There’s no immodest way to say this, so I’ll just come out and say it: I just had the #1 best book release party in history. Here’s the proof, courtesy of Bryan Adams Photography:

Speical thanks to Rumor Botique Hotel, Suzanne Lugano, VEGAS Magazine, Las Vegas Weekly, Paula, Kelli, Janice, Jeff, Dave, Josh, Craig, Jeremy, Barnes & Noble and everyone else who helped make the night fantastic.

My new book drops in two months. It’s called Fool Me Once: Hustlers, Hookers, Headliners, and How Not to Get Screwed in Vegas. Essentially, it’s A Tale of Two Cities, but with fewer cities and more photos.

Now, a lot of local literati have criticized my decision to not appear on Oprah to promote my book. There’s been a lot of speculation as to why I won’t go on the show, and I’d like to take this opportunity to set the record straight:

-Am I afraid of getting “the James Frey treatment”? Of course not. Have you seen what the James Frey treatment did for James Frey’s book sales? Through the roof.

-Am I “pulling a Jonathan Franzen”? Please! That Franzen guy is a hack. I can’t even remember the last time he published a book.*

Does my refusal to appear on the show have anything to do with Oprah expressing no interest whatsoever in having me on her show?

Nope. Here’s the deal: I’m holding out for Bonnie Hunt.

*Editor’s Note: 2 months and 6 days ago.

The Book Club Queen just put out a review of Lawyer Boy. It’s a good review, and I thank the Queen for it…only I can’t get over the start of the first line: “As a semi-professional magician and general disgrace, Rick decides…”

General disgrace? Sure, I spent a year after college bumming around my parents’ house, eating their food, using their computers, and watching the Price Is Right…but does that make me a “general disgrace?” I’d argue it made me a time-and-place-specific disgrace, if anything.

Anyway, here’s The Book Club Queen’s review:

- - - - - - - -

A semi-professional magician and a general disgrace, Rick decides it’s time to get his life together and join his father’s ranks in making “The Only Acceptable Career Choice.” Born to a long line of lawyers, Rick knew that it was only a matter of time until he too entered the fold. Besides, it’s hard to get girls with lines like “Want to come back to my parents’ place?”

After suffering a few sudden, crushing disappointments, he is accepted to DePaul Law School in Chicago. With a dry, intelligent wit, Rick Lax dissects the application process and his first year of law school for our amusement. Notoriously difficult, Rick’s trials and travails prove that even the most unprepared and unlikely 1L’s can survive the test of the first year, and furthermore can maintain and even nourish a lively sense of humor.

Peppered with explanations of real cases and legal jargon, reading LAWYER BOY (St. Martin’s Press / Hardcover / July 2008 / 0-312-37335-X / $24.95) is like borrowing notes from the class clown—It won’t get you an A, but it’s probably the best reading you’ll find in law school.

- - - - - - - - -

Quick question: is it bad form to review my reviews?