'It's my belief that sanity lies in realizing that reality is not exactly what we had in mind,' says Roy Blount, Jr. in this witty collection of essays. With humor that is wry, dry, and warm, he delights and provokes us by confronting the reality of American life compared to the way we thought it would be. With his characteristic drawl—or 'oral resonance,' as he calls it—he reflects on John Wayne, the federal deficit, women's underwear, and more.