The Life of the Party

What starts as a whimsical Manhattan fancy-dress party where adults have agreed to dress as children becomes Algernon Leary's worst nightmare. After leaving the festivities, he encounters a drunken taxi driver, is mugged, and finds himself stranded on the streets of New York still wearing an absurd child's costume. What follows is a spectacularly embarrassing odyssey through the city, each encounter more humiliating than the last. Cobb, one of early America's most popular humorists, uses this ridiculous premise to brilliant effect - the comedy emerging from the collision between adult dignity and childish costume, between social pretense and desperate reality. It's a sparkling, sharp-eyed satire that understands exactly how ridiculous grown-ups can be when forced to abandon their self-importance. The humor feels remarkably fresh, the observations keen, and the whole thing zips along with the energy of a jazz age comedy. Perfect for readers who appreciate sharp situational humor and the particular pleasure of watching a dignified man suffer absurd indignities.