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Well, Aimee Semple McPherson has written a book. And were you to call it a little peach, you would not be so much as scratching its surface. It is the story of her life, and it is called In the Service of the King, which title is perhaps a bit dangerously suggestive of a romantic novel. It may be that this autobiography is set down in sincerity, frankness and simple effort. It may be, too, that the Statue of Liberty is situated in Lake Ontario.

Dorothy Parker#4

CriticismBooksCelebrityPretensePublishingSatire

About this quote

What does it mean?
Parker uses hyperbole and absurdity to critique the quality of a celebrity autobiography and its pretentious title.
In plain terms
The book is shallow and the title sounds like a romance novel.
What can you take from it?
Titles can mislead about the substance of a work.

Where it applies

  • reviewing celebrity memoirs
  • discussing titles
  • analyzing satire

Putting it to work

  • writing book reviews
  • mocking self-importance

Questions to consider

  • What makes a memoir truthful?
  • How do titles shape expectations?

Another view

It relies on obscure references that may confuse general readers.

More from Dorothy Parker

  1. Salary is no object: I want only enough to keep body and soul apart.

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  2. It is that word 'hummy,' my darlings, that marks the first place in The House at Pooh Corner at which Tonstant Weader fwowed up.

    Permalink to quote #5
  3. And she had It. It, hell; she had Those.

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