“I am greatly relieved that the universe is finally explainable. I was beginning to think it was me.”–Woody Allen

Here, in his first collection since his three hilarious classics Getting Even, Without Feathers, and Side Effects, Woody Allen has managed to write a book that not only answers the most profound questions of human existence but is the perfect size to place under any short table leg to prevent wobbling.

“I awoke Friday, and because the universe is expanding it took me longer than usual to find my robe,” he explains in a piece on physics called “Strung Out.” In other flights of inspirational sanity we are introduced to a cast of characters only Allen could imagine: Jasper Nutmeat, Flanders Mealworm, and the independent film mogul E. Coli Biggs, just to name a few. Whether he is writing about art, sex, food, or crime (“Pugh has been a policeman as far back as he can remember. His father was a notorious bank robber, and the only way Pugh could get to spend time with him was to apprehend him”) he is explosively funny.

In “This Nib for Hire,” a Hollywood bigwig comes across an author’s book in a little country store and describes it in a way that aptly captures this magnificent volume: “Actually,” the producer says, “I’d never seen a book remaindered in the kindling section before.”

伍迪·艾伦（Woody Allen，1935- ），

美国著名电影导演、编剧、演员、音乐家、作家和戏剧家。

一九三五年在纽约出生。自一九六五年以来，平均每年至少推出一部电影，多为自编自导和自演的喜剧作品。他的创作灵感，多来自文学、哲学、心理学和电影历史，还有他的犹太人身份。他的电影获奖无数，其中包括四项奥斯卡奖、九项英国电影和电视艺术学院奖，以及两项金球奖。

伍迪·艾伦是《纽约客》杂志独树一帜的撰稿人，出版文集《扯平》、《不长羽毛》、《副作用》和《乱象丛生》，及戏剧集《中央公园西路》等。