Hotel Reservations

For lovers of British wit, this anecdotal tell-all is mildly entertaining. Picot, a seasoned hotel manager, has collected humorous stories from hostelries across Europe and the Far East and smoothly strung them together in all too predictable categories: We have unrecognized VIPs--the Duke of Edinburgh himself behind the wheel, or Springsteen, unrecognized by a London chef, avoiding fans by exiting through the kitchen. Then there are the instances of guests and personnel caught in various states of undress. New employees don't realize that a screwdriver is a beverage and deliver a tool to a guest. Some of the more exotic settings produce the more amusing events: When a traveler in Jaipur, India, called the hotel's front desk to report that he was sharing his room with a rodent (one hurriedly absconding with his American Express Gold Card, no less), the confused reply was: ``Very well, sir, but I must inform you that there will be a double charge for the double occupying of the room, sir.'' (Oct.)