Short Takes: Apr. 19, 1993

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MARK O'DONNELL'S COLLECTION OF COMIC short stories, VERTIGO PARK AND OTHER TALL TALES (Knopf; $18), is like a literary version of Saturday Night Live -- a boatload of strained laughs mixed with a few great jokes that keep the whole thing afloat. Bright spots: "She didn't realize deliberate perkiness offended, the way the smell of ammonia becomes associated with the odors it's supposed to remove," and "Necessity is the mother of affection," and "Do you not be happy with me as the translator of the books of you?" There are pieces about Samuel Beckett, obsessed fans and psychics. It's a fitfully amusing little book, with two big advantages over Saturday Night Live: there are no commercials, and you can enjoy it any day of the week.

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