One of the best books I’ve read for some time is Bringing Nothing To The Party, by Paul Carr. It’s the honest and uproarious confessions of Paul, a self-confessed ‘new media whore’. I read it in LA recently, the day after I’d been to see the surprisingly good screen version of Toby Young’s book How To Lose Friends And Alienate People. There’s something of Young to this book, too, given Paul’s capacity to fuck up and then to scribble hilariously about that fuck up.

I wasn’t surprised that this book was so entertaining, because I met Paul a few years back and he is definitely one of the wittiest people I have ever met. Although it was supposed to be a meeting about a book, the conversation ended up meandering between random topics including the price of beef, the previous evening’s episode of Dragons’ Den, silly letters publishers receive and Arsenal FC. Whatever the topic, Paul was sharp and hilarious. I hardly got a word in and for once I didn’t mind because he was so engaging it seemed a waste to butt-in.

He’s just as fun in print. Although his numerous digs at “idiot chavs” are a shame (and predictable, given the techy crowds’ predilection for slagging off the white working-class) this is an uproarious and humane book. Carr might be a bit of a snob at times but he’s a self-effacing snob who directs his most brutal put-downs at himself.

You don’t need to be interested in the new-media world to enjoy Bringing Nothing To The Party, because this is really a book about the hilarious capers of a rare breed: a young man who combines an astonishing amount of ambition with humour and self-awareness. Who cares if Paul brought nothing to the party, he’s brought a real treat to the book stores.

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