Dishonesty is the Second-Best Policy: And Other Rules to Live By
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-07-10 09:53:33
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：David Mitchell
- ISBN：1783351985
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Summary
** THE NEW BOOK FROM THE AWARD-WINNING COMEDIAN AND WRITER**
'Mitchell is an exceptionally clever， eloquent and spot-on commentator。 We should be grateful for him。' Daily Mail
David Mitchell's 2014 bestseller Thinking About It Only Makes It Worse must really have made people think - because everything's got worse。 We've gone from UKIP surge to Brexit shambles， from horsemeat in lasagne to Donald Trump in the White House， from Woolworths going under to all the other shops going under。 It's probably socially irresponsible even to try to cheer up。
But if you're determined to give it a go， you might enjoy this eclectic collection （or eclection） of David Mitchell's attempts to make light of all that darkness。 Scampi， politics， the Olympics， terrorism， exercise， rude street names， inheritance tax， salad cream， proportional representation and farts are all touched upon by Mitchell's unremitting laser of chit-chat， as he negotiates a path between the commercialisation of Christmas and the true spirit of Halloween。 Read this book and slightly change your life！
'Mitchell combines breathtaking general knowledge with withering wit。' Guardian
'Mitchell is an exceptionally clever， eloquent and spot-on commentator。 We should be grateful for him。' Daily Mail
David Mitchell's 2014 bestseller Thinking About It Only Makes It Worse must really have made people think - because everything's got worse。 We've gone from UKIP surge to Brexit shambles， from horsemeat in lasagne to Donald Trump in the White House， from Woolworths going under to all the other shops going under。 It's probably socially irresponsible even to try to cheer up。
But if you're determined to give it a go， you might enjoy this eclectic collection （or eclection） of David Mitchell's attempts to make light of all that darkness。 Scampi， politics， the Olympics， terrorism， exercise， rude street names， inheritance tax， salad cream， proportional representation and farts are all touched upon by Mitchell's unremitting laser of chit-chat， as he negotiates a path between the commercialisation of Christmas and the true spirit of Halloween。 Read this book and slightly change your life！
'Mitchell combines breathtaking general knowledge with withering wit。' Guardian
Reviews
storytime-reviews
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Dishonesty is the Second Best Policy is a collection of Mitchell’s columns for The Guardian。 As always with Mitchell’s work， it is full of clever humour and observations of society which really make you think。 I love his work on Would I Lie To You？， hence my reason for checking this book out。 Mitchell’s ranting style was perfectly suited to the whole range of topics， from the politics of Brexit， to capitalism， to his topic of choice – things changing！Whilst Mitchell keeps up his playful rants fo Dishonesty is the Second Best Policy is a collection of Mitchell’s columns for The Guardian。 As always with Mitchell’s work， it is full of clever humour and observations of society which really make you think。 I love his work on Would I Lie To You？， hence my reason for checking this book out。 Mitchell’s ranting style was perfectly suited to the whole range of topics， from the politics of Brexit， to capitalism， to his topic of choice – things changing！Whilst Mitchell keeps up his playful rants for the majority of these columns， it’s also clear that his opinions are often well thought out， and sometimes even unexpected。 I loved that he could go from talking about the politics of enacting Brexit， to first dates and bank passwords。Of course I didn’t completely understand all the references as it is clearly British-centric and I’m not aware of all the British news。 However much of it did make international news headlines， whilst other topics were easily understood and relatable。 。。。more
Alana Shum
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I will have to give this a second read some time soon。
Malone
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David Mitchell proves once again that there is a fine line between being clever and being boring。
Anna-Pauliina
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Ehkä 2，5 tähteä， puhtaasti vain kokoelma kolumneja yms。 julkaistuna kirjamuodossa。 Luonnollisesti osa teksteistä parempia kuin toiset， joten loppukirja menee vähän lukemista valikoidessa。
Christopher Vian
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If you enjoy David Mitchell this is more of his writing and observations。 There isn’t much more to say about this。
Jamie
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Complaining about annoying things incredibly comedically。
Gamblr
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I liked it， and if you like hearing David Mitchell whinge about things （and sometimes say very enlightened things - he said some very hurtful and true things about online dating） you'll like it to。I recommend the audiobook to get the full experience。It's not hard hitting， it's a nice easy read。 I liked it， and if you like hearing David Mitchell whinge about things （and sometimes say very enlightened things - he said some very hurtful and true things about online dating） you'll like it to。I recommend the audiobook to get the full experience。It's not hard hitting， it's a nice easy read。 。。。more
Julia Shumway
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A bunch of David Mitchell's newspaper opinion pieces。 I listened via Audible which was enjoyable。 The afterword with future predictions was my favorite。 A bunch of David Mitchell's newspaper opinion pieces。 I listened via Audible which was enjoyable。 The afterword with future predictions was my favorite。 。。。more
Ar Glynn
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He sure is a funny and clever man。 But I think I missed a lot of jokes as I am not familiar with the context of many issues discussed。
Ross
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Very disappointing
Chloe
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Makes you wish Mitchell’s calibre were in charge and not the actual government。
Elisabeth
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A fine book talking about many contemporary matters with a perticular commentary。 I have to say I think I only laughed out a couple of times during this book but overall it handled and explained good variety of topics in an acceptable manner。 I enjoyed the politics topics and particularly the unacceptableness of the prime minister saying clear no to a question whether he will be putting himself forward to another election。Enjoyed but not perhaps for the humour so much。
Anya Bird
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I like David Mitchell and there were some funny parts of this but I didn’t realise when starting it that it was just a load of his newspaper columns made into a book and at times I felt like he was just trying too hard to be funny and just ended up being obtuse。 Not his best work。
Amy （and her hounds）
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David Mitchell just appeals to me。 His voice is soothing， his writing is droll and entertaining。 So any audiobook of his is going to be a hit with me。 The only reason for a four star review is that I'm not so immersed in British culture that I am familiar with every one of his subjects， so some essays left me guessing a bit。 But this， of course， is not his problem。 Very entertaining。 David Mitchell just appeals to me。 His voice is soothing， his writing is droll and entertaining。 So any audiobook of his is going to be a hit with me。 The only reason for a four star review is that I'm not so immersed in British culture that I am familiar with every one of his subjects， so some essays left me guessing a bit。 But this， of course， is not his problem。 Very entertaining。 。。。more
peppersocks
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Reflections and lessons learned:“。。。we have an interesting country， an interesting past and we’re an interesting people。。。 no nastier than most and hard to ignore。。。 and for better or worse what we are， what we have， and whatever it is that our culture represents comes from centuries of working through lunch。。。”Pre 2010 bc （before children） there was nothing more enjoyable to me than a lazy hungover weekend morning with the newspapers - in London living days having got the first editions on the Reflections and lessons learned:“。。。we have an interesting country， an interesting past and we’re an interesting people。。。 no nastier than most and hard to ignore。。。 and for better or worse what we are， what we have， and whatever it is that our culture represents comes from centuries of working through lunch。。。”Pre 2010 bc （before children） there was nothing more enjoyable to me than a lazy hungover weekend morning with the newspapers - in London living days having got the first editions on the way home from a night out， or latterly an early morning fresh air picking up pop， ginsters and picking a paper on the basis of aired views from recognised journalists/admired personalities; sharing and bagsying the different sections， having a doze to absorb the information before a debate over breakfast and a stab at the crosswords， and perhaps another snooze on the sofa before a self satisfying moment of sudoku completion， and it’s mid afternoon before you know it - great days。 I think it’s this reminiscing that makes me attracted to these newspaper column style compilation books - maybe I should pop to the shops this weekend for a live interaction rather than the constant catch up now they the kids are older。。。？ I hope that social media and instant commentary access hasn’t stole all of the wonder from this possibility。。。As expected this a meander through the pre-brexit vote/Theresa May （who knew that she loved her blackberry so much！） life in an attempt to understand the psyche of the country relative to Mitchell。 I share the the thought that Britain might have been getting fairer but as I tip over the middle age plateau point I share a lot of the cynicism， if not all the views。 Standout sections include identity theft revelation， Phillip Morris International， slate plates and a Terry Pratchett solid burn！ I’m in search of solace too。。。 let’s keep reading， debating and learning together whilst laughing along the way“Harry Redknapp stands completely still on Strictly。。。” 。。。more
TraceyL
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If you like David Mitchell and his angry logic， you'll enjoy his books。 They are basically just him talking about everything that's going on in the world （but mostly in Britain） right now。 It's great。 If you like David Mitchell and his angry logic， you'll enjoy his books。 They are basically just him talking about everything that's going on in the world （but mostly in Britain） right now。 It's great。 。。。more
Alice
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Interesting collection of articles！ Really do enjoy his style of commentary。
Toni
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At some pages I laughed out loud （like the guy in the train in one of the Mr Bean series） but for someone not from Britain it is really hard to understand。。。。 and， well I‘m not from Britain。。。 BUT nevertheless， it is a really funny book and I bet that if you are from Britain you will enjoy it！
Najaf Naqvi
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3。5
Judy
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Stick to TV David Mitchell， not politics！ We need a new series of WILTY ， all we have down-under is multiple repeats of the same episodes。 Not living in the UK the book was a great disappointment。 Did a quick skim over last few chapters as your view on politics certainly don’t align with mine。 Perhaps listening to you reading the audio may have been better。 Have one extra log for the fire this winter， sorry about that。 PS have changed to 2 stars 'it was OK'！ Stick to TV David Mitchell， not politics！ We need a new series of WILTY ， all we have down-under is multiple repeats of the same episodes。 Not living in the UK the book was a great disappointment。 Did a quick skim over last few chapters as your view on politics certainly don’t align with mine。 Perhaps listening to you reading the audio may have been better。 Have one extra log for the fire this winter， sorry about that。 PS have changed to 2 stars 'it was OK'！ 。。。more
Max DT
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David Mitchell is funny， intelligent， and a great writer。 That combo yields entertaining and insightful books like this one。 Having not previously read any of the articles contained within， I enjoyed every last one。 His Audible reading contains a great， comedic bonus chapter on futurology。 Btw idk exactly why but I've rated A LOT of books four stars so far this year。 David Mitchell is funny， intelligent， and a great writer。 That combo yields entertaining and insightful books like this one。 Having not previously read any of the articles contained within， I enjoyed every last one。 His Audible reading contains a great， comedic bonus chapter on futurology。 Btw idk exactly why but I've rated A LOT of books four stars so far this year。 。。。more
Sarah Whitney
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It turns out I have very similar opinions to David Mitchell， the most important being a dislike of the strawberry creams in Quality Street！I had a smirk on my face listening to this while I was working， it was so witty。 The only reason I didn’t rate it 5 was because most of it was about past events。 If I’d read / listened to it at the time of publishing it would have been even better。
Vicki Duncan
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I love a political number and I also love David Mitchell so this has been on my raider for a while！This is a collection of essays covering all sorts of topics from the Internet to Brexit to Culture to many more。 One thing it doesn’t mention is covid as this was first published back in 2019， waaay before covid was even on the horizon。It was so weird reading a book pre covid， I’d almost forgotten how terrible the Tory government had been before the mess of the last 12 months。 I think my favourite I love a political number and I also love David Mitchell so this has been on my raider for a while！This is a collection of essays covering all sorts of topics from the Internet to Brexit to Culture to many more。 One thing it doesn’t mention is covid as this was first published back in 2019， waaay before covid was even on the horizon。It was so weird reading a book pre covid， I’d almost forgotten how terrible the Tory government had been before the mess of the last 12 months。 I think my favourite essay was the one about identity theft and how Banks try and make out it’s your fault if fraudsters manage to steal money out of your account。 How fraudsters are using disguise instead of guns now。 It was fascinating！If you like amusing， political/cultural books reminiscing about pre covid times， this one is for you！ I thought it was great！ 。。。more
J。A。 Kahn
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Side splitting humour。 Pure genius。 Lots of digs at Boris Johnson & Theresa May - all well deserved and thoroughly enjoyable。
Chantelle Whyborn
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I read another non-fiction， although admittedly it took me ages！This book is a collection of articles David Mitchell has written over the years on everything from scampi to Patisserie Valerie to dating etiquette to Tory politicians， it really is quite the eclectic mix！ All of David’s wit， intelligence and quintessentially British sarcasm drips from every page and I really did giggle out loud multiple times。 I also learnt a lot of facts about super random things as well， always a massive plus esp I read another non-fiction， although admittedly it took me ages！This book is a collection of articles David Mitchell has written over the years on everything from scampi to Patisserie Valerie to dating etiquette to Tory politicians， it really is quite the eclectic mix！ All of David’s wit， intelligence and quintessentially British sarcasm drips from every page and I really did giggle out loud multiple times。 I also learnt a lot of facts about super random things as well， always a massive plus especially when it doesn’t feel like learning。 David is very clear with his politic alignments and this comes through in the book， so maybe this could be off putting if your ideology is directly opposed， but I think he handles this well by stating it’s just his opinion on these matters。 I really enjoyed this book and how easy it was to dip in for an article or two but the material was quite heavy so definitely not something I could binge。 。。。more
Benjamin
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Fun read if you enjoy David Mitchell's witty， dry， English sarcasm。 A compilation of previous newspaper columns， which means that often the topic is somewhat different in the current day， but still an amusing read。 Fun read if you enjoy David Mitchell's witty， dry， English sarcasm。 A compilation of previous newspaper columns， which means that often the topic is somewhat different in the current day， but still an amusing read。 。。。more
William Connelly
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Dry， witty philosophy of David Mitchell。 I enjoy Mitchell’s centrist “maybe that’s right， maybe it isn’t， what do I know” approach。 It’s not all comic whimsy - a sense of anger and despair at the direction of the UK comes through。 If you enjoy Mitchell’s TV appearances， though， you’ll enjoy this book。
Harriet
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Meh。Listened to as an audiobook read by David。 Was hoping for great satire but it turns out it's just a middle-class（his words） middle-age moaning man。 Tried to persevere but didn't finish。 Meh。Listened to as an audiobook read by David。 Was hoping for great satire but it turns out it's just a middle-class（his words） middle-age moaning man。 Tried to persevere but didn't finish。 。。。more
Penny Taylor
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Very funny in parts。 A collection of his newspaper columns。 Probably best read a bit at a time， rather than beginning to end。 Certainly made me think。
Daniel Callister
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