Design Flaws of the Human Condition (ISBN 0767926757)

Leading candidate for best of 2008:
I am, apparently, irredeemably shallow. How else to explain how much I enjoyed this book? A "Will and Grace"-type story about the floundering relationships of self-involved Manhattan dwellers. Cheating boyfriends, loathsome lawyers, anger management classes* .... The wannabe "serious reader" inside my head groaned every time I picked it up. When my copy of "The Savage Detectives" has been lying there unopened for several months now. So be it. The fact is, I loved this book. It was hilariously funny, compulsively readable, and managed to be quite touching. Schmidtberger pulls off a pretty neat trick - by the end of his hugely entertaining, very funny story, he makes the reader care deeply about his flawed (but entirely believable) characters. And I thought his ending was hugely satisfying. No, it wasn't "great literature". But it was a terrific read. Which has got to count for something, right? *: One of the main protagonists experiences meltdown on a flight to Newark, the horrifying inevitability of which Schmidtberger nails hilariously. A great book to read on a plane, or at the beach.

Fun, fantastic writing:
I am not a topical reader. I like great writing, and this author is talented! I hope to read more from him in the future. The story is realistic, full of irony and sophisticated humor.

LOVED IT!:
This book is so great, I loved it! It's hilarious and endearing, witty and full of heart. I loved all the characters (design flaws included) and the dialogue is priceless. It's also incredibly well-written. Not a wasted word, everything is in there for a reason. Paul Schmidtberger is a fabulous author and I hope to read more from him in the future!

Friendship,, Loyalty, Anger and Betrayal:
Schmidtberger, Paul. "Design Flaws of the Human Condition", Broadway, 2007. Friendship, Loyalty, Anger and Betrayal Amos Lassen "Design Flaws of the Human Condition" by Paul Schmidtberger is a wonderful satire of inconvenience and indignity with is full of wit, humor, unforgettable characters and lots of wisdom. Set in New York City, here is a book about love, friendship and anger. We have two couples--Iris Steegers and Jeremy Elberle and Ken Connelly and Brett Manikin. Iris loses control on a flight and is ordered to go to anger-management classes. She also discovers that Jeremy may be cheating. Ken also has a problem with controlling his temper and is fired from his job because of it. On the very same day he finds Brett in bed with another man. He decides to also go to anger-management class. He meets Iris and the two decide to use each other to spy on their partners. What they learn is what the definition of what happiness is and whether or not being in a relationship brings happiness. They also learn what it takes to make happiness happen and how to deal with it. Reading about how two people become friends is interesting and they become a comic duo. The twists and turns keep you reading and they characters are involved in a situation that we can all relate to. The author has everything figured out and timed just right. Here are two characters that are very different who after being thrown together form a friendship that is very real. The book had me laughing all the way through. Amid the laughter is a very real message about friendship.

Clever, funny, & well-written:
A friend of mine gave me this book, and as soon as I started reading I couldn't put it down. Great characters, hilarious commentary on modern life, and a very satisfying ending. If you're looking for an intelligent yet lighthearted look at relationships, this is hard to beat. The "message" sneaks up on you instead of beating you over the head. It's one of the few books I would happily re-read!