The Whipping Boy - Collected Works Of Madness And Bad Advice

Ben Trovato needs no introduction. This is what he says, anyway. We told him to stop being so silly and let us do our job. He claims that almost every book critic is on his payroll and that if we know what's good for us, we will do things his way. He is what's known in the trade as a “difficult author”, although this usually applies to marketability rather than making the publisher's life a living hell. In the event that Trovato is lying, we would like to remind you that – despite his tenuous relationship with the truth – he remains one of South Africa's most popular columnists. He has written regularly for a cross-section of publications ranging from Leadership and the Cape Times to GQ and Zigzag.

In this, his tenth book, Trovato unleashes the best of his satirical columns that have appeared each week in the Sunday Times since early 2008. Trovato insists we point out that The Whipping Boy is more than just a book. He says it is also a weapon in the war against terror and that a user's guide will be mailed upon receipt of the beer equivalent of money. It can also be used to build a staircase that could save a beautiful woman in a burning building. He e stimates it would take no more than 500 copies to reach a first floor window.

However, should one wish to use The Whipping Boy for nothing more than the simple pursuit of reading pleasure, one will be pleasantly surprised to discover that the book contains more than just a compilation of Trovato's much-loved and widely hated columns.