Rating:  Summary: So Not Funny Review: I ordered this book, as well as "Naked" because they were recommended for people who enjoyed David Egger's "Heartbreaking work of Staggering Genius." I am not sure who decides on those recommendations, but boy were they wrong. I was unable to finish either Sedaris book, as they were boring, bland and just plain unfunny. Egger's book was introspective, fresh, and drew the reader in and made you care about what happened next, not to mention hilariously funny at times. Both of Sedaris' books do little to make you interested in the characters at all and the humor they try to employ wasn't funny when the same jokes were made ten times before Sedaris made them. If you enjoy comedy like recent years of SNL, then maybe you'll like this book. But if you find that kind of humor boring and redundant, then don't waste your money (like I did).
Rating:  Summary: Hilarious Review: Enlightened people know that David Sedaris is quite possibly the funniest person on the planet. I bought this book at a book signing (and enlightened people also know that even better than reading Sedaris' work is hearing Sedaris read Sedaris' work -- so you might want to look for the audio). He read several excerpts and I was laughing so hard during "Jesus Shaves" I thought I'd have a heart attack and they'd have to cart me out of there. In dark times, books like this keep you alive.
Rating:  Summary: My personal favorite Review: I have all of David's books - think I'm a bit of a fan? Yes. But of them all this was easily my favorite of his collections based primarily on the second half (the book is divided into parts "One" and "Deux") which recounts his time spent living with a partner/boyfriend in France. I nearly burst a spleen when he recounted his difficulties with shopping. David's caustic, observational. and self depricating humor is not for everyone - though everyone I know thinks his stories are laugh out loud funny. If you've enjoyed any of his earlier works, don't miss out on this one!
Rating:  Summary: Me stop laughing one day (but not anytime soon) Review: David Sedaris has found a way to take the subtext of life and put it on paper in a shameless, self-revealing way that leaves the reader gasping with laughter. To take all the little, disjointed comments that you run through your head, but would never say aloud to anyone, whip them into chapter/book form, and find the courage to publish them so that millions of readers can see how absurd you are takes a rare form of courage, a strong sense of self, and great talent. David does it with a flair. If you can't find something to identify with and laugh about in this book, then you are a pompous stuffed-shirt, and you'll probably show up as a character in David's next book!
Rating:  Summary: this book funny me made laugh Review: I hate short stories. They leave me wondering why the author didn't think the character or the plot significant enough to explore in the greater detail of a novel. That said, I really enjoyed Sedaris's "Me Talk Pretty One Day". The first half of the book, "One", was filled with stories about Sedaris's family. Stories of the sort that every family retells around the kitchen table when gathered together again as 'grown-ups' (Remember the time Amy came home in the fat suit and dad thought she'd REALLY gained all that weight?!? Mom and Dad love that new dog more than they EVER loved us kids when we lived at home!). Amusing and fun to read. "Deux (Two)" recounts Sedaris's time as an "ex-pat" in France. Having struggled through French, German and Spanish myself and watching my own ESL students learn to untangle reflexives made this half of the book particularly amusing. Fun, witty, loony and irresistibly funny: just like the reviews say.
Rating:  Summary: bad sense of humor? Review: It's simply a long-haul airplane book. I quite did not understand the eulogies from other readers.
Rating:  Summary: Very depressing book Review: There was nothing to laugh about in this book. The author made it clear he had a terrible life, that he hated everything and everyone, and that he has felt unloved throughout his life. I found the book to be depressing, irritating and frustrating.
Rating:  Summary: Most depressing book I've ever read Review: I feel so bad for the author because there is not one thing in his life that is worth living for. He hates everything and everyone, and he makes that crystal clear with every word he set to paper. His descriptions are bad...some border on cruel and evil. His "humor" is directed towards 5 year olds or the brain-damaged. I don't know how this book ever got published.
Rating:  Summary: Six Degrees of David Review: I was on a plane to NYC reading "Naked" for my next book group meeting, when I heard someone a few rows down from me burst out laughing. As I exited the plane, I took a peek at what he was reading and it was "Me Talk Pretty One Day." A few weeks later, on a road trip, I listened to "Me Talk Pretty One Day," and at one point, I had to pull the car over to the side of the road, because I was laughing... so... hard! Reading (or listening to) his books may put you in some embarrassing situations, but it will be worth it.
Rating:  Summary: VERY funny, but more than just that Review: Last Christmas I was given, at my request, the David Sedaris boxed set. Eleven months later, I still listen to at least four stories a week. I adore him! He's wondrously, riotously funny, but he's more than that. Part of what makes him so attractive to me is that I too am from a Northern family that moved South when I was a kid, and like Sedaris I moved to France because of a relationship and without knowing more than a few words of the language. But Sedaris is so engaging a narrator that his readers can identify with even his more bizarre experiences/tendencies (e.g., cleaning the apartment of a sadomasochist, his inglorious career as a performance artist, his wish to buy a two-headed calf's skull for "the price of a single-seater"). His vision of the world is ultimately quite tender--this comes out especially in his stories about his mother--and he never laughs at anyone more than he laughs at himself. "Me Talk Pretty One Day" is a great introduction to his work, and I especially recommend the spoken version--his reading of his stories adds quite a lot to them. If the France thing particularly interests you, begin with "See You Again Yesterday" (live), "Jesus Shaves" (EXCELLENT closing line!), or "Picka Pocketoni" (every time I hear it I can't help but wonder if Martin from California realizes how his boneheadedness has been immortalized).
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