aapollo917's review
4.0
My first David Sedaris book. I greatly enjoyed it, and got through it very quickly. Sedaris has a way of writing that makes you a part of the story and makes even bad situations funny. The story 6 to 8 Black Men was so funny, I laughed out loud at work.
I am now moving on to read his other works.
I am now moving on to read his other works.
gabi_francisco's review
5.0
hard to pick my top three or even five…….
Monie Changes Everything
The Change in Me
The Girl Next Door
Repeat After Me
Six to Eight Black Men
Possession
Monie Changes Everything
The Change in Me
The Girl Next Door
Repeat After Me
Six to Eight Black Men
Possession
ehmatthews's review
3.0
I think I went into this expecting it to be laugh out loud funny and it was, in parts. But other sections were equal parts sad and obnoxious. I have to admit though, I do appreciate Sedaris' snark and will probably pick up another one of his books again. The section on Santa Clause had tears running down my face I was laughing so hard, and was probably my favorite part in the book.
mjanssen's review
4.0
This one didn't make me laugh as much as When You Are Engulfed In Flames, but I still loved it -- especially the stories involving Sedaris's younger brother.
finchyness's review
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
4.0
Sedaris finds humor even in the bleak social landscape of one’s family. His musings are strikingly true for the overly self-conscious, and the witty punchlines strike with honesty that can occasionally be overly histrionic. But maybe that’s just what family does.
alexblackreads's review
3.0
This is I believe my second David Sedaris book (plus a number of random essays I've read online) and I was the tiniest bit disappointed in this book. For starters, it wasn't bad. It definitely wasn't bad. Sedaris is a good writer and even when I don't like his stuff as much, I still think it's well written. But I just wasn't all that interested in this book.
I think one of my issues was how short the essays were in this book. They felt much too short, like they were too short to have much purpose. And short essays aren't inherently bad, but half the time I felt like I was getting a quick overview of a story with no discussion or depth. I always felt like I needed more than what I was given.
Also, perhaps because I read this book so quickly, it felt a little over the top. Like there's no way all of these ridiculous and somewhat absurd situations could have happened to one person in a lifetime. Either he's lived quite a ridiculous life, or a number of these are made up/exaggerated to some degree. And considering in one of the essays he talked about how his friends/significant other were complaining about how he exaggerated stories, I'm kind of leaning toward the latter there. Which I don't mind super much. It honestly doesn't bother me that much when I get the vibe that the nonfiction book I'm reading isn't a hundred percent sticking to the truth (unless it's meant to be informative/academic/science based/etc). But for a subjective memoir, sure tell an interesting story. It was just that these stories weren't all that interesting.
This book is fading quickly, which is disappointing to me. I'm hoping to continue reading Sedaris and hopefully this one was just a bit of a fluke.
I think one of my issues was how short the essays were in this book. They felt much too short, like they were too short to have much purpose. And short essays aren't inherently bad, but half the time I felt like I was getting a quick overview of a story with no discussion or depth. I always felt like I needed more than what I was given.
Also, perhaps because I read this book so quickly, it felt a little over the top. Like there's no way all of these ridiculous and somewhat absurd situations could have happened to one person in a lifetime. Either he's lived quite a ridiculous life, or a number of these are made up/exaggerated to some degree. And considering in one of the essays he talked about how his friends/significant other were complaining about how he exaggerated stories, I'm kind of leaning toward the latter there. Which I don't mind super much. It honestly doesn't bother me that much when I get the vibe that the nonfiction book I'm reading isn't a hundred percent sticking to the truth (unless it's meant to be informative/academic/science based/etc). But for a subjective memoir, sure tell an interesting story. It was just that these stories weren't all that interesting.
This book is fading quickly, which is disappointing to me. I'm hoping to continue reading Sedaris and hopefully this one was just a bit of a fluke.