to his professional life: Neil Steinberg.
I’m just going to say here, I don’t really know what happened a couple years ago -- there was something about spousal abuse, a drinking problem, something – but I don’t know much about it, and I assume that it’s been resolved somehow because I understand Steinberg still has a job and is a functioning member of society, which is really more than I can say about myself these days. So.

Some years ago, many years ago now, I fell in love with a book because a friend of mine told me to. Chris Arnott, who is basically one of my heroes, and who has excellent taste in books, told me I had to read this thing called Complete and Utter Failure. If I remember correctly, he lent me a copy of it, a fairly beat-up paperback, which I read. I was left more or less gasping, it was so damn good.
I went and acquired my own paperback copy, and then told everyone I’d ever met in my entire life that they had to get a copy of this thing. I don’t know if anyone paid attention. The book is now out of print. I have since acquired a hardbound copy, which I cherish, because I know I can read my paperback copy to death now. (Which I’m sure I will.) I’m not going to go much further with this. I just have been meandering through the shelves of my collection that hold essays and letters and odd, hard-to-categorize non-fiction, and that’s where Steinberg falls – rather near Fussell, and also rather near another ‘90s favorite of mine, Inconspicuous Consumption by Paul Lukas. And near Florence King. These are other essays waiting to be born. For now, gentle readers, if there are any of you out there: please go find Steinberg’s Complete and Utter Failure. To M in Chelsea who wanted a book recommendation: I recommend this to you, and to both you and your other half I highly recommend another Steinberg book, this about college pranks, called If At All Possible, Involve a Cow. I bet you can find them at the Strand….