This week s Times Book Review was very much The Week After the Summer Reading Issue issue. A little thin. A little lazy. And, in her regular review of the reviews, Intern Alexis takes her cue from Sam Tanenhaus — even laggard imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, after all. After the jump, your weekly guide to sounding as if you've at least touched a piece of newsprint in the past week.

Acts of Faith
 By Philip Caputo
Reviewed by Lucian K. Truscott IV

Lucian K. Truscott IV, hereafter referred to as LKT4, enjoyed Philip Caputo s new novel, Acts of Faith, although he finds it frustrating that Caputo spends most of the time exploring his own ambivalence towards war. Looking to fill some dead air, he writes: Twenty-five years ago, I was on a panel discussion with Philip Caputo. I never met him again, and don t know anything about him except what I ve gleaned from his work over the years. Good to know. Number of things we take away from that sentence: Zero. Once people just reviewed the book. Than they began to tell us what personal experiences influenced their thinking. Now they're telling us what DIDN'T have any impact on what they wrote. What else, LKT4, was irrelevant to your review?

Take Big Bites by Linda Ellerbee
Dishing by Liz Smith
Reviewed by Jane and Michael Stern

Sometimes when we read reviews written by two authors, we like to imagine the dialogue that took place

Jane: How about, Dishing by Liz Smith, and Take Big Bites, by Linda Ellerbee, are memoirs, not cookbooks, but each has recipes that Help me out here, Michael, I m at a loss.

Michael: How about we use a food metaphor! That would be appropriate, as this is a review of two cookbooks, right?

Jane: BINGO.

Michael: How about, Each has recipes that garnish the author s stories like..."

Jane: Like... Like... Like relish... on a hot dog!

Michael: No, no, garnISH and relISH that doesn t sound good.

Jane: Oh God, you re totally right! How about, Each has recipes that garnish the author s stories like...mustard on a hot dog!"

Michael: Oh, Jane, you are GOOD.

Jane: No, Michael YOU are.

Michael: But you are the one who came in at the end with the clincher!

Jane: But it was your idea to have a food metaphor in the first place.

Michael: Don t speak, Jane, just make love to me.

[Michael and Jane ferociously kiss]

BLACKOUT.


Essay: Persona
 By Neal Pollack

Oh lordie, we thought to ourselves after reading Neal Pollack s crazypants essay about killing off Neal Pollack and becoming just regular old Neal Pollack. "Here we go with another New York Times Book Review essay as therapy feature. So, who was Neal Pollack?" Well, This Neal Pollack was an arrogant oaf who d been everywhere, written about everything and slept with everyone, he writes. The real me could lay claim only to the oaf bit. At the end, Pollack finally comes to terms with himself, discovers who the real Neal Pollack is Nietzschesquely claiming Neal Pollack is dead. Awww shucks! We found ourselves missing Neal Pollack the persona already! Namely because of this part:

After the show, some guy I d never met held a party for me at his house. I ate seven special cookies. By the time Eggers arrived, I could barely stand.

I want things to be more straightforward from now on, he said.

Blurgh, I said.

Hahaha! we said. New Neal Pollack is too contemplative, self-aware and drug-free for our liking. Bring old Neal Pollack back!