Two Fantastic Essays by Dan Menaker, author of A GOOD TALK

Over at the WSJ's Speakeasy blog, A Good Talk author Dan Menaker deploys his characteristic humor with a dash of pathos in a post you can read here. He begins:

In April of 2008, an X-ray revealed that I had a tumor in the upper lobe of my left lung. It was almost surely cancer, but it was small enough to be classified Stage 1A — the “best” stage. This peristalsis-stimulating diagnosis led not only to fear in me and my family and friends but to some of the most important conversations I’ve ever had, of which I will give you a small sampling here. They are not the aimless conversations that I focus on in my book, “A Good Talk: The Story and Skill of Conversation,” just about to be published, but they did have their wacky and off-target moments and their considerable non-medical rewards.

The subsequent conversations are tender, hilarious, and moving. We can't recommend it enough.

In other Menaker news, Dan has a great essay in this month's O magazine, titled "How to Break The Ice." One wonderful snippet:

Now, in terms of ending a conversation, I had an aunt who was a Quaker, and she and my uncle used to have people over for dinner, and sometimes when the guests got up to leave, they would trail on and on and on and just keep talking—until my aunt, who was a terrifically nice, cherubic person, would finally say, "Thee may go, or thee may stay, but don't ooze."

Learn more about the book here, or at Dan's website.