Every Book by David Sedaris

The was the first book I read by David Sedaris, and while I have read most of his other book it is still my favorite. He is an acquired taste. I know people who love his humor and others who don't like it (or possibly "get it") at all. The book is basically a compliation of short stories, and these are mostly about his family, and what an odd family it is! "The Ship Shape" is my favorite story and a good example of his work. One more thing — if you ever have a chance to hear him read his stories, that adds another layer. His delivery is fantastic. I heard him read on NPR, but hope to see him in person one day.

Sedaris will bring you to tears with his humor and his honesty. No book has ever made me laugh out loud more, subjecting me to strange looks in coffee shops. And no book has ever garnered me more allies after those same people eventually picked up a copy. Sedaris' anecdotal tales from growing up with a speech impediment, a crazy Greek father and a harem of sisters make the reader feel like his best friend standing in the living room as the craziness unfolds.

Holidays on Ice is a small, attractive book, and is definitely a hilarious read obviously during the holidays, but year round as well. A book of great stories, his take on working in a department store as an elf is worth the read. David has a book on bestseller lists, they're all funny, this one is just special, been around awhile, still reads fresh. Best of his books, in my humble opinion.

The second book by David Sedaris is more of the same: a collection of essays that you may have heard on NPR or read in the New Yorker and that you desperately wished you had experienced, written, or could hear again. The title, Naked, refers to an episode at the end where Sedaris spends some time at a nudist trailer park (who thought the word "colony" was too creepy). Sedaris, who's normally so uptight that even at home alone he keeps his shoes and belt on, takes a long look at the people who make up the nudist movement and the things they do and finds them congenial and accepting. And discovers why you must BRING YOUR OWN TOWELS. But better than that — Sedaris lays naked every single one of his own fears and foibles. Every stupid thing he's done, every embarrassing moment he's suffered is not just retold, but given the kind of scrutiny that would make an ordinary person want to zip themselves into a sleeping bag and hide under the bed. For me, the enduring attraction of Sedaris is that contradiction. The portrayal of a weak, insecure, stumbling man by an author with the strength of will never to look away, no matter how the subject squirms is even more amazing when they're the same guy.

Sedaris' first book is mostly short stories, not essays (like his later work), and it's not as polished as Me Talk Pretty One Day. That said, it's a fun read... and as one reviewer put it, "if you like witty and humorous stories about alcoholics and dysfunctional families, you will like this." Exactly.