Mauve Gloves & Madmen, Clutter & Vine: And Other Stories, Sketches, and EssaysMP3 CD, 7 September 2021

In this 1976 collection of essays, Americana icon Tom Wolfe explores the social status strife of the 1970s, eviscerating trends of faux-sympathy and self-absorption, going as far as to coin the term "The 'Me' Decade" to describe the period's narcissism. And when paired with the clear, confident delivery of storied narrator and stage-and-screen veteran Peter Berkrot, Wolfe's incisive wit and cynical bite is more blistering than ever.

With essays spanning 1967 to 1976, Wolfe's comprehensive overview of the decade delves into every nook and cranny - from aerial dogfights above North Vietnam ("The Truest Sport: Jousting with Sam and Charlie") to the media's glorification of graphic, sensationalized violence ("Pornoviolence") to the emergence of an era of egomania ("The 'Me' Decade and the Third Great Awakening"). In focusing his satirical eye on the effects of a growing upper echelon of wealthy elites, a devastating and unpopular war abroad, and a flourishing sexual revolution, Wolfe proves yet again that he is a master of style with an eye for wickedly delicious cultural contradictions.