That about sums it up.Because, what's the point to these anecdotes? Are you trying to tell me something Mr. Sedaris? I think not. You think you're funny? Meh, not that funny. Special? You're not that special either. You're a writer, just another writer. What's the big deal? As I said, I don't care much for your little stories. Seriously, my dear, I don't give a damn.

I just don't care for David Sedaris. There, I've said it. I've made peace with the fact. I have stared deep into the cockles of my heart, and forced myself to come to the only obvious-but-unpopular conclusion.I just don't care for David Sedaris.It was somewhat of an existential struggle for me to reach this conclusion because I'm exactly the kind of person who should like David Sedaris.I am a sarcastic Generation Xer with an overdeveloped sense of irony. I enjoy reading personal essays about poi...

I like funny stuff a lot. So much so, that I'm always on the lookout for a good quote to use as a timely comeback. I say this fully aware, that I will most probably end up misquoting it, and thus ruin the whole thing. But the principle of the thing stands: I read something hilarious, that might have related to this thing...probably.Me Talk Pretty One Day is one of those books that sounded awfully preachy, based on its title alone. But then I stumbled on a totally hilarious audio excerpt, which a...

Witty, wry, bitter, delightful.My mom gave me the book. I was living in France at the time, so she thought David Sedaris and I would have a ton in common. She went to a Sedaris booksigning to get a personalized message to her gay son in France. After he was done reading, she jumped up to get him to write a note to me, "David! My son is gay! He's living in France right now, please sign this copy for him!" He had already started an orderly signing process, going down the rows. He looked at her dis...

Me talk Pretty one day, David Sedaris Me Talk Pretty One Day, published in 2000, is a bestselling collection of essays by American humorist David Sedaris. The book is separated into two parts. The first part consists of essays about Sedaris’s life before his move to Normandy, France, including his upbringing in suburban Raleigh, North Carolina, his time working odd jobs in New York City, and a visit to New York from a childhood friend and her bumpkinish girlfriend. The second section, "Deux", te...

I've been thinking a lot about this, and I have come to the conclusion that David Sedaris is one of the worst human beings in history, i.e., since human beings were first invented by an incompetent, Jerry Lewis-like god or by the inscrutable permutations of natural phenomena. This isn't a moral judgment. It's more like when someone tells you that you have spinach stuck in your teeth. It's both the mere reportage of a fact and a public service. Because, after all, you wouldn't want to walk around...

Ah! My first David Sedaris read--not counting the weird Squirrel book--and I finally understand what all the fuss is about. The humor is so good it's mesmerizing. I'm in awe of his ability to make ordinary life sparkle through such rich narration.There is no mundane task that Sedaris cannot do without dazzling the reader. Anything and everything is cause for social commentary and uproarious observation. From learning to play the guitar to going to the movies to an unusually large turd floating i...

A reviewer was correct when he said: "Sedaris can turn a rant into a thing of beauty." (Michael Upchurch-Seattle Times) But only correct about the noun/verb "rant." That he does in profusion; all these "essays" are rants about his life & times. But "Thing of beauty?" Absolutely not.For a popular writer, Mr. Sedaris maintains that he is more important than anything else, anybody else, any other subject. He only looks at himself in situations and tells us his witty reactions/musings. Funny, a litt...

Sedaris is a quirky kind of writer. I needed a palate cleanser after the last few heavy reads and this one delivered. From a betrayal of the tongue (which required speech therapy), to a midget music teacher and some various comical moments in his life, his memoir had me chuckling out loud and talking about it to whomever was in the room. But alas, a third of the way in, it read like a rant and I quickly became bored. What began as a breath of fresh air became stale but did give a final gasp at t...

This book has been my tube companion for the past fortnight. It is the perfect accompaniment to the London commute for two reasons:1) The essays are perfectly formed, so you can be assured that you'll be able to finish 3 little chunks over 40 minutes or so. Once the train trundled into Westminster station I would know to quicken my pace so as to finish another section before alighting at Blackfriars and elbowing some bankers.2) My tube line is the epitome of the British stiff upper lip. People's...

Since the Coronavirus pandemic was declared, I started to watch more stand-up comedy and follow The Daily Show with Trevor Noah (from his home). I felt like I needed a laugh between my constant watching of the Coronavirus cases count and the news reports about the same enemy. I wanted to read David Sedaris for the same reason, to lighten my days a bit. I enjoyed listening to his narration of this essay collection but I can't say I was entertained. I laughed maybe once or twice and for the rest I...

David Sedaris and friendThis loosely autobiographical memoir from humorist David Sedaris is divided into essays, many of which are laugh out loud funny. The topics include Sedaris's childhood rebellion against speech therapy, unwanted guitar lessons taught by a midget, drug fueled (and extended) college years, weird presentations as an untalented performance artist, amusing interactions with his family and friends, living in France with his boyfriend Hugh, and more. I listened to the audio versi...

Yes. I realize this book is supposed to be hilarious. Yes. I realize I'm not a hip gen-x'er if I don't happen to think it is. Yet...I feel like Sedaris accurately summed up his entire approach to writing on page 44: "True art was based upon despair, and the important thing was to make yourself and those around you as miserable as possible." He meant this as satire, I'm sure...but what I found truly halarious was that he didn't even realize that he just described the book I was currently reading....

Great way to spend your weekend! Please turn on the audiobook and listen this spectacular, smart, extremely humorous essays! First part consists of author’s life before his move to France. Some snippets from suburban Raleigh/ NC life and moving to big apple, working at bizarre jobs for making ends meet. ( so entertaining)But the second part (in French “ deux”) about moving to Normandy / France with his partner Hugh, adjusting process, his efforts to talk in French and suffering from failures was...

Incredibly, this is the first Sedaris book I've read, and it more than lives up to the hype.Calling him a humourist doesn't do him justice. Sure, he's read-aloud-to-your-friends funny, but he's also a shrewd social satirist and very, very smart, able to evoke the pain of childhood speech therapy classes, the humiliation of learning French as an adult, or the mortification of finding a huge turd in a friend's toilet (this latter story, by the way, is only in the abridged audio version of the book...

3.5 stars from me!My real life book club choose this for our January book read. I'm glad they did because this was a funny and quirky book to read. I enjoyed all the stories of his family, his time in Paris, living in NYC and also trying to learn how to speak French.David Sedaris has a unique and funny way of looking at situations and I loved it! I will definitely read more books of his in the future.Recommended for people who like to laugh, who like witty dialogue and who do not get offended by...