Trillin collects of memories of his father--including his stubborn eccentricities such as his yellow neckties, abstinence from coffee and cigarettes, and abidance by maxims like You might as well be a mensch --to paint a picture of a man of exotic ordinariness. Unlike a crush of other dysfunctional family memoirists, Trillin comfortably recalls Abe Trillinsky as a gentle father and an exceptional friend.