From my Cannonball Read V review ...

Another book I’m wrapping up – this one is only a month old, and was another purchase at Anthropologie. I cannot get out of there without buying a hard-cover etiquette or lifestyle book with fancy font and great colors on it. The clothing rarely fits, but the books so often do.

As the title suggests, this book is about things to keep in mind when you have houseguest and when you are a houseguest. I’ve actually not seen an etiquette book devoted solely to this topic – usually it’s covered in those giant Leticia Baldridge / Emily Post tomes, but not on its own. And at over 250 pages, it covers a lot.

The book isn’t bad – there are a lot of sound tips. Some are things you’d obviously think of, but some are kind of fun and clever. The next time we have people in town, or the next time we visit family (holiday travel is right around the corner) I’m going to consult the book. The first bit covers being a host, the second bit covers being a guest, and the other sections have suggestions about special considerations to take when your guests are kids (especially good if you don’t have any) and elderly folks.

There’s not much more I can say. The writing is definitely coming from someone who has a different sense of humor than I do. Some comments are condescending, some are insulting, some are obliviously outdated. The only attempt at humor that actually landed and made me laugh out loud probably was accidental. But if you like this type of book, and you ever have houseguests, or stay at other people’s homes, I’d recommend it. ( )

I want to apologize to all the people who have visited me who haven't had a guest suite with matching towels, non allergenic bedding and who have had to *gasp* share a bathroom with their host.
I'm not coming at this from the argument that Gen X/Y/Millennials aren't as bad as etiquette as other generations would portray us - but rather this is generally a guide for a specific subset of the population. Specifically upper middle class suburban, for the most part, who have guest suites, second homes, and room to store gender appropriate matching bedding & towel sets for guests. Really!?!?!

That said, she was a pretty funny writer and her Visit Wizard tips are useful in general, even if you don't have plans to visit friends' condo in Aspen and/or host them in your Caribbean villa. ( )