Lynne Truss – Talk to the Hand... - Review

This book was given to me by a fellow worker before Christmas a few years ago. A artistic and well spoken man from the Emirates. In front of our company peers, he handed the book to me and winked, as if to say, "I put some thought into this gift, and I know you get my meaning." What constitutes "good manners" and accepted behaviour, once believed to be sheer rudeness, has changed immensely over time. I guess it also depends on where you come from, too.

Truss' book is a (attempted) funny diatribe on Western modern manners or lack there of. Our current "help-yourself-society" and the disappearance of bend-over-backwards costumer service in most areas of commerce, has indeed fallen. When I landed in Australia in the late 80's, after living in LA for 10 years, costumer service was a new concept. It truly felt the shop assistant or waitress was doing me a favour, "You should be thankful I'm even serving you at all - you dumb yank!" Once the 21st century arrived, the Aussie's "got it" and service improved. Even now, Mortgage Brokers and Australian Banks in TV advertisements all hail that, "If you deal with us, you talk to a "real person" and not a machine!" Truss writes prolifically on computer and automatic services, on the surface, an easy way to buy, however, in the end, wholly frustrating and not very effective.

Although written from a Brit's perspective, I did find myself grinning from time to time, having had similar experiences with passive parents and their foul-mouthed children in grocery stores. Really though, Truss did not lay down any tried and true rules of behaviour, leaving the reader wondering, where all this clever whining is going.

Finally in the last pages she offers her notions on basic manners in public.

Aristotle had it right over 2 thousand years ago, when he asked us to practice to be virtuous, aspects of personality we are not born with, and need to put into action to attain it. Truss proposes practising empathy and basic respect for one another. It truly is a skill to attempt to feel what another is feeling - it does take practice and at least, forces us to reflect for a moment, and not react.

Somewhere in the last five pages Truss quotes a 19th century American novelist that, to me, sums up the entire project on manners and so-called appropriate behaviour:

"Three things in human life are important. The first is to be kind. The second is to be kind. The third is to be kind."

Henry James.

If you enjoy British dry humour and a fresh perspective of our current techno-modern world, read "Talk to the Hand" - it certainly will not take you long.