Would It Kill You to Stop Doing That A Modern Guide to Manners

A few years ago, humorist and journalist Henry Alford found himself "reverse-apologizing": offering apologies for other people, on their behalf, when they failed to do so themselves. Ever since, he's realized he needed to take a closer look at manners-his own, and others'. InWOULD IT KILL YOU TO STOP DOING THAT ?he interviews experts both likely (Miss Manners, Tim Gunn) and unlikely (a former prisoner, an army sergeant). He volunteers himself as a tour guide for foreigners visiting New York City, and as an online etiquette coach for his friends. He travels to Japan. He teaches Miss Manners how to steal a cab. He designates the World's Most Annoying Bride. Providing answers to questions like, Why shouldn't you ask a cabdriver where's he's from?, and Why is posting baby pictures on Facebook a fraught activity?, this hilarious and non-elitist book looks past the standard "dos" and "don't's" of good form, in search of ways we can treat each other better.

Henry Alford is the author of three acclaimed works of investigative humor: How To Live: A Seach for Wisdom from Old People (While They are Still on this Earth); Big Kiss: One Actor's Desperate Attempt to Claw His Way to the Top; and Municipal Bondage: One Man's Anxiety-Producing Adventures in the Big City. He has been a regular contributor to the New York Times and Vanity Fair, and a staff writer at Spy. He has also written for the New Yorker, GQ, New York, Details, Harper's Bazaar, Travel & Leisure, the Village Voice, and the Paris Review. He lives in Manhattan.