This compendium offers a very good, broad introduction to the writings of one of the most acerbic and witty American writers. His at times nerve-wracking, often laugh-out-loud funny and highly personal opinions on everything from married life to zoos and everybody from politicians (Woodrow Wilson, Roosevelt I and Roosevelt II) to composers (Beethoven, Schubert, Wagner) and actors (Valentino) are written in an enormously entertaining and seemingly efortless style that never is too ornate. Whole paragraphs deserve to be quoted, moreover the book is a regular goldmine of aphorisms. Some of the writings are outdated but almost all make for good reading, this is stuff that can and should be read and re-read for the supple language as well as the thought-provoking views.
In short, "A Mencken Chrestomathy" is one of the books one should always keep close by for use as reference and food for thoughts.