HOW TO LOSE FRIENDS & ALIENATE PEOPLE

British journalist Toby Young should have been the best person to read his own gossipy, occasionally bitter, but mostly hilarious memoir of his time at Vanity Fair. Given the personal nature of the book--he hobnobbed with movie stars, screwed up assignments, fell in love, and generally drank too much--and his melodious BBC delivery, this production should have worked. But Young shows poor judgment by ascribing grating voices to every character. He does a passable American accent, but everyone is improbably gruff, whining, or buffoonish--even the celebrities, whom he is utterly unable to imitate. This is still a funny work, but a straight-up delivery would have allowed listeners to laugh without cringing. D.B. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC 02/ JAN 03]