Manners matter

Press, 2 November 1985, Page 14

Manners matter

Every Occasion, by Ita Buttrose. Heinemann. $29.95. Reviewed by Helen Brown .

My aunt'always kept an Edwardian etiquette book on her shelf. It told you how to eat a grapefruit, and when it was appropriate to leave a calling card. • ; r During the ’6os — when the only rule was that there were no rules — I used to encourage raucous schoolmates to thumb through my aunt’s book ? so. we could have a good laugh. Things have changed a lot since then. It’s harder to get a job, the gap between rich and poor is widening, and people (even young ones) are knuckling down. White weddings and twenty-first birthdays are back in voguei.lt’s no longer acceptable to suck a grape-, fruit, and sip soup off the end of your spoon. < Australian media mega star, Ita Buttrose,. has

caught the new tidal wave of.'manners with her elegantly presented book. If your mother didn’t teach you how to leave your knife and fork on the plate, Ita will. Her book covers the traditional areas of baptisms, weddings, funerals,

and what to call the Pope if he happens to drop by. But, not forgetting this is the ’Bos, she has included a no-nonsense section on separation and divorce. Although the legal information is Australian-oriented, the advice on how to handle friends, children, and your “ex,” would be valuable to couples parting company this side of the Tasman. .

Other Chapters cover telephone manners (including answer phones), applying for a job (never wear heavy perfume, see-through blouse, a tight mini-skirt, and carry a plastic shopping bag to the interview), Chinese banquets, and sexual harrassment. ■

“Every Occasion” is a useful book — even for those who thought they knew everything. ■ ; ’