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Habillés pour l'hiver (22 épisodes de la vie d'une famille presque normale) by David Sedaris
chrissigermann's review against another edition
4.0
I love David Sedaris' voice & humor. This book was no exception. I laughed out loud more times than I care to admit. I highly recommend listening to the audio book vs. the real thing, Sedaris' impressions & timing are golden.
zoeythekat's review against another edition
4.0
This book was EXCELLENT. I will say, though, some of the stories made me extremely uncomfortable. But I'm kind of a prude, so if you're not, and you enjoy smart, self degradation in humor, you'll just straight up enjoy every bit of this book.
sankeym's review against another edition
3.0
As always, Sedaris infuses everyday life with absurdity in a set of essays I had mostly read already in the New Yorker, but admittedly, laughed at again.
alongapath's review against another edition
3.0
I have dabbled in David Sedaris over the years but this collection of short stories seemed to be the missing glue for all his other wacky tales. Told in a loosely chronological fashion, David gives some background to who he is, how he grew up and what his family is like. The little snippets were fun, silly and serious.
simonlitton's review against another edition
5.0
My first Sedaris, although I'd read one of the pieces, "Six to eight black men" before. A near-perfect mix of humour and pathos. To judge from some of the other reviews this isn't considered his best work, as it isn't laugh-out-loud funny on every page, but I don't think it's supposed to be. A lot of it is funny-sad, wistful, or even painful, in kind of the same way that Mike Leigh films can be.
I certainly plan to read all his other collections now.
I certainly plan to read all his other collections now.
kats05's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars if GoodReads would let me.
5 stars for 6-8 Black Men which has got to be one of my favourite Sedaris essays ever. A few years ago, a Dutch lady in one of my book clubs told us the story of "Sinterklaas" in the Netherlands, and I thought it sounded really quite dodgy and a bit sinister, though the "Samichlaus" in Switzerland isn't much better.... there is also talk of taking away and some caning for the "bad kids".
However, Sedaris' incredulous retelling of this tradition made this my new favourite Christmas story, plus the quote of "People who traditionally open gifts on Christmas Eve seem a bit more pious and family oriented than those who wait until Christmas morning. [...] Gifts are generally reserved for children and parents tend not to go overboard. It's nothing I want for myself but I suppose it's fine for those who prefer food and family to things of real value." is absolutely priceless.
There are a couple of other gems, once again showing Sedaris' astute observations and verbal wit, but also an awful lot of toxic family anecdotes some of which made me cringe more than they made me laugh, namely the ones about his brother Paul and his sister Tiffany. I wonder if these siblings have actually given their consent about being the made the laughing stock in the book.
One family quote from his childhood days was very funny, though, as well as the story that went with it:
"We were the family that never shut down. The family whose TV was so hot we needed an oven mitt to change channels."
I definitely prefer the essays based outside his family life, even the ones taking on his long-term relationship with his partner, Hugh.
"Hugh and I have been together for so long that, in order to arouse extraordinary passion, we need to engage in actual physical combat."
I look forward to reading (or rather listening to) more of his backlist soon and am very excited to listen to him live from my front row seat booked yesterday in Zurich in September. Can. Not. Wait!
5 stars for 6-8 Black Men which has got to be one of my favourite Sedaris essays ever. A few years ago, a Dutch lady in one of my book clubs told us the story of "Sinterklaas" in the Netherlands, and I thought it sounded really quite dodgy and a bit sinister, though the "Samichlaus" in Switzerland isn't much better.... there is also talk of taking away and some caning for the "bad kids".
However, Sedaris' incredulous retelling of this tradition made this my new favourite Christmas story, plus the quote of "People who traditionally open gifts on Christmas Eve seem a bit more pious and family oriented than those who wait until Christmas morning. [...] Gifts are generally reserved for children and parents tend not to go overboard. It's nothing I want for myself but I suppose it's fine for those who prefer food and family to things of real value." is absolutely priceless.
There are a couple of other gems, once again showing Sedaris' astute observations and verbal wit, but also an awful lot of toxic family anecdotes some of which made me cringe more than they made me laugh, namely the ones about his brother Paul and his sister Tiffany. I wonder if these siblings have actually given their consent about being the made the laughing stock in the book.
One family quote from his childhood days was very funny, though, as well as the story that went with it:
"We were the family that never shut down. The family whose TV was so hot we needed an oven mitt to change channels."
I definitely prefer the essays based outside his family life, even the ones taking on his long-term relationship with his partner, Hugh.
"Hugh and I have been together for so long that, in order to arouse extraordinary passion, we need to engage in actual physical combat."
I look forward to reading (or rather listening to) more of his backlist soon and am very excited to listen to him live from my front row seat booked yesterday in Zurich in September. Can. Not. Wait!