What Would Betty Do?: How to Succeed at the Expense of Others in this World-and the Next

If you've ever wondered whether you're going to hell, Betty Bowers has an answer for you--and it is a soft, self-satisfied "Yes." What Would Betty Do?, a satire of self-righteousness, collects the ravings of "America's Best Christian," a creation of the writer Paul A. Bradley. The book is organized as a send-up of Christian advice manuals, including sections on Bible study, sex, fashion, and social justice ("The Poor Will Always Be with Us, So We Needn't Break a Heel Rushing to Help Them"). Betty is at her best with snappy one-liners (such as "So close to Jesus, He validates my parking," and "If God created me in His image, I have more than returned the compliment") and wicked acronyms ("B.A.S.H." is an ex-gay ministry: "Baptists Are Saving Homosexuals"). Betty nails the target of fundamentalist hubris with aplomb, but as the book goes on and the same jokes appear again and again, satire also verges into sneering. --Michael Joseph Gross