There is nothing a twenty-one-year-old man at his first job in New York City needs more than a good mentor, although few of them find one. But author Matthew Phillips found the wild, impetuous, and knowledgeable Marylou Stern. The years Matt spent with Marylou were filled with parties, sex, excess, frivolity, live cows, kidnapped Jewish jewelers, and games that stretch the imagination.
In this memoir, Phillips shares his story of how Marylou, a former model, dancer, and actress, transformed him from an eager, fresh-faced college grad into a sidelines player in chic New York society. Over the course of three years, Marylou taught Matt about New York City, high society, the difference between class and low class, how to make a genuine egg cream, how to milk a cow, why wanton sex is good for your health, why listening is more important than talking, that Sara Lee Vanilla Layer Cakes are the best reward, and that you must never put up with thieves.
In Everything but Snakes, Phillips narrates how Marylou's undying sense of celebration kept him going and gave him a floor beneath his feet and, along the way, an upside-down roller-coaster ride.

Matthew Phillips was born and raised in New York City. He graduated from Bard High School Early College (BHSEC) in downtown Manhattan in 2003, earning an Associate's Degree in lieu of a High School Diploma at the age of 18. He earned a Bachelor's Degree at the State University of New York at Binghamton and from there enrolled in the CUNY Graduate Center where he was slated to earn a Master's Degree in Middle Eastern Studies. As a reader and writer of poetry, Matthew found his subject matter through a variety of topics, from the joy of learning to the game of chess. However, his primary focus in writing was the Israel-Palestine conflict. Often critical of Israel's involvement in the war, he published eight such essays from 2010-2011 through Mondoweiss, an online platform dedicated to informing the public about the ongoing struggle for peace in the region. He is the son of Louis Phillips and Patricia Ranard, and the twin brother of Ian Phillips. He died in New York City on April 4th, 2011, at the age of 26.