Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #370811 in Books
• Published on: 2001-04-11
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 64 pages

Amazon.com
No one will be fooled by this little piece of ephemera. This is not anything like a new Bridget Jones book. It's a revisiting of old jokes, old characters, old stories. That said, there's something curiously addictive about Helen Fielding's creation, and this bonbon should satisfy a Jones jones until the (inevitable) next full-length novel comes along. The Guide to Life is a brief (64 pages) how-to manual from the notoriously inept singleton. To wit: In her chapter on homemaking (titled "The Fragrant Home"), Bridget gives her reader advice on the atmospheric charm of a cozy fire. "The key words here are 'in the grate.'" As to food, she largely confines herself to finding a piece of old cheese in the fridge and cutting off the moldy bits. She does, however, get in one really useful suggestion when she explains how to play the parlor game Shag, Marry or Push off a Cliff. The rules? "Each of the players suggests three names.... The person on the player's right must then decide, if they absolutely had to shag one of them, marry another, and push another off a cliff, which it would be. It is usually best to pick three which are similar in some way." Examples: Russell Crowe, Mr. Darcy, Hugh Grant. Or, Muammar al-Qaddafi, Ayatollah Khomeini, Idi Amin. The author then adds a caveat of typically Jonesian sensitivity: "It doesn't matter if any of them are dead as it is only a game." For those who cry foul at Helen Fielding's cashing in on her phenomenal franchise, it should be noted that some of the proceeds from the book will go to Comic Relief. That's the very organization, incidentally, that the author sends up in her non-Jones novel Cause Celeb--a smart, highly entertaining book that also makes a decent stopgap for Bridgetphiliacs. --Claire Dederer

Customer Reviews

Cute and amusing
The book is a half an hour read that is pure indulgence if you like Briget Jones - anything.

*THE* Guide
Tuesday 20 July- Time spent infront of computer: 12hrs and 9mins (v. bad but not self's fault since there's nothing on TV)

If you are a fan of Bridget Jones, the movie or books, and you're looking for a fun read- this is the book for you. It has "helpfull"[ah-hem] house keeping, love and general anti-desasters tips from the woman who knows all about it. ****

Not going to make it a long review because am v.v. hungry and tired. Going to eat 3-day old donnut, bye :D

A quick Jones fix.
Don't be fooled! This is not a sequel to The Edge of Reason. It's just a self help book but since this is Bridget Jones it's hardly serious. I liked this book. It was very amusing for the 10 minutes it took to read through it. Unfortunately, a lot of the book just rehashes what happened in the other two books. There is some new material however. I especially enjoyed the instructional photographs. My favorite part of the book is the section on the game "Shag, marry or push off a cliff," which I've become addicted to playing. This book is a must read for Bridget Jones fans but it's not really worth buying.