The Joyous Season

by Patrick Dennis

Book Overview

Told through the eyes of 10-year old Kerry (spelled with a K and an E and not with a C and an A), The Joyous Season is a witty and irreverent look at marriage and family life by the bestselling author... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B000BKK8AG
• Release Date: January 1965
• Publisher: Avon
• Length: 230 Pages
• Weight: 0.30 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Sophisticated, witty and charming

This book sparkles-I can't believe it was written forty years ago! This HAS to be the funniest book about divorce ever written, from the perspective of a precocious 10 year old boy. This would make an excellent gift for anyone with a sense of humor OR for meddlesome in-laws. Patrick Dennis was a gem of a writer, and his out-of-print books deserve to be resurrected.

precocious wit!

I always read 5 star reviews with a healthy dose of skepticism. But this definitely earns its stars. I started and finished the book in one day--I couldn't put it down, it was just so good! This book depicts that Manhattanite mid-century lifestyle to perfection and with much hilarity. It is rare to find a book told from the perspective of a child that is believeable and wise. A little reminiscent of some of my favorites: "Harriet the Spy," "Metropolitan" and "Tadpole".

Funniest Book I Have Ever Read

I still have the book I originally purchased in 1964 and it remains the funniest book I have ever read. I still laugh out loud when I read it, which to me, is the true test of real comedy.

Put the Blame on (Auntie) Mame

Until a few weeks ago, I was guilty of a terrible secret: I had never seen the film "Auntie Mame," and, even worse, I was not even remotely acquainted with the written works of Mame's creator, Patrick Dennis. Well, blessed be the great DVD revolution; I finally saw Roz Russell's super-charged tour de force, which spurred me to buy the book, which led me to buy "Little Me," which in turn brings us to "The Joyous Season."And all I can say is: THANK GOD this book is back in print, and that I, and other Dennis neophytes (and "laden homo sapiens," perhaps?), can experience its hilarious wit and surprising heart. Besides being at once smartly sophisticated and completely believable as coming from the eyes of a 10-year-old child, this book is the perfect snapshot of early 1960s New York City as I always imagined it--populated by a zany group of society characters who spout mouthfuls of quotable dialogue. (I now also am in search of an apartment building done up in Mondrian designs, as well as a set of bamboo drinking glasses and perhaps a fur hat which almost covers my nose.)It's also surprisingly racy for 1964, with more gay over- and undertones than any "children's" book that I can remember, with the possible exception of a few Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys capers...but I digress.Kerry and Missy are the kind of kids you wish you had the [guts]and brains to be at their ages, and "The Joyous Season" is the kind of effortlessly sharp, wicked, perceptive and entertaining book that many authors attempt to duplicate--and fail.One last thought: like many other reviewers, I also found "The Joyous Season" to practically be screenplay-ready as is. And then I realized: WHERE would one find child actors, aged 10 and 6, who could convincingly essay Kerry and Missy?!?! Even in the 1960s (pre-Olsen Twins and Hayley Joel Osment), it would have been tough. (The only remotely plausible casting would be if Kerry's sex were changed, and Hayley Mills got the part!) I say, leave it to our imaginations. The end result would only be disappointing.

A Classic

When I was a child, I took this book off my parents' bookshelf and stayed up all night reading it. I'm lucky that my bedroom was upstairs and away from anyone else's bedroom, because I giggled all night.Earlier this year, I laid my hands on a copy of the book (no way I would get away with permanently borrowing my parents' copy), and it is just as funny, just as insightful and just as joyous as it ever was. Populated with an outrageous cast of characters, and with children who are wiser, smarter and more pleasant than the adults, this ought to be a forgettable book. But it's not. I remembered it for 35 years before I got a chance to reread it. And it was every bit as good as I recalled.